Roman Catholic Marian music
Encyclopedia
Roman Catholic Marian music shares a trait with some other forms of Christian music
in adding another emotional dimension to the process of veneration and in being used in various Marian ceremonies and feasts. Marian music is now an inherent element in many aspects of the veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Roman Catholic Mariology.
Throughout the centuries Marian music has grown and progressed, and witnessed a resurgence along with the Renaissance
, e.g. with the composition of the Ave Maria
motet
by Josquin des Prez
. The tradition continued with a number of great composers up to the late 19th century, e.g. with Giuseppe Verdi
's Ave Maria in 1880 followed by his Laudi alla Vergine Maria.
), which is actually older but nonetheless traditionally attributed to him. Some 870 parishes in the diocese of Milan
still use the ancient Ambrosian rite. Several Ambrosian rite Marian texts were intonated, for example the famous Gaude:
Marian hymns by Ambrose include the Confractorium from the Christmas liturgy, and in a poetic creation of Saint Ambrose, celebrating the Mother of God: Intende, qui Regis Israel.
One of the earliest medieval Marian compositions is the popular Salve Regina
in Latin
from a Benedictine monk at the Reichenau Island (Lake Constance), which exists in several Gregorian versions. The liturgy of the hour includes several offices to be sung. At the close of the Office, one of four Marian antiphons is sung. These songs, Alma Redemptoris Mater
Ave Regina caelorum, Regina caeli, and Salve Regina
, have been described as "among the most beautiful creations of the late Middle Ages."
Other Marian supplications exist in numerous Latin versions as well
It is difficult to trace the beginning of non-Gregorian
Marian liturgical music. In the year 1277 Pope Nicholas III
prescribed rules for liturgy in Roman churches. Three years later, in 1280, Petrus de Cruce
published his Marian anthem Ave virgo regia, Ave gloriosa O maria Maris stella. Later, composer Perotin
followed with his Alleluja, Navitatis gloriosae virginis, to be sung at the feast of the birth of Mary. Marian motets became very popular in the Middle Ages. A large collection of which is in St Paul Cathedral in London Pope John XXII
1316—34 issued the apostolic constitution
Docta SS Patrum about Church music. It was the first music modern regulations for musical presentation during the liturgy
Monteverdi
's Vespro della Beata Vergine contains distinctly Marian texts among its 13 movements, though the composer's intention for the work as a whole is debated. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
composed in honour of the Virgin Mary Latin masses and several shorter opera: Other known classic composers with Marian compositions mainly in Latin
include Orlando di Lasso and Franz Schubert
.
Vivaldi
, Monteverdi
, Mozart, Haydn and others are well-known composers who contributed to Marian music. Less known is the fact, that before 1802, the secularisation, many religious congregations had their own composers. A totally unknown Father Valentin Rathgeber
OSB, (1682–1750) wrote 43 masses, 164 offertories 24 concerts and, 44 Marian antiphones. Missa de Beata Virgine
and the Messe de Nostre Dame
are examples of individual contributions. Monteverdi
's Vespro della Beata Vergine has remained structurally unchanged for the past 1500 years. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
composed in honour of the Virgin Mary Latin masses and several shorter opera: Other known classic composers with Marian compositions mainly in Latin
include Orlando di Lasso and Franz Schubert
.
begins in the 12th century the tradition of Christmas dramas, in which the nativity events are reproduced by actors. This becomes popular in other European countries as well, and is seen as the origin of popular Christmas carols, which were an integral part of the Christmas drama. These early Christmas songs are largely devotions to the Mother of God. Early manifestations are in Bavaria in the 12 century At the same time, Easter songs are often converted into Marian hyms, for example the hymn Te virgini Mariae laudes concinant Christianae. The assumption of Mary is praised in numerous songs from the 10th century, In several songs, Mary is praised to be above all saints and angels and participates in the kingdom of her son. Her assumption is “wished by the faithful people” in a song from the 12th century The Marian songs and hymns in this epoch are too numerous to mention. They include pious excitement even some exaggerations, and valuable insights into the Marian belief, especially in the assumption.
