Masses in Classical Era Austria

[Opus106]

Thanks.

[Leon]

So, I am saying that Hearst is REALLY saying that this is what some people said back then, he is not saying that this is what actually was. Would you not agree on that basis?

I agree with the points you raise in your post - but, what I got from the criticism was that they were saying that the singers used were opera singers, with that style overtaking what up to then had been a different kind of singing for sacred works.  I don't think anyone was saying that masses were becoming too much like operas, only that the singing and also even some of the melodies used were crossing over from the theater over to the church.

I still appreciate Haydn's masses and am very much interested in the historical aspect of this thread, i.e. reconstructing the various sections interpolated into the mass texts - very interesting stuff!

[Gurn Blanston]

I agree with the points you raise in your post - but, what I got from the criticism was that they were saying that the singers used were opera singers, with that style overtaking what up to then had been a different kind of singing for sacred works.  I don't think anyone was saying that masses were becoming too much like operas, only that the singing and also even some of the melodies used were crossing over from the theater over to the church.

I still appreciate Haydn's masses and am very much interested in the historical aspect of this thread, i.e. reconstructing the various sections interpolated into the mass texts - very interesting stuff!

Actually, Dr. Charles Burney, as an example said exactly that. I'll run across the quote again and print it, but basically he said the same thing you did in your post! 

It's true that some of the same singers were used, but I have to say that I'm not entirely sure that this was unique in place and time. AFAIK, the same was done before and after in Austria and elsewhere. Except when only the nuns sang...

Glad you're enjoying the history; me too!

[Leon]

In looking over the Heartz book, there are several critics who complain of the insertion of operatic arias into the mass, Ditters complains of a music director, Tobias Gsur, at Schottenkieche:

There is hardly any opera - buffa as well as seria - which he does not know how to plunder line by line (as the experts told me) and use most cleverly.  ... I myself was present in this church wen they performed such arias that had been removed from operas and metamorphosed into sa Slave Regina or a Regina coeli ...

Also, this from Joseph Richter:

Thus there soon slipped into the church style an unnoticed trio from a minuet, then the thrum-thrum of a symphony, then again fragments of waltzing music, and finally half and whole opera arias; moreover they thought nothing of profaning God's temple with the crowing of Italian capons.  Comic opera singers of both sexes exchanged the theater for the church with regularity.

Burney was more kind, and later critics praise the reforms of Joseph II who did away with most of the "abuses" referred to in the excerpts as well as much of the ornaments, statues, flags and other decorations which had made the mass more of a spectacle.

All very interesting, but not intended to derail this thread, however.

[Gurn Blanston]

In looking over the Heartz book, there are several critics who complain of the insertion of operatic arias into the mass, Ditters complains of a music director, Tobias Gsur, at Schottenkieche:

Also, this from Joseph Richter:

Burney was more kind, and later critics praise the reforms of Joseph II who did away with most of the "abuses" referred to in the excerpts as well as much of the ornaments, statues, flags and other decorations which had made the mass more of a spectacle.

All very interesting, but not intended to derail this thread, however.

  Well, there's no accounting for what may have happened at any one place. Local music directors had a big measure of autonomy in putting a programme together. One can only assume that they were responding to the desires of their patrons.

One can't let the exception become the rule though; you can be very, very certain that Archbishop Colleredo in Salzburg didn't have a 3 ring circus in his cathedral, nor did Prince Esterhazy in Eisenstadt. I would strongly suspicion that such excesses took place far from Vienna, out in the boondocks.

[Leon]

  Well, there's no accounting for what may have happened at any one place. Local music directors had a big measure of autonomy in putting a programme together. One can only assume that they were responding to the desires of their patrons.

One can't let the exception become the rule though; you can be very, very certain that Archbishop Colleredo in Salzburg didn't have a 3 ring circus in his cathedral, nor did Prince Esterhazy in Eisenstadt. I would strongly suspicion that such excesses took place far from Vienna, out in the boondocks.

Except that Richter quote was about how church music had "degenerated" in Vienna. (See p. 15 of the Heartz book.)

