Search - Franz [Vienna] Schubert, Felix [1] Mendelssohn, Philippe Herreweghe :: Schubert: Mass in A flat major; Psalm 42

This must be one of Schubert's greatest, most moving works, and one dear to his own heart, for he kept returning to it and subjecting it to minor and major revisions with unusual persistence. Begun in 1819, it was completed in 1822 and premiered in the suburban church where Schubert's brother Ferdinand was choirmaster. Though the Mass clearly expresses his sincere devoutness, it also reflects his non-ritualistic attitude by omitting the Credo's reference to the Catholic Church. The work's most extraordinary aspects are the truly breathtaking harmonies and daring, far-ranging modulations and tonalities, underlining the color, mood, and character of the various parts. The surprises begin immediately: after a lyrical, pleading Kyrie in warm, mellow A-flat major, the Gloria arrives like a sunburst in radiant E major; it ends with the work's only weak section: a long, repetitious Fugue, driven by running string passages, ending in a succession of sequences. The Credo begins and ends in triumphant C major, having passed through an oppressed, tragic Incarnatus in A-flat that dies away and comes back to life in Resurexit. The Sanctus, after searching for its tonic in three ascending modulations, culminates in joyful serenity and a celestial Hosanna. The final Agnus Dei alternates between dramatic F minor and peaceful A-flat major. Mendelssohn's somber, yearning Psalm, oddly enough written on his honeymoon, makes a fine companion-piece: romantic, lyrical, devout, its seven sections go from anguished questioning to a triumphant affirmation of faith. The performances are altogether splendid; the vocal soloists seem to emerge from the chorus in the Schubert; in the Mendelssohn, the soprano has several lovely arias, one with an oboe obbligato. --Edith Eisler