Examples of Salve songs include the
Gaude (Rejoice) hymns include:
Vale (farewell) and Mater dolorosa (mother of sorrows) are also subjects of numerous Marian hymns.
are a latter development than music Liturgy of the Hours. Modern Kyriale
s designate two Gregorian Chant
mass settings
for Marian feasts, In solemnitatibus et Festis Beatae Mariae Virginis
and in Festis et Memoriis. Before the Council of Trent
the Gloria
of first of these contained the trope
Spiritus et alme orphanorum paraclete, heard in Josquin's Missa de Beata Virgine, but not in Machault's Messe de Nostre Dame
which was written as a votive mass
. The list of compositions by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina includes numerous Marian masses:
is strongly influenced by the Latin tradition, but develops its own characteristics. Marian songs venerate her exceptional sanctity. Many Marian songs have the form of litanies, expressing adoration of Mary. Others moralize the faithful in light of her virtuous life. In Poland
and Hungary
, baroque Marian compositions stress her national protective powers for the Polish and Hungarian nation, an aspect largely missing in Italy, France and Germany, where Mary is likely to be called upon to protect a city or region rather than a nation. Many Latin Marian hymns are now translated into vernacular language, especially in Germany under the influence of Lutheran use of the vernacular
in liturgy
. Latin texts are often enriched with flowery adorations and Marian praises. Like Marian poetry, Marian music has flourished most in Italy, Spain, Portugal and France, countries uninfluenced by the reformation.
Before the German secularisations of 1802
many religious congregations had their own composers. In the monastery of Andechs
, Father Nonnosus Madleder, in Ottobeuren
, Father Franx Schnizer, in Irsee
Father Meinrad Spiess, and in Banz Father Valentin Rathgeber
OSB, (1682–1750) wrote 43 masses, 164 offertories 24 concerts and, 44 Marian antiphones.
wrote several Marian composition
s including two famous Marian Masses, the Missa in honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae, No. 5 in E flat major, also known as the Grosse Orgelmesse (Great Organ Mass) (H. 22/4) (1766) and the Missa Cellensis or Mariazellermesse No. 8 in C major, (H. 22/8) (1782)
Christian music
Christian music is music that has been written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian life and faith. Common themes of Christian music include praise, worship, penitence, and lament, and its forms vary widely across the world....
in adding another emotional dimension to the process of veneration and in being used in various Marian ceremonies and feasts. Marian music is now an inherent element in many aspects of the veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Roman Catholic Mariology.
Throughout the centuries Marian music has grown and progressed, and witnessed a resurgence along with the Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
, e.g. with the composition of the Ave Maria
Ave Maria
Ave Maria may refer to:*Ave Maria , the "Hail Mary", a traditional Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox prayer calling for the intercession of Mary, the mother of Jesus-Music:...
motet
Motet
In classical music, motet is a word that is applied to a number of highly varied choral musical compositions.-Etymology:The name comes either from the Latin movere, or a Latinized version of Old French mot, "word" or "verbal utterance." The Medieval Latin for "motet" is motectum, and the Italian...
by Josquin des Prez
Josquin Des Prez
Josquin des Prez [Josquin Lebloitte dit Desprez] , often referred to simply as Josquin, was a Franco-Flemish composer of the Renaissance...
. The tradition continued with a number of great composers up to the late 19th century, e.g. with Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi was an Italian Romantic composer, mainly of opera. He was one of the most influential composers of the 19th century...
's Ave Maria in 1880 followed by his Laudi alla Vergine Maria.
Saint Ambrose
One of the oldest Marian intonations is credited to Saint Ambrose of Milan (339-374). The Church names an ancient liturgy after him (Ambrosian riteAmbrosian Rite
Ambrosian Rite, also called the Milanese Rite, is a Catholic liturgical Western Rite. The rite is named after Saint Ambrose, a bishop of Milan in the fourth century...
), which is actually older but nonetheless traditionally attributed to him. Some 870 parishes in the diocese of Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
still use the ancient Ambrosian rite. Several Ambrosian rite Marian texts were intonated, for example the famous Gaude:
- Gaude et latare
- Exultation angelorum
- Gaude domini virgo
- Prophetarum gaudium
- Gaudeas benedicta
- Dominus tecum est
- Gaude, que per angelum gaudium mundi suscepisti
- Gaude que genuisti factorum et Dominum
- Gaudeas que dignas es esse mater Christi
Marian hymns by Ambrose include the Confractorium from the Christmas liturgy, and in a poetic creation of Saint Ambrose, celebrating the Mother of God: Intende, qui Regis Israel.
Marian Music for the Liturgy of the Hours
One of the earliest medieval Marian compositions is the popular Salve Regina
Salve Regina
The "Salve Regina", also known as the Hail Holy Queen, is a Marian hymn and one of four Marian antiphons sung at different seasons within the Christian liturgical calendar of the Roman Catholic Church. The Salve Regina is traditionally sung at Compline in the time from the Saturday before Trinity...
in 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...
from a Benedictine monk at the Reichenau Island (Lake Constance), which exists in several Gregorian versions. The liturgy of the hour includes several offices to be sung. At the close of the Office, one of four Marian antiphons is sung. These songs, Alma Redemptoris Mater
Alma Redemptoris Mater
Alma Redemptoris Mater is a Marian hymn and one of four liturgical Marian antiphons , and sung at the end of the office of Compline. Hermannus Contractus is said to have authored the hymn based on the writings of Ss. Fulgentius, Epiphanius, and Irenaeus of Lyon...
