St. Matthew Passion (SWV 479) (Choral Score)

Schütz, Heinrich

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Schütz St. Matthew Passion (SWV 479) (Choral Score)

“The suffering of our Lord Jesus Christ as described by the Evangelist St. Matthew.”

Schütz’s three passions arguably constitute the culmination of his compositional output. His “St. Matthew Passion” which he wrote in 1666, in his 81st year, and which was premiered at the Catholic Cathedral of Dresden is characterised by an austere and dignified expression.  The work is composed in the Dorian mode transposed to G and of the three passions represents the longest and richest in modulations.  The composer confined himself to exclusively setting the biblical text to music, meaning the report of Evangelist St. Matthew (Chapter 26 and 27), preceded by a choral movement called Introitus and followed by a motet-like choral movement at the end.  He abstained from free insertions as found in the oratorio passions of his contemporaries and even more so his successors. 

Schütz scored the work for soloists, so-called soliloquists, meaning “solo speakers”, and mixed choir.  He dispensed entirely with an instrumental or basso continuo accompaniment.
  
The solo singing which combines the tone of the passion with elements of the Italian opera monody and the German song reaches an enormous intensity of expression.  The turbae, meaning the choruses of the “crowd” or “people”, e.g. the Jewish people, the disciples of Jesus, and the high priests dramatically describe certain situations, partly with stunning emotional depth.  The introductory and final choruses belong to the most outstanding music which Schütz created.

Schmidt, Fritz
BA300-91
9790006401345
Baerenreiter Germany

Additional Information

Baroque Period
Mixed Voices
German