Psalm 150 (Bruckner)
Encyclopedia
Anton Bruckner
's Psalm 150, WAB
38, is a setting of Psalm 150
for mixed chorus, soprano soloist and orchestra written in 1892.
Richard Heuberger asked Bruckner for a festive hymn to celebrate an opening, but Bruckner did not deliver the piece in time for Heuberger's purpose. The setting was premiered on 13 November 1892, conducted by Wilhelm Gericke. The concert also included "a Schubert overture and Liszt's Piano Concerto in E-flat, followed by Richard Strauss' „Wanderers Sturmlied“ and Mendelssohn's „Loreley“."
The choir has soprano
s, alto
s, tenor
s, bass
es, while the orchestra consists of 2 flute
s, 2 oboe
s, 2 clarinet
s, 2 bassoon
s, 4 horn
s, 3 trumpet
s, 3 trombone
s (alto, tenor and bass), timpani
, strings. Of the instruments listed in the Psalm text, Bruckner did not use harps, fifes or cymbals. Bruckner used the German-language Martin Luther Bible for the text.
The piece starts out in C major
, alla breve
, with a tempo marking of "Mehr langsam! Feierlich, kräftig," as the choir sings "Hallelujah" several times before moving on to the second line of the Psalm. At rehearsal letter
E, marked "Bewegter," begins the listing of instruments with which to praise God. At J, "Langsamer," follows "Alles, Alles lobe den Herrn..." At K, with a return to the initial tempo, Bruckner repeats the opening Hallelujahs, but at L follows with "a complex fugue" starting with the words "Alles, was Odem hat..." once again "Langsam." Another return to the initial tempo at R marks the beginning of the coda with the words "Alles, Alles lobe den Herrn..." The theme of the fugue is related to that of the fugue of the fifth symphony
and that of the Adagio of the ninth symphony
.
The last time Bruckner improvised at the organ, he used melodies from this Psalm setting. Psalm 150 "shares both the key and the triumphant mood of rapturous exaltation of the Te Deum
." In 1893, Heinrich Schenker
published a critique of Bruckner's setting in the Musikalisches Wochenblatt, quoting the flute in m. 43 - 44 and the soprano in m. 125 - 126 as examples of "badly constructed lines."
Bruckner also set Psalms 22
, 112
, 114
and 146
to music.
with the Wiener Akademie-Kammerchor and the Wiener Symphoniker, LP: Westminster WAL 201 (with Symphony No. 6
and Psalm 112
)
Among the 10 other recordings, Hans Roelofs selects the following 4 recordings:
Anton Bruckner
Anton Bruckner was an Austrian composer known for his symphonies, masses, and motets. The first are considered emblematic of the final stage of Austro-German Romanticism because of their rich harmonic language, complex polyphony, and considerable length...
's Psalm 150, WAB
Werkverzeichnis Anton Bruckner
The Werkverzeichnis Anton Bruckners is a thematic catalogue of the music of Anton Bruckner compiled by Renata Grasberger. Grasberger did not include any unfinished compositions nor lost works. Lost works, sketches, etc. were added afterwards...
38, is a setting of Psalm 150
Psalm 150
Psalm 150 is a psalm in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament. In it, the writer urges the congregation to praise God with music and dancing. The text, beloved by Jews and Christians alike, has often been set to music...
for mixed chorus, soprano soloist and orchestra written in 1892.
Richard Heuberger asked Bruckner for a festive hymn to celebrate an opening, but Bruckner did not deliver the piece in time for Heuberger's purpose. The setting was premiered on 13 November 1892, conducted by Wilhelm Gericke. The concert also included "a Schubert overture and Liszt's Piano Concerto in E-flat, followed by Richard Strauss' „Wanderers Sturmlied“ and Mendelssohn's „Loreley“."
The choir has 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...
s, alto
Alto
Alto is a musical term, derived from the Latin word altus, meaning "high" in Italian, that has several possible interpretations.When designating instruments, "alto" frequently refers to a member of an instrumental family that has the second highest range, below that of the treble or soprano. Hence,...
s, 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...
s, bass
Bass (voice type)
A bass is a type of male singing voice and possesses the lowest vocal range of all voice types. According to The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, a bass is typically classified as having a range extending from around the second E below middle C to the E above middle C...
es, while the orchestra consists of 2 flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
s, 2 oboe
Oboe
The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...
s, 2 clarinet
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
s, 2 bassoon
Bassoon
The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family that typically plays music written in the bass and tenor registers, and occasionally higher. Appearing in its modern form in the 19th century, the bassoon figures prominently in orchestral, concert band and chamber music literature...
s, 4 horn
Horn (instrument)
The horn is a brass instrument consisting of about of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. A musician who plays the horn is called a horn player ....
s, 3 trumpet
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
s, 3 trombone
Trombone
The trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
s (alto, tenor and bass), timpani
Timpani
Timpani, or kettledrums, are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum, they consist of a skin called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally made of copper. They are played by striking the head with a specialized drum stick called a timpani stick or timpani mallet...
