The in C is a composition by
František Xaver Brixi
František () is a masculine given name of Czech origin. It is a cognate of Francis, Francisco, François, and Franz. People with the name include:
*Frank Daniel (František Daniel) (1926–1996), Czech film director, producer, and screenwrite ...
. The
missa brevis
Missa brevis (plural: Missae breves) is . The term usually refers to a mass composition that is short because part of the text of the Mass ordinary that is usually set to music in a full mass is left out, or because its execution time is relati ...
(short mass) is a setting of the
Tridentine Mass
The Tridentine Mass, also known as the Traditional Latin Mass or Traditional Rite, is the liturgy of Mass in the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church that appears in typical editions of the Roman Missal published from 1570 to 1962. Celebrated almo ...
for
SATB
SATB is an initialism that describes the scoring of compositions for choirs, and also choirs (or consorts) of instruments. The initials are for the voice types: S for soprano, A for alto, T for tenor and B for bass.
Choral music
Four-part harm ...
soloists and choir, trumpets, timpani, strings and organ. Manuscripts were held in several monasteries in today's Czech Republic, Austria and Germany. It was published by
Dr. J. Butz in 2004.
History
František Xaver Brixi
František () is a masculine given name of Czech origin. It is a cognate of Francis, Francisco, François, and Franz. People with the name include:
*Frank Daniel (František Daniel) (1926–1996), Czech film director, producer, and screenwrite ...
became ''regens chori'' (choir director) and
kapellmeister
(, also , ) from German ''Kapelle'' (chapel) and ''Meister'' (master)'','' literally "master of the chapel choir" designates the leader of an ensemble of musicians. Originally used to refer to somebody in charge of music in a chapel, the term ha ...
of Prague's
St. Vitus Cathedral
, native_name_lang = Czech
, image = St Vitus Prague September 2016-21.jpg
, imagesize = 300px
, imagelink =
, imagealt =
, landscape =
, caption ...
in 1759 at age 27 and held the position until his death in 1771.
He was a prolific composer of music for the liturgy, who wrote more than 100
mass
Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...
es,
vespers
Vespers is a service of evening prayer, one of the canonical hours in Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Catholic Church, Catholic (both Latin liturgical rites, Latin and Eastern Catholic Churches, Eastern), Lutheranism, Lutheran, and Anglican ...
and
motet
In Western classical music, a motet is mainly a vocal musical composition, of highly diverse form and style, from high medieval music to the present. The motet was one of the pre-eminent polyphonic forms of Renaissance music. According to Margar ...
s, among others. He also composed secular music such as
oratorio
An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is mus ...
s and
incidental music
Incidental music is music in a play, television program, radio program, video game, or some other presentation form that is not primarily musical. The term is less frequently applied to film music, with such music being referred to instead as t ...
,
concerto
A concerto (; plural ''concertos'', or ''concerti'' from the Italian plural) is, from the late Baroque era, mostly understood as an instrumental composition, written for one or more soloists accompanied by an orchestra or other ensemble. The typi ...
s and
symphonies
A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning com ...
.
He composed the Missa brevis in C, a setting of the Latin
order of Mass
Order of Mass is an outline of a Mass celebration, describing how and in what order liturgical texts and rituals are employed to constitute a Mass.
The expression Order of Mass is particularly tied to the Roman Rite where the sections under that ...
, for
SATB
SATB is an initialism that describes the scoring of compositions for choirs, and also choirs (or consorts) of instruments. The initials are for the voice types: S for soprano, A for alto, T for tenor and B for bass.
Choral music
Four-part harm ...
soloists and choir, trumpets, timpani, strings and organ.
The duration is given as 13 minutes.
The mass was often copied, indicating that it was widely distributed. Five extant
manuscript
A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand – or, once practical typewriters became available, typewritten – as opposed to mechanically printing, printed or repr ...
s have been found, three in today's Czech Republic, including
Sedlec Abbey
Sedlec Abbey is a former Cistercian monastery in Sedlec, part of Kutná Hora in the Czech Republic. Founded in 1142, it was the first Cistercian foundation in Bohemia. Along with the rest of the Kutná Hora town centre, it was listed as a UNES ...
in
Kutná Hora
Kutná Hora (; medieval Czech: ''Hory Kutné''; german: Kuttenberg) is a town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 20,000 inhabitants. The centre of Kutná Hora, including the Sedlec Abbey and its ossuary, was designa ...
, in
Litoměřice
Litoměřice (; german: Leitmeritz) is a town in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 23,000 inhabitants. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument reservation.
The town is the seat ...
and Prague, in Austria in the
Kremsmünster Abbey
Kremsmünster Abbey (german: Stift Kremsmünster) is a Benedictine monastery in Kremsmünster in Upper Austria.
History
The monastery was founded in 777 AD by Tassilo III, Duke of Bavaria. According to the foundation legend, Tassilo founded the ...
, and in Germany in the
Ottobeuren Abbey
Ottobeuren is a Benedictine abbey, located in Ottobeuren, near Memmingen in the Bavarian Allgäu, Germany.
For part of its history Ottobeuren Abbey was one of the 40-odd self-ruling imperial abbeys of the Holy Roman Empire and, as such, was a vi ...
. Some of the copies indicate the timpani, or the trumpets also, as optional.
The mass was first published by
Dr. J. Butz in 2004, edited by Friedrich Hägele.
It has been described as marked by a balanced mix of
homophony
In music, homophony (;, Greek: ὁμόφωνος, ''homóphōnos'', from ὁμός, ''homós'', "same" and φωνή, ''phōnē'', "sound, tone") is a texture in which a primary part is supported by one or more additional strands that flesh ou ...
and
polyphony
Polyphony ( ) is a type of musical texture consisting of two or more simultaneous lines of independent melody, as opposed to a musical texture with just one voice, monophony, or a texture with one dominant melodic voice accompanied by chords, h ...
, with
cantabile
In music, ''cantabile'' , an Italian word, means literally "singable" or "songlike". In instrumental music, it is a particular style of playing designed to imitate the human voice.
For 18th-century composers, ''cantabile'' is often synonymous wi ...
solos. It is short enough for use in church services, and recommended as an alternative to other works from the
classical period.
References
External links
František Xaver Brixi (1732 – 1771) / Missa Brevis In C-Durstretta-music.de
{{authority control
Masses (music)
18th-century compositions
Compositions in C major