Missa (Bach)
Encyclopedia
A Missa of Johann Sebastian Bach
is in general a composition of the Latin
Mass
by the German Baroque
composer.
More specifically, Missa (or Missa brevis or Lutheran Mass) refers to one of his four short mass
es in F major, A major, G minor and G major, BWV
233 to 236. These masses consist of a Kyrie
and a Gloria
.
church musician and devoted to the composition of sacred music in German. He wrote more than 200 cantata
s for the liturgy, most of them in Leipzig
. In 1724 he composed a Sanctus
for Christmas, which he later integrated into his Mass in B minor. He composed a setting of the Magnificat
in 1723, and then significantly revised it in 1733. In 1733 he composed a setting of Kyrie
and Gloria
for the court of Dresden, which would later form the first parts of his Mass in B minor, his only complete mass (or missa tota). He used three movements of this Gloria
to compose his cantata Gloria in excelsis Deo, BWV 191
, possibly for a performance in 1745.
which is short in duration. Sometimes the works are termed Lutheran mass, because the combination of only Kyrie and Gloria was used more frequently in the Lutheran liturgy.
They seem to have been intended for liturgical use, considering a performance time of about 20 minutes each, the average duration of a Bach cantata. They may have been composed around 1738/39. Possibly they were written for Count Franz Anton von Sporck
or performed by him in Lysá
.
Each Missa is in six movements, the Kyrie one choral movement in three sections, the Gloria in five movements. The first and last movement of the Gloria are also choral, framing three aria
s for different voice type
s. The music consists mostly of parodies
of cantata movements. He changed the music slightly to adjust to the Latin words, but kept the original instrumentation. The opening chorus of Es wartet alles auf dich, BWV 187
, became the final movement of the Missa in G minor, Cum sancto spiritu. Occasionally he switched a voice part, for example he asked for a tenor
in the Quoniam of that Missa, a parody of the soprano
aria Halt ich nur fest an ihm of that cantata.
The four masses are
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
is in general a composition of the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
Mass
Mass (liturgy)
"Mass" is one of the names by which the sacrament of the Eucharist is called in the Roman Catholic Church: others are "Eucharist", the "Lord's Supper", the "Breaking of Bread", the "Eucharistic assembly ", the "memorial of the Lord's Passion and Resurrection", the "Holy Sacrifice", the "Holy and...
by the German Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
composer.
More specifically, Missa (or Missa brevis or Lutheran Mass) refers to one of his four short mass
Mass (music)
The Mass, a form of sacred musical composition, is a choral composition that sets the invariable portions of the Eucharistic liturgy to music...
es in F major, A major, G minor and G major, BWV
BWV
The Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis is the numbering system identifying compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach. The prefix BWV, followed by the work's number, is the shorthand identification for Bach's compositions...
233 to 236. These masses consist of a Kyrie
Kyrie
Kyrie, a transliteration of Greek κύριε , vocative case of κύριος , meaning "Lord", is the common name of an important prayer of Christian liturgy, which is also called the Kýrie, eléison ....
and a Gloria
Gloria in Excelsis Deo
"Gloria in excelsis Deo" is the title and beginning of a hymn known also as the Greater Doxology and the Angelic Hymn. The name is often abbreviated to Gloria in Excelsis or simply Gloria.It is an example of the psalmi idiotici "Gloria in excelsis Deo" (Latin for "Glory to God in the highest")...
.
Bach's church music in Latin
Bach was a LutheranLutheranism
Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the theology of Martin Luther, a German reformer. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...
church musician and devoted to the composition of sacred music in German. He wrote more than 200 cantata
Bach cantata
Bach cantata became a term for a cantata of the German Baroque composer Johann Sebastian Bach who was a prolific writer of the genre. Although many of his works are lost, around 200 cantatas survived....
s for the liturgy, most of them in Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
. In 1724 he composed a Sanctus
Sanctus
The Sanctus is a hymn from Christian liturgy, forming part of the Order of Mass. In Western Christianity, the Sanctus is sung as the final words of the Preface of the Eucharistic Prayer, the prayer of consecration of the bread and wine...