Ave Regina caelorum, Regina caeli, and Salve Regina
Salve Regina
The "Salve Regina", also known as the Hail Holy Queen, is a Marian hymn and one of four Marian antiphons sung at different seasons within the Christian liturgical calendar of the Roman Catholic Church. The Salve Regina is traditionally sung at Compline in the time from the Saturday before Trinity...
, have been described as "among the most beautiful creations of the late Middle Ages."
Other Marian supplications exist in numerous Latin versions as well
It is difficult to trace the beginning of non-Gregorian
Gregorian
Gregorian might refer to:* The thought or ideology of Pope Gregory I or Pope Gregory VII *Things named for Pope Gregory I:**Gregorian chant** Gregorian mass**Brotherhood of Saint Gregory...
Marian liturgical music. In the year 1277 Pope Nicholas III
Pope Nicholas III
Pope Nicholas III , born Giovanni Gaetano Orsini, Pope from November 25, 1277 to his death in 1280, was a Roman nobleman who had served under eight Popes, been made cardinal-deacon of St...
prescribed rules for liturgy in Roman churches. Three years later, in 1280, Petrus de Cruce
Petrus de Cruce
Petrus de Cruce was active as a cleric, composer and theorist in the late part of the 13th century. His main contribution was to the notational system.-Life:...
published his Marian anthem Ave virgo regia, Ave gloriosa O maria Maris stella. Later, composer Perotin
Pérotin
Pérotin , also called Perotin the Great, was a European composer, believed to be French, who lived around the end of the 12th and beginning of the 13th century. He was the most famous member of the Notre Dame school of polyphony and the ars antiqua style...
followed with his Alleluja, Navitatis gloriosae virginis, to be sung at the feast of the birth of Mary. Marian motets became very popular in the Middle Ages. A large collection of which is in St Paul Cathedral in London Pope John XXII
Pope John XXII
Pope John XXII , born Jacques Duèze , was pope from 1316 to 1334. He was the second Pope of the Avignon Papacy , elected by a conclave in Lyon assembled by Philip V of France...
1316—34 issued the apostolic constitution
Apostolic constitution
An apostolic constitution is the highest level of decree issued by the Pope. The use of the term constitution comes from Latin constitutio, which referred to any important law issued by the Roman emperor, and is retained in church documents because of the inheritance that the canon law of the...
Docta SS Patrum about Church music. It was the first music modern regulations for musical presentation during the liturgy
Monteverdi
Claudio Monteverdi
Claudio Giovanni Antonio Monteverdi – 29 November 1643) was an Italian composer, gambist, and singer.Monteverdi's work, often regarded as revolutionary, marked the transition from the Renaissance style of music to that of the Baroque period. He developed two individual styles of composition – the...
's Vespro della Beata Vergine contains distinctly Marian texts among its 13 movements, though the composer's intention for the work as a whole is debated. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
composed in honour of the Virgin Mary Latin masses and several shorter opera: Other known classic composers with Marian compositions mainly in 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...
include Orlando di Lasso and Franz Schubert
Franz Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
.
Vivaldi
Antonio Vivaldi
Antonio Lucio Vivaldi , nicknamed because of his red hair, was an Italian Baroque composer, priest, and virtuoso violinist, born in Venice. Vivaldi is recognized as one of the greatest Baroque composers, and his influence during his lifetime was widespread over Europe...
, Monteverdi
Claudio Monteverdi
Claudio Giovanni Antonio Monteverdi – 29 November 1643) was an Italian composer, gambist, and singer.Monteverdi's work, often regarded as revolutionary, marked the transition from the Renaissance style of music to that of the Baroque period. He developed two individual styles of composition – the...
, Mozart, Haydn and others are well-known composers who contributed to Marian music. Less known is the fact, that before 1802, the secularisation, many religious congregations had their own composers. A totally unknown Father Valentin Rathgeber
Valentin Rathgeber
Johann Valentin Rathgeber was a German composer, organist and choirmaster of the Baroque Era.His father, an organist, gave him his first music lessons...