[Gurn Blanston]

Except that Richter quote was about how church music had "degenerated" in Vienna. (See p. 15 of the Heartz book.)

Well, Vienna proper was a large and rowdy city. Truly, anything could have happened there. And clearly it did, since it stimulated the "Josephinian Reforms". This doesn't indicate that bizarrerie was the rule throughout the country and Age. Certain elements of the 'spectacle', for example, the statues, painting, stained glass, architecture, trumpets and timpani (and trombones doubling voices), organ music; all of these are direct holdovers from much earlier times. For the most part, even the music played didn't change (for example, there was little trumpet music being written any more, and yet it was still played at every mass!). So the main difference from earlier times was the style I referred to earlier of having independent parts for the instruments rather than doubling the voices. As you note, there are exceptions to everything, but I think one should take the normative as the rule, not the bizarre exception.   

[Leon]

Well, Vienna proper was a large and rowdy city. Truly, anything could have happened there. And clearly it did, since it stimulated the "Josephinian Reforms". This doesn't indicate that bizarrerie was the rule throughout the country and Age. Certain elements of the 'spectacle', for example, the statues, painting, stained glass, architecture, trumpets and timpani (and trombones doubling voices), organ music; all of these are direct holdovers from much earlier times. For the most part, even the music played didn't change (for example, there was little trumpet music being written any more, and yet it was still played at every mass!). So the main difference from earlier times was the style I referred to earlier of having independent parts for the instruments rather than doubling the voices. As you note, there are exceptions to everything, but I think one should take the normative as the rule, not the bizarre exception.   

Fair enough.  But I think you and I just have different impressions about this aspect of the church music of this period and how it was perceived by some critics.  The bottom-line, however, is not what some critics of the period thought of changes they did not approve of, but how we react to the music today.  And I really didn't want what I'd read in Hertz's book to derail the thread.

[Gurn Blanston]

Part 4 – Some Listening Ideas
In trying to demonstrate the high listening quality of a Mass, I realized that the only thing that would work for me is a dose of historical authenticity. I'm not talking here about whether the damned fiddler uses vibrato or not, but instead, whether including all of the adjunct music that we've been talking about will enhance the listening experience.

With few exceptions, when one purchases a CD with Mass X on it, that's precisely what one gets; the Ordinary of Mass X. However, nowhere in the Catholic world, and especially not in Austria in the 18th century, would one ever hear the Ordinary of a Mass played on its own. Despite the beauty of the individual bits and even of the whole, nothing about the experience translates into any sort of enhanced spiritual ceremony when heard that way.

Which is the reason that I got interested in finding out the history and circumstances of a mass in my favorite period of musical history. Obviously, you aren't limited in any way by my preferences; if you prefer Paris in 1725, or Leipzig in 1740 or wherever, you have only to do some research and find the appropriate music and do it yourself. It is the idea + the execution that makes this work.

As I mentioned in an earlier essay, I started this project while working on a little Haydn project. So it was only natural that this first experiment would involve a mass of his. In order to demonstrate what I came up with, I will copy the mass outline from the previous essay, then add in the music I used to 'fill in the blanks'. I will include the performers and disks I used to do it, but really, that is secondary to what you might already have on hand.

A Missa solemnis from 1768; Eisenstadt

•   Opening music:  Organ solos and/or trumpet/timpani fanfares. Toccatas are a good choice here.  Hasse Concerto in F for Solo Organ – Allegro  then  Altenburg Concerto in C for 7 Trumpets & Timpani – Allegro
•   Music (Ordinary): a 'Tantum ergo' or an 'Asperges me'
•   Music (Proper) and SPOKEN PRAYER: Introit simultaneously with penitential prayers

