Mass No. 1 in

F major F major (or the key of F) is a major scale based on F, with the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature has one flat. Its relative minor is D minor and its parallel minor is F minor. The F major scale is: : F major is the ...

, 105, is a

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 eleme ...

composed by

Franz Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short lifetime, Schubert left behind a vast ''oeuvre'', including more than 600 secular vocal wo ...

in 1814. It is scored for two soprano soloists, two

tenor A tenor is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The low extreme for tenors is wide ...

soloists, alto and bass soloists,

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 ...

choir,

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. ...

, clarinet, bassoon, 2

horn Horn most often refers to: *Horn (acoustic), a conical or bell shaped aperture used to guide sound ** Horn (instrument), collective name for tube-shaped wind musical instruments *Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various ...

violin The violin, sometimes known as a '' fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone ( string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument ( soprano) in the family in regu ...

I and II,

viola ; german: Bratsche , alt=Viola shown from the front and the side , image=Bratsche.jpg , caption= , background=string , hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow , range= , related= *Violin family ...

, and (

cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C2, G ...

double bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox additions such as the octobass). Similar i ...

and organ). It was the first of Schubert's masses to be performed, and is of the ' type.

Background

The mass was composed for the centennial celebration of the parish church of Lichtental, now part of Vienna. The Schuberts' family church, it is also known as ' (Schubert church). Schubert received an invitation to compose a mass for the anniversary in May 1814. The premiere was conducted on 25 September with an estimated 62 performers, a large contingent for contemporary performances. The composer's brother

Ferdinand Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "protection", "peace" (PIE "to love, to make peace") or alternatively "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "co ...

played the organ, Michael Holzer served as

choirmaster A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...

Joseph Mayseder Joseph Mayseder (27 October 1789 – 21 November 1863) was an Austrian violin virtuoso and composer. Biography Mayseder showed musical promise from an early age, and was a student of Joseph Suche (1797), Paul Wranitzky (1798) and Ignaz Schupp ...

served as

concertmaster The concertmaster (from the German ''Konzertmeister''), first chair (U.S.) or leader (U.K.) is the principal first violin player in an orchestra (or clarinet in a concert band). After the conductor, the concertmaster is the second-most signifi ...

Therese Grob Therese Grob (16 November 1798 – 17 March 1875) was a singer and is alleged to have been the first love of the composer Franz Schubert. The composer's friend Anselm Hüttenbrenner recalled – twenty-six years after Schubert's death: "F ...

sang the soprano solo, and Schubert conducted. Schubert's teacher

Antonio Salieri Antonio Salieri (18 August 17507 May 1825) was an Italian classical composer, conductor, and teacher. He was born in Legnago, south of Verona, in the Republic of Venice, and spent his adult life and career as a subject of the Habsburg monarchy ...

may have attended the premiere; afterwards, he is said to have embraced his student with the words "" ("You will bring me yet more honour"). Ferdinand wrote that a second performance took place ten days later at St Augustine's Court Church, before a prestigious audience that may have included foreign dignitaries. Schubert's love for Therese Grob may have been kindled during the writing of this mass. The prominent first soprano solo, with its high

tessitura In music, tessitura (, pl. ''tessiture'', "texture"; ) is the most acceptable and comfortable vocal range for a given singer or less frequently, musical instrument, the range in which a given type of voice presents its best-sounding (or characte ...

, was designed to showcase her voice. Schubert composed an alternative ' (formerly 185) in April 1815. This may have been composed for a service during the public outcry over Napoleon's escape from Elba; alternatively, it may have been for a second performance of the mass at the Lichtental church on

Trinity Sunday Trinity Sunday is the first Sunday after Pentecost in the Western Christian liturgical calendar, and the Sunday of Pentecost in Eastern Christianity. Trinity Sunday celebrates the Christian doctrine of the Trinity, the three Persons of God: th ...

. It replaces a shorter, less fugal section in the 1814 version.

Structure

The piece is divided into six movements. Performances require approximately 40 minutes. Notes are based on Schubert's 1815 revision. #"" , F major, 6/8 #"" , C major, cut common time #:"..." , F major, 3/4; STB soloists #::"..." choir #:"..." , D minor,

common time The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note val ...

; SATB soloists and choir #:"..." , C major, common time #:"..." , C major, cut common time #"" , F major, 3/4 #"" , F major, common time #"" , B-flat major, 3/4; soprano and tenor quartette #"" , F minor, common time #:"..." , F major, 6/8

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Masses by Franz Schubert 1814 compositions 1814 in the Austrian Empire Compositions in F major