Motets (Bruckner)

Anton Bruckner composed about 40 motets during his life, the earliest, a setting of Pange lingua, in c.1835, the last, Vexilla regis in 1892.

Youth works

Before 1841 only a single work, a motet, has indubitably been composed by Bruckner.

The few other works of this period in Grasberger's catalogue are either obviously not by Bruckner or of doubtful authenticity. Domine, ad adjuvandum me festina ("O Lord, make haste to help me"; WAB 136) is a composition of Johann Baptist Weiß. The five preludes in E-flat major for organ (WAB 127 and 128) and a few other organ works found in Bruckner's Orgelbuch are presumably transcriptions of works of Johann Baptist Weiß or other composers.

Windhaag and Kronstorf

Between 3 October 1841 and 23 September 1845, during his stay as schoolteacher's assistant in Windhaag and Kronstorf, successively, Bruckner composed the three early masses Windhaager Messe, Kronstorfer Messe, and Messe für den Gründonnerstag. During his stay in Kronstorf he composed also his first name-day cantata Vergißmeinnicht and a few motets:

Sankt Florian

Between 23 September 1845 and 24 December 1855, during his stay as organist in Sankt Florian monastery, Bruckner composed the Magnificat, the Requiem, the Missa solemnis, Psalms 22 and 114, and four name-day cantatas Entsagen, the Arneth Cantata, the Mayer Cantata, and the Festgesang, as well as the following motets:

Related works

Linz

Between 24 December 1855 and 1 October 1868 Bruckner staid in Linz. During Sechter's tuition (from mid 1855 till 26 March 1861) Bruckner finalised the Psalm 146, which he had drafted during his stay in Sankt Florian, and composed only a few small works, of which a single motet:

After the end of Sechter's tuition till 10 July 1863 Bruckner studied further by Otto Kitzler. During this period he composed the String Quartet in C minor, his first orchestral compositions (the Four Orchestral Pieces, the Overture in G minor and the Study Symphony in F minor) and a few other compositions as the Festive Cantata Preiset den Herrn, the Psalm 112 and Germanenzug. After the end of Kitzler's tuition, Bruckner composed successively the masses Nos. 1, 2 and 3 and his first symphony.

During the period following Sechter's tuition Bruckner composed also a few motets:

Vienna

Between 1 October 1868 and 11 October 1896, during the "Vienna period" Bruckner devoted the most his time to his symphonies, with, between Symphonies No. 5 and 6, the String Quintet in F major, between Symphonies No. 6 and 7, the Te Deum, and, between Symphonies No. 8 and 9, Psalm 150 and the secular cantata Helgoland. In between Bruckner composed also the following motets:

Discography

Some motets, as Locus iste and three other graduals, and the Ave Maria WAB 6, are very popular and are often put on LPs / CDs together with religious works of several composers, or as extras of a larger religious work (Mass No. 2). Frieder Bernius, Matthew Best, Uwe Gronostay, Simon Halsey, Philippe Herreweghe and Stephen Layton have recorded each 5 to 10 of the most popular motets, sometimes with the two Aequali.

Other conductors have devoted LPs / CDs more specifically to Bruckner's motets, sometimes with the two Aequali, the early masses or other "forgotten" works, as the Missa solemnis, the Magnificat, the earlier Psalms 22, 114 and 112: Eugen Jochum (1966), Hubert Günther (c.1976), Hans Zanotelli (1979), Martin Flämig (1985), Robert Jones (1994), Rupert Gottfried Frieberger (1995 and 2007), Jonathan Brown (1997), Petr Fiala (2006), Erwin Ortner (2008), Thomas Kerbl (2009 and 2011), Duncan Ferguson (2010) and Philipp von Steinäcker (2014).

There is as yet no commercial album with all the motets. A compilation in the chronological order of Band XXI of the Gesamtausgabe has been issued by Hans Roelofs: CD set DutchDragon HR 815-817.[1]

References

  1. CD set Kleine Kirchenmusikwerke

Sources

External links

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