for Christmas, which he later integrated into his Mass in B minor. He composed a setting of the Magnificat
Magnificat (Bach)
The Magnificat in D major, BWV 243, is a major vocal work of Johann Sebastian Bach. It was composed for orchestra, a five-part choir and four or five soloists. The text is the canticle of Mary, mother of Jesus, as told by Luke the Evangelist .Bach composed an initial version in E flat major in 1723...
in 1723, and then significantly revised it in 1733. In 1733 he composed a setting of Kyrie
Kyrie
Kyrie, a transliteration of Greek κύριε , vocative case of κύριος , meaning "Lord", is the common name of an important prayer of Christian liturgy, which is also called the Kýrie, eléison ....
and Gloria
Gloria in Excelsis Deo
"Gloria in excelsis Deo" is the title and beginning of a hymn known also as the Greater Doxology and the Angelic Hymn. The name is often abbreviated to Gloria in Excelsis or simply Gloria.It is an example of the psalmi idiotici "Gloria in excelsis Deo" (Latin for "Glory to God in the highest")...
for the court of Dresden, which would later form the first parts of his Mass in B minor, his only complete mass (or missa tota). He used three movements of this Gloria
Gloria in Excelsis Deo
"Gloria in excelsis Deo" is the title and beginning of a hymn known also as the Greater Doxology and the Angelic Hymn. The name is often abbreviated to Gloria in Excelsis or simply Gloria.It is an example of the psalmi idiotici "Gloria in excelsis Deo" (Latin for "Glory to God in the highest")...
to compose his cantata Gloria in excelsis Deo, BWV 191
Gloria in excelsis Deo, BWV 191
Gloria in excelsis Deo , BWV 191, is a sacred cantata written by the German Baroque composer Johann Sebastian Bach, and the only one of his church cantatas set to a Latin text. It was likely first performed in Leipzig at Christmas of 1745 to celebrate the end of the Second Silesian War...
, possibly for a performance in 1745.
Bach's short masses
Bach wrote four other settings of Kyrie and Gloria, sometimes called Missa brevis (plural: Missae breves). The attribute brevis in this case means short in words, unlike the Missa brevis of the classical periodClassical period (music)
The dates of the Classical Period in Western music are generally accepted as being between about 1750 and 1830. However, the term classical music is used colloquially to describe a variety of Western musical styles from the ninth century to the present, and especially from the sixteenth or...
which is short in duration. Sometimes the works are termed Lutheran mass, because the combination of only Kyrie and Gloria was used more frequently in the Lutheran liturgy.
They seem to have been intended for liturgical use, considering a performance time of about 20 minutes each, the average duration of a Bach cantata. They may have been composed around 1738/39. Possibly they were written for Count Franz Anton von Sporck
Franz Anton von Sporck
Franz Anton von Sporck, Count was a German-speaking literatus and patron of the arts who lived in the province of Bohemia in what is now the Czech Republic...
or performed by him in Lysá
Lysá nad Labem
Lysá nad Labem is a town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 8,500 inhabitants.The first historical references date back to 1052. In 1291, Queen Guta issued a charter to unite settlements of the Lysá estate into one economical unit.-External links:* *...
.
Each Missa is in six movements, the Kyrie one choral movement in three sections, the Gloria in five movements. The first and last movement of the Gloria are also choral, framing three aria
Aria
An aria in music was originally any expressive melody, usually, but not always, performed by a singer. The term is now used almost exclusively to describe a self-contained piece for one voice usually with orchestral accompaniment...
s for different voice type
Voice type
A voice type is a particular kind of human singing voice perceived as having certain identifying qualities or characteristics. Voice classification is the process by which human voices are evaluated and are thereby designated into voice types...
s. The music consists mostly of parodies
Parody music
Parody music, or musical parody, involves changing or recycling existing musical ideas or lyrics — or copying the peculiar style of a composer or artist, or even a general style of music. Although the result is often funny, and this is the usual intent — the term "parody" in musical terms also...
of cantata movements. He changed the music slightly to adjust to the Latin words, but kept the original instrumentation. The opening chorus of Es wartet alles auf dich, BWV 187
Es wartet alles auf dich, BWV 187
Es wartet alles auf dich , BWV 187, is a church cantata written by Johann Sebastian Bach in 1726 in Leipzig for the seventh Sunday after Trinity...