, strings. Of the instruments listed in the Psalm text, Bruckner did not use harps, fifes or cymbals. Bruckner used the German-language Martin Luther Bible for the text.
The piece starts out in C major
C major
C major is a musical major scale based on C, with pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. Its key signature has no flats/sharps.Its relative minor is A minor, and its parallel minor is C minor....
, alla breve
Alla breve
In music, alla breve Italian: at the breve] refers to a musical meter notated by the time signature symbol , which is the equivalent of 2/2. Alla breve is a "simple-duple meter with a half-note pulse"...
, with a tempo marking of "Mehr langsam! Feierlich, kräftig," as the choir sings "Hallelujah" several times before moving on to the second line of the Psalm. At rehearsal letter
Rehearsal letter
A rehearsal letter is a boldface letter of the alphabet in an orchestral score, and its corresponding parts, that provides a convenient spot from which to resume rehearsal after a break. Rehearsal letters are most often used in scores of the Romantic era, beginning with Louis Spohr...
E, marked "Bewegter," begins the listing of instruments with which to praise God. At J, "Langsamer," follows "Alles, Alles lobe den Herrn..." At K, with a return to the initial tempo, Bruckner repeats the opening Hallelujahs, but at L follows with "a complex fugue" starting with the words "Alles, was Odem hat..." once again "Langsam." Another return to the initial tempo at R marks the beginning of the coda with the words "Alles, Alles lobe den Herrn..." The theme of the fugue is related to that of the fugue of the fifth symphony
Symphony No. 5 (Bruckner)
The Symphony No. 5 in B flat major of Anton Bruckner was written in 1875–1876, with a few minor changes over the next few years. It was first performed in public on two pianos by Joseph Schalk and Franz Zottmann on 20 April 1887 at the Bösendorfersaal in Vienna...
and that of the Adagio of the ninth symphony
Symphony No. 9 (Bruckner)
Anton Bruckner's Symphony No. 9 in D minor is the last Symphony upon which he worked, leaving the last movement incomplete at the time of his death in 1896. The symphony was premiered under Ferdinand Löwe in Vienna in 1903, after Bruckner's death...
.
The last time Bruckner improvised at the organ, he used melodies from this Psalm setting. Psalm 150 "shares both the key and the triumphant mood of rapturous exaltation of the Te Deum
Te Deum (Bruckner)
The Te Deum in C major WAB 45 by Anton Bruckner is a setting of the early Christian Te Deum hymn text for chorus, soloists and orchestra, and organ ad libitum...
." In 1893, Heinrich Schenker
Heinrich Schenker
Heinrich Schenker was a music theorist, best known for his approach to musical analysis, now usually called Schenkerian analysis....
published a critique of Bruckner's setting in the Musikalisches Wochenblatt, quoting the flute in m. 43 - 44 and the soprano in m. 125 - 126 as examples of "badly constructed lines."
Text
- Halleluja! Lobet den Herrn in seinem Heiligtum; lobet ihn in der Feste seiner Macht!
- Lobet ihn in seinen Taten; lobet ihn in seiner großen Herrlichkeit!
- Lobet ihn mit Posaunen; lobet ihn mit Psalter und Harfe!
- Lobet ihn mit Pauken und Reigen; lobet ihn mit Saiten und Pfeifen!
- Lobet ihn mit hellen Cymbeln; lobet ihn mit wohlklingenden Cymbeln!
- Alles, was Odem hat, lobe den Herrn! Halleluja!
Bruckner also set Psalms 22
Psalm 22 (Bruckner)
Bruckner's Psalm 22 is a composition for mixed choir, soloists , and piano in E flat major, opus WAB 34. It is a setting of the Psalm 23 in the modern liturgy....
, 112
Psalm 112 (Bruckner)
Bruckner's Psalm 112 in E flat major is a composition for eight-part double mixed choir and full orchestra, opus WAB 35. It is a setting of the Psalm 113 in the modern liturgy....
, 114
Psalm 114 (Bruckner)
Bruckner's Psalm 114 in G major is a composition for five-part mixed choir and three trombones, opus WAB 36. It is a setting of the Psalm 116 in the modern liturgy.The work was composed in 1852 in St. Florian...
and 146
Psalm 146 (Bruckner)
Psalm 146 in A major by Anton Bruckner is a large religious work for eight-part double mixed choir, four soloists and full orchestra. It is a setting of verses 1 to 11 of Psalm 147 in the modern liturgy....
to music.
