Presenter Information
Maria Jimena Picado Sandi, Mary Pappert School of Music
Abstract
In 1733, the great German Lutheran composer Johann Sebastian Bach presented the beginnings of what would become his only Catholic work, the Mass in B minor, to the newly elected King of Poland, August III. This first draft was a compilation of extracts from five different Lutheran Masses that he had already composed, including a Kyrie and a Gloria.
Over the years, musicologists have put forth various theories as to why such a devoted Lutheran such as Bach wrote a Catholic mass (e.g. Wolff 2001). My research clarifies how specific sections of the Mass express both Catholic and Lutheran beliefs and theological perspectives. To accomplish this, I analyze the text and music of these portions of the Mass, but I also consider the ways in which Bach adapted some of his other Lutheran compositions for inclusion in the Catholic Mass. These adaptations include the opening chorus of Cantata BWV 29 ("Gratias agimus tibi" in the Mass) and some music from Cantata BWV 46 ("Qui tollis peccato mundi" in the Mass).
My investigation of the theological orientation of Bach's Mass also considers the role of performance, a crucial factor when considering the meaning of any piece of music. Previous studies have evaluated different performance practices of Bach's music from a historical point of view (Butt 1991, Melamed 2018), including the various choices that performers must make today in comparison to how this work would have been performed during Bach's lifetime. Along those lines, I analyze two different recordings of the Mass, one with the English Baroque Soloists and Monteverdi Choir under the direction of, John Eliot Gardiner from 1985, and another by the Berlin Philharmonic and Chorus conducted by Hebert von Karajan in 1974. I show how the different musical choices made by each conductor and ensemble radically change the theological meaning of the text and the music. Ultimately, I address the question of whether or not Bach wrote this work exclusively for the Catholic Church or if the role of performance changes the theological meaning of it making it acceptable to also be used in a Lutheran service.
School
Mary Pappert School of Music
Advisor
Dr. Benjamin Binder
Submission Type
Paper
Publication Date
2023-03-17
Included in
Theological Perspectives of the Mass in B minor, BWV 232
In 1733, the great German Lutheran composer Johann Sebastian Bach presented the beginnings of what would become his only Catholic work, the Mass in B minor, to the newly elected King of Poland, August III. This first draft was a compilation of extracts from five different Lutheran Masses that he had already composed, including a Kyrie and a Gloria.
Over the years, musicologists have put forth various theories as to why such a devoted Lutheran such as Bach wrote a Catholic mass (e.g. Wolff 2001). My research clarifies how specific sections of the Mass express both Catholic and Lutheran beliefs and theological perspectives. To accomplish this, I analyze the text and music of these portions of the Mass, but I also consider the ways in which Bach adapted some of his other Lutheran compositions for inclusion in the Catholic Mass. These adaptations include the opening chorus of Cantata BWV 29 ("Gratias agimus tibi" in the Mass) and some music from Cantata BWV 46 ("Qui tollis peccato mundi" in the Mass).
My investigation of the theological orientation of Bach's Mass also considers the role of performance, a crucial factor when considering the meaning of any piece of music. Previous studies have evaluated different performance practices of Bach's music from a historical point of view (Butt 1991, Melamed 2018), including the various choices that performers must make today in comparison to how this work would have been performed during Bach's lifetime. Along those lines, I analyze two different recordings of the Mass, one with the English Baroque Soloists and Monteverdi Choir under the direction of, John Eliot Gardiner from 1985, and another by the Berlin Philharmonic and Chorus conducted by Hebert von Karajan in 1974. I show how the different musical choices made by each conductor and ensemble radically change the theological meaning of the text and the music. Ultimately, I address the question of whether or not Bach wrote this work exclusively for the Catholic Church or if the role of performance changes the theological meaning of it making it acceptable to also be used in a Lutheran service.