RECORDING OF THE MONTH
Heinrich SCHÜTZ (1585-1672)
Herr, nun lässest du deinen Diener in Friede fahren (SWV 432)
[4:00]
Ich bin die Auferstehung und das Leben (SWV 464) [3:36]
Herr, nun lässest du deinen Diener in Friede fahren (SWV 433)
[3:18]
Das ist je gewißlich wahr (SWV 277) [4:43]
Samuel SCHEIDT (1587-1654)
Wir glauben all an einen Gott* [3:15]
Martin LUTHER (1483-1546)
Mit Fried und Freud ich fahr dahin [3:28]
Heinrich SCHÜTZ
Musicalische Exequien (SWV 279-281) [32:44]
Vox Luminis/Lionel Meunier
Bernard Foccroulle (organ)*
rec. October 2010, Église Saint-Jean l'évangeliste, Beaufays;
1999, Abbaye Notre-Dame of Leffe (*), Belgium. DDD
RICERCAR RIC 311 [55:07]
Death plays an important role in the music of the renaissance and baroque
eras. It was a daily experience: wars and disasters made many victims, and
so did diseases which have now practically disappeared, like the plague. Moreover,
relatively few children survived their first year. In a time in which almost
everyone believed in God it was only logical that people turned to their faith
and the Church in times of sorrow. That resulted in a large number of compositions
which are related to suffering and death.
Most of Johann Sebastian Bach's motets were composed for funerals. In the
oeuvre of Heinrich Schütz one can also find a number of pieces which
were written at the occasion of the death of a particular person or were suited
to funerals. The most famous of them is the main work on this disc, the Musicalische
Exequien. It was performed in February 1636 during the funeral of Herr
Heinrich Posthumus von Reuß, who had died on 3 December of the previous
year. He himself had painstakingly outlined every detail of his funeral. He
should be buried in a copper coffin which should be adorned with 22 texts
he himself had chosen. They were partly taken from the Bible and partly extracts
from various hymns. It is often written that Herr von Reuß himself had
asked Schütz to set them to music, but the Schütz scholar Werner
Breig believes that it is more likely that Schütz received the commission
from his widow and sons.
The Musicalische Exequien are divided into three sections. Part 1 contains
the quotations from the Bible and from hymns which are set in the form of
a German Mass - it says: Concert in Form einer teutschen Begräbnis-Missa.
The quotations from the Bible are set as little sacred concertos, the hymns
as 6-part motets. Schütz opts not to use the chorale melodies which were
deployed by so many other German composers.
Part 2 is a sermon motet, Herr, wenn ich nur dich habe. The text consists
of the verses 25 and 26 of Psalm 73: "Lord, if I have none other than you,
so shall I ask nothing of heaven or earth". It is scored for eight voices
in two choirs.
Part 3 is a setting of the Canticum Simeonis (Nunc dimittis), Herr,
nun lässest du deinen Diener in Friede fahren ("Lord, now lettest
Thou Thy servant depart in peace"). Here Schütz has added that this text
should be sung by a five-part choir of lower voices near the organ, whereas
two sopranos and a bass should sing the text "Selig sind die Toten" (Blessed
are the dead which die in the Lord) from the back of the vault in which Posthumus
von Reuß was laid to rest.
There is no reconstruction of the whole ceremony here. That would probably
be impossible as I doubt whether it is exactly known what it looked like.
Some elements are represented. The Exequien are preceded by Martin
Luther's funeral hymn Mit Fried und Freud ich fahr dahin which is sung
unisono by the whole ensemble. This is preceded by an organ arrangement of
the hymn Wir glauben all an einen Gott, Luther's version of the Credo
which was sung in every service in Lutheran Germany.
The disc begins with four funeral motets Schütz composed for various
people he knew personally. In 1630 Johann Hermann Schein died, who was a personal
friend of his, and Thomaskantor in Leipzig. Schütz composed the
motet Das ist je gewißlich wahr (SWV 277), with a moving tribute
on the title page to this "man of most excellent genius and virtue". Another
motet, Ich bin die Auferstehung und das Leben (SWV 464), was written
for the funeral of Anton Colander, court organist in Dresden and a pupil of
Schütz.
A favourite text for funerals was the Canticum Simeonis, known under
the Latin title of Nunc dimittis, in Germany mostly with the text Herr,
nun lässest du deinen Diener in Friede fahren. It is the closing
section of the Musicalische Exequien, but Schütz also set this
text twice in 1656 for the funeral of Georg I, the Elector of Saxony, who
had been Schütz's employer for more than forty years. The first setting
was to be sung before, the second after the sermon. Both are for six voces
and basso continuo.
I am very impressed by these performances of Vox Luminis. There is certainly
no lack of recordings of the Musicalische Exequien, but this one lands
at the top of my list, alongside the performance of the Collegium Vocale under
Philippe Herreweghe (Harmonia mundi). The singing, both solo and ensemble,
is of great beauty. More importantly, the delivery is outstanding, which is
essential in a performance of any work by Schütz who paid so much attention
to the text that he was nicknamed Musicus poeticus. Moreover, this
recording has the solemn atmosphere this work demands. The other motets are
given equally impressive interpretations.
Every reason to label this disc Record of the Month and add it to my
list of potential recordings of the year.
Johan van Veen
http://www.musica-dei-donum.org
https://twitter.com/johanvanveen
One of the best recordings of Schütz' Musicalische Exequien.