Discography
The first recording (c. 1950) was by Henry SwobodaHenry Swoboda
Henry Swoboda was a Czech conductor and musicologist. He made many recordings for the Westminster label, including the first commercially available record of Bruckner's Sixth Symphony. He worked from 1927 to 1931 for Electrola, Berlin and later as conductor for Radio-Prag...
with the Wiener Akademie-Kammerchor and the Wiener Symphoniker, LP: Westminster WAL 201 (with Symphony No. 6
Symphony No. 6 (Bruckner)
Symphony No. 6 in A major by Austrian composer Anton Bruckner is a work in four movements composed between September 24, 1879 and September 3, 1881 and dedicated to his landlord, Dr. Anton van Ölzelt-Newin. Though it possesses many characteristic features of a Bruckner symphony, it differs the...
and Psalm 112
Psalm 112 (Bruckner)
Bruckner's Psalm 112 in E flat major is a composition for eight-part double mixed choir and full orchestra, opus WAB 35. It is a setting of the Psalm 113 in the modern liturgy....
)
Among the 10 other recordings, Hans Roelofs selects the following 4 recordings:
- Eugen JochumEugen JochumEugen Jochum was an eminent German conductor.Born in Babenhausen, near Augsburg, Germany, Jochum studied the piano and organ in Augsburg until 1922. He then studied conducting in Munich...
, Chor der Deutschen Oper Berlin and Berliner Philharmoniker, 1965, LP: DG SLPM 139137/8 (with Symphony No. 7Symphony No. 7 (Bruckner)Anton Bruckner's Symphony No. 7 in E major is one of his best-known symphonies. It was written between 1881 and 1883 and was revised in 1885. It is dedicated to Ludwig II of Bavaria. The premiere, given under Arthur Nikisch and the Gewandhaus Orchestra in the opera house at Leipzig on 30...
). This recording, which has been transferred to CD as part of the 4 CD box set DG 423 127-2, remains according to Hans Roelofs the reference. - Daniel BarenboimDaniel BarenboimDaniel Barenboim, KBE is an Argentinian-Israeli pianist and conductor. He has served as music director of several major symphonic and operatic orchestras and made numerous recordings....
, Chicago Symphony OrchestraChicago Symphony OrchestraThe Chicago Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the five American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1891, the Symphony makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival...
& Chorus, 1979, LP: DG 2707 116. This recording has been transferred to CD: DG 437 250-2 (with Symphony No. 0Symphony No. 0 (Bruckner)This Symphony in D minor composed by Anton Bruckner was not assigned a number by its composer, and has subsequently become known by the German designation Die Nullte .-Composition:...
and HelgolandHelgoland (Bruckner)Helgoland is a piece of music by Anton Bruckner for large orchestra and male choir in the key of G minor, assigned the catalogue number WAB 71. The average performance duration ranges from 12 minutes to 15 minutes. The orchestra is composed of 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 4 horns, 3...
). It more widely available as part of a ten-CD set DG 477 8903 containing Symphonies 0-10, the Te DeumTe Deum (Bruckner)The Te Deum in C major WAB 45 by Anton Bruckner is a setting of the early Christian Te Deum hymn text for chorus, soloists and orchestra, and organ ad libitum...
, and HelgolandHelgoland (Bruckner)Helgoland is a piece of music by Anton Bruckner for large orchestra and male choir in the key of G minor, assigned the catalogue number WAB 71. The average performance duration ranges from 12 minutes to 15 minutes. The orchestra is composed of 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 4 horns, 3...
. - Matthew Best, Corydon Singers & Orchestra, 1992, CD: Hyperion CDA66599 (with Mass No. 3Mass No. 3 (Bruckner)The Mass No. 3 in F minor WAB 28 by Anton Bruckner is a setting of the mass ordinary for vocal soloists, chorus, orchestra and organ. After the 1867 success of Bruckner's Mass No...
) - 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 Kantorei Stuttgart and 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...
, 1996, CD: Hänssler Classic 98.119 (with Mass No. 2Mass No. 2 (Bruckner)The Mass No. 2 in E minor, WAB 27, by Anton Bruckner is a setting of the mass ordinary for vocal soloists, chorus and wind band. Bruckner wrote it to celebrate the construction of a new church....
and the Te DeumTe Deum (Bruckner)The Te Deum in C major WAB 45 by Anton Bruckner is a setting of the early Christian Te Deum hymn text for chorus, soloists and orchestra, and organ ad libitum...
)