, became the final movement of the Missa in G minor, Cum sancto spiritu. Occasionally he switched a voice part, for example he asked for a tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
in the Quoniam of that Missa, a parody of the soprano
Soprano
A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
aria Halt ich nur fest an ihm of that cantata.
The four masses are
- Missa in F major, BWV 233, scored for horns, oboes, bassoon, strings, SATBSATBIn music, SATB is an initialism for soprano, alto, tenor, bass, defining the voices required by a chorus or choir to perform a particular musical work...
, basso continuo - Missa in A major, BWV 234, scored for flute, strings, SATB, basso continuo
- Missa in G minor, BWV 235, scored for oboes, strings, SATB, basso continuo
- Missa in G major, BWV 236, scored for oboes, strings, SATB, basso continuo
Missa in F major
Missa in A major
Missa in G minor
Missa in G major
Recordings of all Missae breves
- J.S. Bach: Missae Breves, Hans Grischkat, Schwäbischer Singkreis Stuttgart, Ton-Studio Orchestra Stuttgart, Agnes GiebelAgnes GiebelAgnes Giebel is a German soprano. She was born in Heerlen, in the Netherlands, where she lived the first years of her life. She studied at the Folkwang Hochschule in Essen and made her first public appearance as a singer in 1947. Her career lasted until the 1990s during which she established a...
, Lotte Wolf-Matthäus, Werner Hohmann, Franz KelchFranz KelchFranz Kelch is a German bass-baritone lied and oratorio singer. His discography includes works of Johann Sebastian Bach, Dietrich Buxtehude, George Frederick Handel and Claudio Monteverdi.- Biography :...
, Renaissance / Baroque Music Club early 1950s? - J.S. Bach: Masses, Helmuth RillingHelmuth RillingHelmuth Rilling is an internationally known German choral conductor, founder of the Gächinger Kantorei , the Bach-Collegium Stuttgart , the Oregon Bach Festival , the Internationale Bachakademie Stuttgart and other Bach Academies worldwide, and the "Festival Ensemble Stuttgart"...
, Gächinger KantoreiGächinger KantoreiGächinger Kantorei is an internationally known German mixed choir, founded by Helmuth Rilling in 1954 in Gächingen and still conducted by him. A "Kantorei" is a choir of high standard dedicated mostly, but not exclusively, to sacred music. The ensemble operates in Stuttgart now and is therefore...
, Bach-Collegium StuttgartBach-Collegium StuttgartBach-Collegium Stuttgart is an internationally known German instrumental ensemble, founded by Helmuth Rilling in 1965 to accompany the Gächinger Kantorei in choral music with orchestra...
, Elisabeth Speiser, Ingeborg Ruß, John van KesterenJohn van KesterenJohn van Kesteren was a Dutch operatic tenor.Van Kesteren first worked as an electronic telex specialist for the Dutch Telegraph Company PTT. His very first appearance as a non-professional singer was in 1942 with an operetta company in Apeldoorn in the French operetta The Bells of Corneville...
, Gerhard Faulstich, Jakob StämpfliJakob Stämpfli (bass)Jakob Stämpfli is a Swiss bass concert singer and an influential academic teacher and director of the conservatory in Bern, also a teacher in Saarbrücken.-Biography:...
, Intercord 1967 - Bach: Messen BWV 233-236, Martin FlämigMartin FlämigMartin Flämig was a German church musician, cantor of the Dresdner Kreuzchor from 1971 to 1991.- Biography :...
, Dresdner KreuzchorDresdner KreuzchorThe Dresdner Kreuzchor is the boys' choir of the Kreuzkirche in Dresden. It has a seven century history. Today the choir has about 150 members from the age of 9-19 from Dresden and the surrounding region. Most of the boys live in a boarding school. The Choir Boys are also called "Kruzianer". The...
