Festival conclusion
Requiem KV 626
W. A. Mozart
| 28 October 2006 |
8 p.m. |
Protestant church |
Bad Goisern |
| Soprano: Maria Hauser
Alto: Monika Waeckerle
Tenor: Bernhard Berchtold
Bass: Wolfgang Moosgassner
|
Choir: Schola Cantorum
Conductor: Peter WesenAuer
Orchestra:
Sinfonietta da Camera Salzburg
|
W. A. Mozart
Requiem, K 626
The darkness which, for a long time, surrounded the reason for the creation of Mozart’s unfinished requiem mass and which was the cause behind the formation of several legends during the 19th century, has been largely elucidated today. The “grey messenger” that ordered the requiem in the early summer of 1791 was acting on behalf of the Lower Austrian Duke Franz von Waldegg-Stuppach. He loved to anonymously order works from renowned composers which he then copied in his own writing to make his musicians guess whose quill they originated from. Hence, the order for a requiem inspired by the death of his wife was rather an aristocratic form of amusement rather than attempted plagiarism.
Despite several disruptions caused by travelling to Prague in order to perform Tito and the composition of the Magic Flute, Mozart nevertheless succeeded in bequeathing us with the complete Introitus and the Kyrie:
The sequence, which breaks off after 8 bars of the following Lacrimosa, are existent in particell form, as are the following Domine Jesu and Hostias. The sketches in Dies Irae are advanced enough for a reasonably-talented composer to be able to complete them in Mozart’s intentions.
This was carried out by Franz Xaver Süßmayr, who was entrusted with completing the work in the wake of the obviously overtaxed Eybler. It is unclear to what extent the movements not existing in the original manuscript – Sanctus, Benedictus and Agnus, and Communio which ties up with the beginning – comply with Mozart’s intentions.