OSB, (1682–1750) wrote 43 masses, 164 offertories 24 concerts and, 44 Marian antiphones. Missa de Beata Virgine
Missa de Beata Virgine
The Missa de Beata Virgine is a musical setting of the Ordinary of the Mass, by Renaissance composer Josquin des Prez. A late work, probably composed or assembled around 1510, it was the most popular of his masses in the 16th century....
and the Messe de Nostre Dame
Messe de Nostre Dame
Messe de Nostre Dame is a polyphonic mass composed before 1365 by the French poet, composer and cleric Guillaume de Machaut...
are examples of individual contributions. Monteverdi
Claudio Monteverdi
Claudio Giovanni Antonio Monteverdi – 29 November 1643) was an Italian composer, gambist, and singer.Monteverdi's work, often regarded as revolutionary, marked the transition from the Renaissance style of music to that of the Baroque period. He developed two individual styles of composition – the...
's Vespro della Beata Vergine has remained structurally unchanged for the past 1500 years. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
composed in honour of the Virgin Mary Latin masses and several shorter opera: Other known classic composers with Marian compositions mainly in 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...
include Orlando di Lasso and Franz Schubert
Franz Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
.
Marian plays and songs
In FranceFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
begins in the 12th century the tradition of Christmas dramas, in which the nativity events are reproduced by actors. This becomes popular in other European countries as well, and is seen as the origin of popular Christmas carols, which were an integral part of the Christmas drama. These early Christmas songs are largely devotions to the Mother of God. Early manifestations are in Bavaria in the 12 century At the same time, Easter songs are often converted into Marian hyms, for example the hymn Te virgini Mariae laudes concinant Christianae. The assumption of Mary is praised in numerous songs from the 10th century, In several songs, Mary is praised to be above all saints and angels and participates in the kingdom of her son. Her assumption is “wished by the faithful people” in a song from the 12th century The Marian songs and hymns in this epoch are too numerous to mention. They include pious excitement even some exaggerations, and valuable insights into the Marian belief, especially in the assumption.
Ave, salve and gaude hymns
Examples of Ave (Hail Mary) songs include,- Ave dei genitrix, caelstium terrestrium infernorum domina;
- Ave spes mundi, Maria, ave mitis, ave pia;
- Ave plena, signulari gratia
Examples of Salve songs include the
- Salve regina, mater misericordiae
- Salve prodis Davidis
Gaude (Rejoice) hymns include:
- Gaude Maria templum summae majestatis
- Gaude mater luminis
- Gaude, plaude, clara Rosa
Vale (farewell) and Mater dolorosa (mother of sorrows) are also subjects of numerous Marian hymns.
Holy Mass Music
It seems that settings of the Ordinary of the MassOrdinary of the Mass
The ordinary, in Roman Catholic and other Western Christian liturgies, refers to the part of the Eucharist or of the canonical hours that is reasonably constant without regard to the date on which the service is performed...
are a latter development than music Liturgy of the Hours. Modern Kyriale
Kyriale
The Kyriale is a collection of Gregorian chant settings for the Ordinary of the Mass. It contains eighteen Masses , six Credos, and several ad libitum chants...
s designate two Gregorian Chant
Gregorian chant
Gregorian chant is the central tradition of Western plainchant, a form of monophonic liturgical music within Western Christianity that accompanied the celebration of Mass and other ritual services...
mass settings
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...
for Marian feasts, In solemnitatibus et Festis Beatae Mariae Virginis
Missa de Beata Virgine
The Missa de Beata Virgine is a musical setting of the Ordinary of the Mass, by Renaissance composer Josquin des Prez. A late work, probably composed or assembled around 1510, it was the most popular of his masses in the 16th century....
and in Festis et Memoriis. Before the Council of Trent
Council of Trent
The Council of Trent was the 16th-century Ecumenical Council of the Roman Catholic Church. It is considered to be one of the Church's most important councils. It convened in Trent between December 13, 1545, and December 4, 1563 in twenty-five sessions for three periods...
the Gloria
Gloria
-In Christian liturgy and music:*Gloria in Excelsis Deo, the main doxology or hymn of the Roman Catholic and Anglican Mass, and also known as the Great Doxology in the Eastern Orthodox Church...
of first of these contained the trope
Trope (music)
A trope or tropus may be a variety of different things in medieval and modern music.The term trope derives from the Greek τρόπος , "a turn, a change" , related to the root of the verb τρέπειν , "to turn, to direct, to alter, to change"...
Spiritus et alme orphanorum paraclete, heard in Josquin's Missa de Beata Virgine, but not in Machault's Messe de Nostre Dame
Messe de Nostre Dame
Messe de Nostre Dame is a polyphonic mass composed before 1365 by the French poet, composer and cleric Guillaume de Machaut...
which was written as a votive mass
Votive Mass
In the liturgy of the Roman Catholic Church, a votive Mass is a Mass offered for a votum, a special intention.The Mass does not correspond to the Divine Office for the day on which it is celebrated...