Hob XXII: 04 Mass in Eb 'Grosse Orgelsolomesse' – Joseph Haydn
•   Music KYRIE:
      o   Kyrie:   Kyrie eleison
•   Gloria:    
      o   Gloria in excelsis Deo
      o   Gratias agimus tibi
      o   Quoniam tu solus sanctus
•   Prayer: Collect
•   Reading: Epistle
•   Music: Gradual  (1st movement of a symphony or concerto   
      o   Hob I: 22 Symphony in Eb – Adagio
•   Music: Alleluia or Tract (could be a motet or an Alleluia)
      o   Hasse Concerto in F for Solo Organ – Andante
•   Spoken: Gospel and Homily (Sermon)
•   Instrumental music: Trumpet & Timpani fanfares to remind people of the angels playing trumpets in heaven. 
      o   Altenburg Concerto in C for 7 Trumpets & Timpani – Andante
•   Music CREDO:
      o   Credo in unum Deum
      o   Et incarnatus est
      o   Et resurrexit
•   Music & PRAYER: Offertory  (2nd movement of symphony or concerto)
      o   Hob I: 22 Symphony in Eb (2nd movement) - Presto
•   Prayer & Secret (Private Prayer)
•   Prayer: Preface (Public Prayer)
•   MUSIC: SANCTUS
      o   Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus
      o   Pleni sunt coeli
•   BENEDICTUS
•   PRAYER: Eucharist Prayer
•   PRAYER: Lord's Prayer
•   MUSIC: AGNUS DEI
      o   Agnus Dei
      o   Dona nobis pacem
•   Music: Communion  (3rd movement of symphony (Finale really, since minuet (if any) was removed);
      o   Hob I: 22 Symphony in Eb - Finale: Presto
•   Prayer: Post Communion
•   MUSIC: Dismissal ('Ite, Missa est') (often such a short piece that it was not written out. Very few are extant)
•   SPOKEN: Closing Blessing
•   Music: organ postludium and/or trumpet/timpani fanfares
      o   Altenburg Concerto in C for 7 Trumpets & Timpani  - Vivace
      o   Hasse Concerto in F for Solo Organ - Minuet: Allegro

For my own edification, I wrote a set of liner notes to help me remember what I was listening to.   They are pretty basic.

In critiquing this project ex post facto, there are some things I would change. For example, I wouldn't have used Hasse's concerto in F, I would have used the one in C major. I didn't have it at the time. Also, I wouldn't have missed the opportunity to use a motet after the Gradual. There again, I didn't have one at the time that was suitable, so better none at all. Ultimately though, I was very pleased with this project, and I commend it to you as strongly as I know how, if you are a fan of church music. I listened to it with some friends to see what they thought, and the consensus was very positive. If you do try it, please let me know how it went for you, and post here what works you used. I will be posting some others soon, hopefully they will be a bit more sophisticated, and maybe one or another will appeal to you.

The 'liner notes'
The Mass
In choosing a mass for this recreation, I had a few criteria that I wanted to satisfy. Obviously, the first was that it be a Haydn Missa longa. Before this Mass in Eb, one must go all the way back to 1749-50 for another mass, and both of those two, in F and in G, were Missa brevis forms, and student works besides. When Haydn was hired by the Esterházy family in 1761, it was as assistant Kapellmeister, basically in charge of everything to do with music except writing masses. That duty remained with the head man, Gregory Werner. But Werner died in 1766, and Haydn inherited all of his responsibilities also. So this mass is his first complete Missa longa, and his first for the Esterházy family.

Completed and first performed in 1768, the mass is scored for the following performers; 4 solo voices (S—A—T—B), Chorus, 2 English Horns, 2 Horns, 2 Trumpets, Timpani, 2 Violins, Continuo & Organ obbligato. Pretty much standard layout with the exception of the English Horns, which were used at that time in Vienna and virtually no where else. They impart a beautiful tenor oboe sound to the ensemble that is incomparable. They are also responsible for my choice of the second major work that was part of the ceremony; the symphony of 1764, also in Eb, and often called 'The Philosopher'. In addition to the shared tonic, the symphony also is the only published 18th century symphony (or from any time at all, as far as I know) in which the 2 oboes are replaced by 2 English Horns. The pairing of these two works thus became a no-brainer. As you will hear, they fit together perfectly.