, Dresdner Philharmonie, Renate Krahmer, Annelies Burmeister, Peter SchreierPeter SchreierPeter Schreier is a German tenor and conductor.-Early life:Schreier was born in Meissen, Saxony, and spent his first years in the small village of Gauernitz, near Meissen, where his father was a teacher, cantor and organist...
, Theo AdamTheo AdamTheo Adam is a distinguished German classical bass-baritone who had an active international career in operas, concerts, and recitals from the 1940s through the 1990s. He particularly excelled in portraying roles from the operas of Richard Wagner...
, Eterna 1972 - The Great Choral Masterpieces, Peter SchreierPeter SchreierPeter Schreier is a German tenor and conductor.-Early life:Schreier was born in Meissen, Saxony, and spent his first years in the small village of Gauernitz, near Meissen, where his father was a teacher, cantor and organist...
, RIAS KammerchorRIAS KammerchorThe RIAS Kammerchor is a professional chamber choir of the RIAS in Berlin, founded originally for contemporary music, with an international reputation.-History:...
, Kammerorchester Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, Barbara BonneyBarbara Bonney-Early life:Bonney was born in Montclair, New Jersey. As a child she studied piano and cello. When Bonney was 13 her family moved to Maine, where she became part of the Portland Youth Orchestra as a cellist...
, Birgit Remmert, Rainer Trost, Olaf BärOlaf BärOlaf Bär is a German operatic baritone.- Life :Bär received his musical training in his home city of Dresden, studying at the city's Hochschule für Musik. His career has concentrated on lieder and on the lyric baritone roles of the operatic repertoire...
, Philips 1991 - J.S. Bach: Missae Breves BWV 233-236, Patrick Peire, Capella Brugensis, Collegium Instrumentale Brugense, Greta de Reyghere, Wilke te Brummelstroete, James GilchristJames Gilchrist (tenor)James Gilchrist is a British tenor specialising in recital and oratoria singing. He began his working life as a doctor, turning to a full-time music career in 1996...
, Jan van der CrabbenJan van der CrabbenJan van der Crabben is a Belgian baritone singer.Born in 1964 in Ghent, Belgium, van der Crabben studied music at the Etterbeek Academy under the direction of Aquiles Delle Vigne and subsequently at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels...
, Eufoda 2000 - J.S. Bach: Complete Cantatas Vol. 22, Ton KoopmanTon KoopmanTon Koopman is a conductor, organist and harpsichordist.Koopman had a "classical education" and then studied the organ , harpsichord and musicology in Amsterdam...
, Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & ChoirAmsterdam Baroque Orchestra & ChoirThe Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir is a Dutch early-music group based in Amsterdam.The Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir was created in two stages by the conductor, organist and harpsichordist Ton Koopman. He founded the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra in 1979 and the Amsterdam Baroque Choir in...
, Johannette ZomerJohannette Zomer- Biography :Johannette Zomer studied voice at the Sweelinck Conservatory Amsterdam in Amsterdam with Charles van Tassel and received her Performance Diploma in 1997....
, Bogna BartoszBogna BartoszBogna Bartosz is a Polish classical mezzo-soprano and alto.- Biography :Bogna Bartosz studied voice at the Academy of Music in Gdansk and graduated with distinction...
, Jörg DürmüllerJörg DürmüllerJörg Dürmüller is a Swiss classical tenor in concert and opera.- Biography :Dürmüller studied violin and voice at the conservatory of Winterthur and took voice master classes with Edith Mathis, Christa Ludwig and Hermann Prey....
, Klaus MertensKlaus MertensKlaus Mertens is a German bass and bass-baritone singer who is known especially for his interpretation of the complete works of Johann Sebastian Bach.-Professional career:Klaus Mertens took singing lessons while attending school...
, Antoine Marchand 2005 - Bach: Lutheran Masses, BWV 233-236, Thomas Folan, Publick Musick, Anne Harley, Andrea Folan, Miranda Loud, Pablo Bustos, Max van EgmondMax van EgmondMax van Egmond is a Dutch bass and baritone singer. He has focused on oratorio and Lied and is known for singing works of Johann Sebastian Bach.- Professional career :...
, Eufoda 2005
External links
- Missae Breves & Sanctus BWV 233-242 on bach-cantatas