. The list of compositions by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina includes numerous Marian masses:
- Missa Salve Regina
- Missa Alma Redemptoris
- Missa Assumpta est Maria
- Missa Regina coeli
- Missa de beata Virgine
- Missa Ave Regina coelorum
- Missa Descendit Angelus Domini
- Missa O Virgo simul et Mater
Marian music during the Baroque period
The Marian music in the baroque periodBaroque music
Baroque music describes a style of Western Classical music approximately extending from 1600 to 1760. This era follows the Renaissance and was followed in turn by the Classical era...
is strongly influenced by the Latin tradition, but develops its own characteristics. Marian songs venerate her exceptional sanctity. Many Marian songs have the form of litanies, expressing adoration of Mary. Others moralize the faithful in light of her virtuous life. In Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
and Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, baroque Marian compositions stress her national protective powers for the Polish and Hungarian nation, an aspect largely missing in Italy, France and Germany, where Mary is likely to be called upon to protect a city or region rather than a nation. Many Latin Marian hymns are now translated into vernacular language, especially in Germany under the influence of Lutheran use of the vernacular
Vernacular
A vernacular is the native language or native dialect of a specific population, as opposed to a language of wider communication that is not native to the population, such as a national language or lingua franca.- Etymology :The term is not a recent one...
in liturgy
Liturgy
Liturgy is either the customary public worship done by a specific religious group, according to its particular traditions or a more precise term that distinguishes between those religious groups who believe their ritual requires the "people" to do the "work" of responding to the priest, and those...
. Latin texts are often enriched with flowery adorations and Marian praises. Like Marian poetry, Marian music has flourished most in Italy, Spain, Portugal and France, countries uninfluenced by the reformation.
Before the German secularisations of 1802
German Mediatisation
The German Mediatisation was the series of mediatisations and secularisations that occurred in Germany between 1795 and 1814, during the latter part of the era of the French Revolution and then the Napoleonic Era....
many religious congregations had their own composers. In the monastery of Andechs
Andechs
The Benedictine abbey of Andechs is a place of pilgrimage on a hill east of the Ammersee in the Landkreis of Starnberg in Germany, in the municipality Andechs. Andechs Abbey is famed for its flamboyant Baroque church and its brewery...
, Father Nonnosus Madleder, in Ottobeuren
Ottobeuren
Ottobeuren is a municipality in Bavaria, Germany, located 10 km southeast of Memmingen near the A7. It is famous for Ottobeuren Abbey, situated next to the Basilica....
, Father Franx Schnizer, in Irsee
Irsee
Irsee is a village and municipality in the district of Ostallgäu in Bavaria in Germany.The centre of the village is dominated by a monastery , dedicated to the Virgin Mary, was founded in 1186 by Margrave Henry of Ronsberg to house a community that had grown up around a local hermit...
Father Meinrad Spiess, and in Banz Father Valentin Rathgeber
Valentin Rathgeber
Johann Valentin Rathgeber was a German composer, organist and choirmaster of the Baroque Era.His father, an organist, gave him his first music lessons...
OSB, (1682–1750) wrote 43 masses, 164 offertories 24 concerts and, 44 Marian antiphones.
Marian music in the Enlightenment era
Besides the above mentioned Vespers, Joseph HaydnJoseph Haydn
Franz Joseph Haydn , known as Joseph Haydn , was an Austrian composer, one of the most prolific and prominent composers of the Classical period. He is often called the "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet" because of his important contributions to these forms...
wrote several Marian composition
Musical composition
Musical composition can refer to an original piece of music, the structure of a musical piece, or the process of creating a new piece of music. People who practice composition are called composers.- Musical compositions :...
s including two famous Marian Masses, the Missa in honorem Beatissimae Virginis Mariae, No. 5 in E flat major, also known as the Grosse Orgelmesse (Great Organ Mass) (H. 22/4) (1766) and the Missa Cellensis or Mariazellermesse No. 8 in C major, (H. 22/8) (1782)
Sources
- Marian Music Collection at the University of Dayton http://campus.udayton.edu/mary//resources/music/seasons.html
- Konrad Algermissen, Lexikon der Marienkunde, Pustet, Regensburg, 1967
- Remigius Bäumer, Leo Scheffczyk (Hrsg.) Marienlexikon Gesamtausgabe, Institutum Marianum Regensburg, 1994, ISBN 3-88096-891-8 (cit. Bäumer)