The other two pieces used here, the solo organ concerto by Johann Hasse and the Trumpet & Timpani concerto by Altenburg are chosen for their propriety. Johann Adolf Hasse (b. near Hamburg, 1699— d. Venice—1783), long-lived and highly praised throughout his life, was best known by far as a composer of operas (where he had teamed up with Metastasio, the leading librettist of the era) and vocal works, including cantatas, oratorios and dozens of motets and other vocal works in the Italian style. He worked in Vienna, Dresden, Berlin/Potsdam and various Italian  The concerto heard here was first published as one of a set of six in London, in 1743.
Johann Ernst Altenburg (b Weissenfels, 15 June 1734; d Bitterfeld, 14 May 1801). German trumpeter, organist and teacher.  He is best known for his valuable treatise "On the Heroic and Musical Trumpeters' & Kettledrummers' Art", which, though finished in manuscript and offered on a subscription basis by J.A. Hiller as early as 1770, was not published until 1795. It contains important information on the declining position of court and field trumpeters, seen at first hand, and of their tightly knit organization ('Cameradschaft') founded on a privilege granted by the Holy Roman Emperors since 1623.  It is not absolutely known whether the work played here under his was entirely of his own composition, or whether it was copied out as a lesson for his teaching duties. In any case, it is a wonderful example of trumpet and timpani usage.

Secular Music in the Liturgy
As I have no desire to repeat the entire essay here, I wish to only make a couple of points in relation to this performance. First, the blueprint isn't written in stone. It is a general guideline for Viennese style masses, but each day varied in the music used and the exact emphasis placed on certain sections. A lot of that is determined by who is in attendance. Second is the fact that in a weekday mass there would be motets that were specific to the saint whose day is being celebrated. And on Sundays, the Church Calendar specified particular observances also. Christmas and Easter are obvious choices for special masses. However, this particular attempt is aimed at a more generic Sunday mass, with the Prince and family in attendance. Thus the 7 trumpets....

[Gurn Blanston]

I suggest a couple of Johann Naumann masses to listen to alongside the more familiar works of Mozart and Haydn. Although these masses are from Dresden, I offer them as a study of Haydn's influence on the wider musical world. Also, Johann Hasse is responsible for furthering Naumann's career. It is interesting to note that although Naumann was a protestant, he worked at a Catholic court. The years we are considering here are 1786-1806. Mozart criticized Naumann's work as dull stuff, but I humbly disagree!



Johann Gottlieb Naumann: Mass No. 18, in D minor (1794), Mass No.21 in C Minor (1786-1806)
Collegium Instrumentale, Dir. Peter Kopp

These works are modest masses with great beauty. The period instruments, and the clarinets in particular, give the flavor of autumn to the orchestration. I really love this recording, and this is a very valuable addition to my 18th Century Mass collection, of which I turn to all the time for peace and reflection. Naumann's liturgical music is not flashy, but solid and very devotional.

Leo,
Well, I'm game; it took me a while (Ars Musici doesn't just pop right up) but I found it and it's on the way. I have also already a tiny amount of music by his contemporaries so I should be able to put something together here. Thanks for the tip on this. There is a whole different brand of grandeur in Dresden! 

[Leon]

I've been dipping into the three volume Heartz books and found a fascinating description of a episode when Haydn went to London with Salomon.  On the way they stopped off in Bonn where Salomon was born.  This is a short excerpt from an account told in 1805 by Haydn:

Salomon took Haydn on Sunday to the court chapel to hear Mass.  Hardly had they found themselves a good place, when the High Mass began.  The first sounds announced a work of Haydn's. (p. 323)

Heartz surmises that the mass that was performed was Haydn's second Missa Cellensis - he discounts the first mass with this title because of its length and also because it is not as masterfully written, plus, the second one was composed within a few years of the visit.  He then devotes about five pages to describing the mass with musical examples. 

This sparked my interest and I plan on pulling that mass up and listening as I read that section.

[Gurn Blanston]

I've been dipping into the three volume Heartz books and found a fascinating description of a episode when Haydn went to London with Salomon.  On the way they stopped off in Bonn where Salomon was born.  This is a short excerpt from an account told in 1805 by Haydn:

Salomon took Haydn on Sunday to the court chapel to hear Mass.  Hardly had they found themselves a good place, when the High Mass began.  The first sounds announced a work of Haydn's. (p. 323)

Heartz surmises that the mass that was performed was Haydn's second Missa Cellensis - he discounts the first mass with this title because of its length and also because it is not as masterfully written, plus, the second one was composed within a few years of the visit.  He then devotes about five pages to describing the mass with musical examples. 

