Festgesang (Gutenberg cantata)
Encyclopedia
The Festgesang, also known as Festgesang zur Eröffnung der am ersten Tage der vierten Säkularfeier der Erfindung der Buchdruckerkunst, was composed by Felix Mendelssohn
in the first half of 1840 for performance in Leipzig at the celebrations to mark the putative quatercentenary
of the invention of printing with movable type
by Johannes Gutenberg. It was first performed in the market-square at Leipzig on 24 June 1840.
The piece is scored for male chorus with two brass orchestras and timpani, and consists of four parts, the first and last based on established Lutheran chorales. Part 2, beginning "Vaterland, in deinen Gauen", was later adapted to the words of Wesley's Christmas carol
"Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
". The original German words for the Festgesang were by Adolf Eduard Proelss (1803–1882). The use of a large choir and two orchestras was designed to make use of the natural acoustics of the market-place to produce an impressive, resonant sound.
Mendelssohn wrote at least two other "Festgesänge", with which the present work are sometimes confused, known as "Festgesang an die Künstler
" (1846) and "Festgesang ('Möge das Siegeszeichen')" (1838).
Felix Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Barthóldy , use the form 'Mendelssohn' and not 'Mendelssohn Bartholdy'. The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians gives ' Felix Mendelssohn' as the entry, with 'Mendelssohn' used in the body text...
in the first half of 1840 for performance in Leipzig at the celebrations to mark the putative quatercentenary
Anniversary
An anniversary is a day that commemorates or celebrates a past event that occurred on the same day of the year as the initial event. For example, the first event is the initial occurrence or, if planned, the inaugural of the event. One year later would be the first anniversary of that event...
of the invention of printing with movable type
Movable type
Movable type is the system of printing and typography that uses movable components to reproduce the elements of a document ....
by Johannes Gutenberg. It was first performed in the market-square at Leipzig on 24 June 1840.
The piece is scored for male chorus with two brass orchestras and timpani, and consists of four parts, the first and last based on established Lutheran chorales. Part 2, beginning "Vaterland, in deinen Gauen", was later adapted to the words of Wesley's Christmas carol
Christmas carol
A Christmas carol is a carol whose lyrics are on the theme of Christmas or the winter season in general and which are traditionally sung in the period before Christmas.-History:...
"Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
“Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” is a Christmas carol that first appeared in 1739 in the collection Hymns and Sacred Poems, having been written by Charles Wesley. This is not the version widely known today. A sombre man, Wesley had requested and received slow and solemn music for his lyrics, not the...
". The original German words for the Festgesang were by Adolf Eduard Proelss (1803–1882). The use of a large choir and two orchestras was designed to make use of the natural acoustics of the market-place to produce an impressive, resonant sound.
Mendelssohn wrote at least two other "Festgesänge", with which the present work are sometimes confused, known as "Festgesang an die Künstler
Festgesang an die Künstler
Felix Mendelssohn composed the cantata Festgesang an die Künstler, Op. 68, in 1846 as an entry to a German-Flemish song competition, and it was published later that same year. Some sources confuse this Festgesang with one written in 1840 for the Gutenberg Festival at Leipzig, the Festgesang...
" (1846) and "Festgesang ('Möge das Siegeszeichen')" (1838).