During his brief life, Franz Schubert composed six settings of the traditional Roman Catholic mass. The first four, dating from 1815 and 1816, were relatively brief and straightforward. In 1819 he began work on a mass in A-flat that was much more ambitious in scope, striving for the "supreme artistic height."

Schubert's final mass was composed during the summer of 1828. Much more than his previous efforts in the genre, it is a choral mass, relegating the vocal soloists to three brief episodes, and provides an extremely active role for the orchestra, especially the three trombones. The unique scoring, omitting flutes from the orchestra, emphasizes lower woodwind and brass sonorities.

Historians are unsure what inspired Schubert to compose the mass. It may have been the result of a commission from a new Society for the Performance of Church Music, which was to have performed the work at its first concert in October of 1828. (In fact, the premiere did not take place until the following October, nearly a year after Schubert's death.)

We do know that the mass was intended for the Parish Church of the Holy Trinity in the Viennese suburb of Alsergrund, which had a very special meaning for Schubert: it was here that Beethoven's body had lain after the great composer's death in 1827 and Schubert had been a torchbearer in the funeral procession. Perhaps Schubert thought of this mass as a tribute to Beethoven, although in actuality it became something or a memorial piece for Schubert himself.

Most likely, the mass was yet another example of Schubert seeking to expand his creative horizons in more profound ways, much as he did near the end of his short life with the last two symphonies, the B minor "Unfinished" and the "Great" C major.

The opening 3/4 Kyrie movement of the mass is cast in A-B-A form, with the initial choral "Kyrie eleison" followed by a central, more agitated "Christe eleison," then a modified reprise of the opening "Kyrie" section, concluding quietly. Schubert breaks with tradition in not assigning the "Christe" text to the solo vocal quartet — indeed, none of the soloists will be heard until the middle of the third movement.

The second movement, Gloria, begins in B-flat major and quick 4/4 time. An unaccompanied choir sings the opening text before violins usher in the orchestra with a fanfare-like ascending triplet figure. Schubert sets the "Domine Deus, agnus Dei" text dramatically, switching to slower 3/4 time and G minor. The opening material returns briefly at "Quoniam" and then, in keeping with tradition, Schubert sets the "Cum spirito sancto" section as an extended fugue.

The Credo begins quietly, with only a timpani roll: the timpani will return throughout the long movement as a bridge between its sections, the first of which is in E-flat major and cut time. Next comes one of the most miraculous passages in the entire work. Schubert modulates to A-flat major for a 12/8 Andante in which the cellos introduce a gorgeous tune, reminiscent of the composer's incidental music for Rosamunde. Finally, nearly halfway through the work, soloists enter with the "Et incarnatus est" text: first a tenor, then — unexpectedly — a second tenor, and finally a soprano. At "Crucifixus" the choir returns, the music now in A-flat minor and haunted by an insistent sixteenth-note triplet rhythm that is passed around the orchestra. The solo trio material and the darker choral response are both reprised before a timpani roll leads a return to the E-flat major music from the opening of the movement for "Et resurrexit," soon followed by another protracted fugue at "Et vitam venturi."

The Sanctus is cast in a slow 4/4 meter, beginning in E-flat but quickly moving to B minor, then G minor and E-flat minor. After a mere 23 bars, this material gives way to a brief, sprightly "Osanna" fugue in E-flat major.

For the Benedictus, Schubert finally allows the traditional solo quartet (soprano, alto, tenor and bass) to take center stage, albeit briefly, with a response from the full chorus. The movement concludes with a reprise of the "Osanna" fugue from the Sanctus.

The Agnus Dei begins darkly, in C minor and 3/4 time, moving to E-flat major and cut time for the heavenly "Dona nobis pacem" in which the soloists make their third and final appearance. The sinister "Agnus Dei" material is reprised and threatens to end the mass tragically, but before long the E-flat major "Dona nobis pacem" returns for the peaceful coda.

© 2003 Jeff Eldridge