This sparked my interest and I plan on pulling that mass up and listening as I read that section.

Yes, I remember that part. The Missa Cellensis was one of Haydn's most beautiful masses, IMO. It was the last one he wrote before the Josephinian Reforms stopped him writing masses altogether. He didn't start again until 15 years later when Joseph was dead. Thanks for the page number; I'm going back to reread it myself.

[Bogey]

I was wondering when your next book would be out!   Masses?  Cool!  Will there be secret societies, church conspiracies, cloak and dagger murder, and all out mayhem throughout?



Bill munches popcorn in anticipation of Dan Brown moments in this thread.

[Gurn Blanston]

I was wondering when your next book would be out!   Masses?  Cool!  Will there be secret societies, church conspiracies, cloak and dagger murder, and all out mayhem throughout?



Bill munches popcorn in anticipation of Dan Brown moments in this thread.

But of course! In fact, we were waiting for you to contribute your share.   

I like to keep you off-balance, Bill. Never know what to expect.   

[mc ukrneal]

Leo,
Well, I'm game; it took me a while (Ars Musici doesn't just pop right up) but I found it and it's on the way. I have also already a tiny amount of music by his contemporaries so I should be able to put something together here. Thanks for the tip on this. There is a whole different brand of grandeur in Dresden! 

If it's not too late, compare with deep discount. It was $11.61 there. If there is anything else you'd like from the label (or Carus), some are at this price, some a hair higher, but others more (with free shipping in the US) and you have until June 24.

[Gurn Blanston]

If it's not too late, compare with deep discount. It was $11.61 there. If there is anything else you'd like from the label (or Carus), some are at this price, some a hair higher, but others more (with free shipping in the US) and you have until June 24.

I ended up getting it at Classical Music Superstore for $9.15!!  Trouble was, typing "Naumann" into Amazon's search engine didn't produce any results. I had a similar issue last week with a disk called "Jubilate Deo", which is also, coincidentally (?) on Ars musici. CMS had them both for a song though, just took a while getting there!  Carus, eh? Interesting label.

[mc ukrneal]

I ended up getting it at Classical Music Superstore for $9.15!!  Trouble was, typing "Naumann" into Amazon's search engine didn't produce any results. I had a similar issue last week with a disk called "Jubilate Deo", which is also, coincidentally (?) on Ars musici. CMS had them both for a song though, just took a while getting there!  Carus, eh? Interesting label.

Ah, but add the 2.99 shipping and it comes out more. Still, not a big difference (and I guess I shouldn't mention it's down to 9.09). Strange that you didn't get it the first time you typed it. I had problems only because I couldn't spell it right the first few times, but eventually got it. This Jubilate Deo disc is $10.58 at Deep Discount and in stock (not sure how that compares). Anyway, may be worth a gander.

[Karl Henning]

Title for future piece: Stolen Dan Brown Moments

[Gurn Blanston]

Ah, but add the 2.99 shipping and it comes out more. Still, not a big difference (and I guess I shouldn't mention it's down to 9.09). Strange that you didn't get it the first time you typed it. I had problems only because I couldn't spell it right the first few times, but eventually got it. This Jubilate Deo disc is $10.58 at Deep Discount and in stock (not sure how that compares). Anyway, may be worth a gander.

Yes, funny to me how prices changes almost hourly. For amusement, I put things in my cart at Amazon and every time I go check I get a note that says "Since you put X in your cart, the price has changed from Y to Z. You save .03!".    

Well, I am expecting that disk of motets to arrive today. I do use Deep Discount often, they are always a good reliable vendor. But CMS have found it profitable to build a teleporter right to my music room.... (a trick I learned from Harry).   

[Gurn Blanston]

Title for future piece: Stolen Dan Brown Moments

That's some sort of clever code, isn't it Karl?