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Mozart's last composition before his death. Musical analysis of "requiem"

Mozart's last composition before his death. Musical analysis of "requiem"

03.03.2019

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Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

« Bymydeeppersuasion,

Mozart There ishigher,climacticdot,

before whichbeautyreachedVspheremusic."

P. Chaikovsky

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (January 27, 1756, Salzburg - December 5, 1791, Vienna) - Austrian composer, bandmaster, virtuoso, harpsichordist, organist.

Mozart is widely recognized as one of the greatest composers and, along with Haydn and Beethoven, is one of the most significant exponents of the Vienna Classical School.

A distinctive feature of Mozart's work is an amazing combination of strict, clear forms with deep emotionality. The uniqueness of his work lies in the fact that he not only wrote in all the forms and genres that existed in his era, but also left works of enduring significance in each of them. Mozart's music reveals many connections with different national cultures(especially Italian), nevertheless, it belongs to the national Viennese soil and bears the stamp of the creative individuality of the great composer.

Mozart is one of the greatest melodists. Its melody combines the features of Austrian and German folk songs with the melodiousness of the Italian cantilena. Despite the fact that his works are distinguished by poetry and subtle grace, they often contain melodies of a courageous nature, with great dramatic pathos and contrasting elements. Mozart's style is distinguished by intonational expressiveness, plastic flexibility, cantilence, rich pictorial melody, interpenetration (for vocal-instrumental works) of vocal and instrumental principles. Mozart is characterized by a heightened sense of tonal-harmonic semantics, the expressive possibilities of harmony (frequent use of minor, chromaticisms, interrupted revolutions, etc.). The texture of Mozart's works is distinguished by a variety of combinations of the gamophone-harmonic and polyphonic warehouse, the forms of their synthesis. In the field of instrumentation, the classical balance of compositions is complemented by the search for various timbre combinations, personalized interpretation of timbres.

Among the vocal genres, Mozart attached particular importance to the opera, calling his passionate desire to write operas his id th e fixe . In total, from 1767 to 1791, Mozart created 23 operas. His operas are a whole epoch in the development of this type musical art. Along with Gluck, he was the greatest reformer of the genre of opera, but unlike him, he considered music to be the basis of opera. Mozart created a completely different type musical dramaturgy, Where opera music is in complete unity with the development of the stage action. As a result, in his operas there are no unambiguously positive and negative characters, and the characters are lively and multifaceted, showing the relationship of people, their feelings and aspirations. The most popular operas were The Marriage of Figaro, Don Giovanni and The Magic Flute.

Working in other vocal genres, Mozart wrote

more than 50 arias

ensembles, choirs (church and secular)

o "ABC" (choral joke)

o Litany

songs(30)

o "Oh zither you are mine"

o "My dear Pompeo"

o Collection of popular German songs

canons (40)

nocturnes

o "Ecco quel fiero istante..." ("Oh terrible hour of separation") for soprano, tenor, bass

music for the heroic drama "Tamos, King of Egypt"

Oratorio (azione sacra) "The Liberated Vetulia"

· cantatas

o Penitent David

o Graveyard music

o Thee, soul of the universe

o The joy of masons

o You who honor the creator of the immeasurable

o Small Masonic Cantata

Of course, the Requiem occupies a special place among his vocal compositions. Shortly before his death, Mozart received an anonymous order for the Requiem through intermediaries. The Requiem was commissioned by Count Franz von Walsegh for an annual performance in memory of his wife. The count was an amateur musician and repeatedly passed off the music ordered from various composers as his composition; at the first performance of the "Requiem" by Walsegue in December 1793, the notes were signed as "Requiem composition of Count von Walsegue". The composer died after finishing only the first movement. The premiere of the Requiem took place on December 14, 1793 in Vienna, in the Cistercian church.

Musical - theoretical analysis

Requiem(KV626) - the last unfinished work of the composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, on which he worked before his death.

A requiem is a mournful choral work of many parts, usually with the participation of soloists, accompanied by an orchestra. It originated as a funeral Catholic service with musical parts in Latin text, but later lost its ceremonial character and moved into concert practice. In the Requiem there are differences from the structure of the mass, some parts are missing, some are replaced. Therefore, I bring comparison table structures of the Requiem and Solemn Mass.

" Requiem"

· Requiem aeternam - Eternal rest

· Kyrieeleison(Lord have mercy)

· Diesirae - Day anger

Tuba mirum - Trumpet of the Eternal

· Rex tremendae majestatis - King of stunning majesty

Recordare, Jesu pie - Remember, merciful Jesus

Confutatis maledictis - Confounding the wicked

Lacrimosa dies illa - Tearful day

· Offertorium - Sacrifice

o Domine Jesu Christe - Lord Jesus Christ

o Hostias et preces - Sacrifices and supplications

· Sanctus

o Sanctus - Holy

o Benedictus - Blessed

· AgnusDei - Lamb God's (ends with "Dona nobis pacem")

missaproprium(holidaysolemnmass)

Introitus (Antiphone ad introitum) entrance chant

· Kyrieeleison(or sprinkle me on sunday, Saw I water from Easter to Trinity)

· Gloria - Glory V the highest God

Graduate (Responsorium graduale, Gradual) - a psalm with an antiphon

Alleluja (or sequence in the octave of Christmas and Easter service)

· Credo

o Et incarnatus,

o Antiphone ad Offertorium

· Sanctus

· AgnusDei

Communio (Antiphona ad communionem)

· In the old mass (before the 15th century), the final chant was "Ite, missa est" ("Go, the service is done").

Despite the cult text, Mozart's Requiem is far from a liturgical cult. means musical expressiveness Mozart embodies the deepest world of human experiences - mental turmoil, peaceful peace, the depth of grief and suffering. The whole work is imbued with high humanism, passionate love for man, ardent sympathy for his suffering.

To this day, there are disputes about which part belongs exactly to Mozart, and which part belongs to Franz Xaver Süssmeier and Josef Aibler, who completed the work. In the second half of the 20th century, an alternative edition of Richard Monder was created, who tried to "cleanse" Mozart's music from edits and fragments of Eibler and Süssmeier. In particular, it acquired a completely different sound Lacrimosa. In addition, Monder included in the Requiem Amen, not used by Süssmeier (this fragment follows Lacrimosa). This version is recorded, among others, by Christopher Hogwood.

1. Introitus: Requiem aeternam -- chorus

· Kyrie eleison -- choir

2. Dies irae -- chorus

3. Tuba mirum -- solo for soprano, alto, tenor and bass

4. Rex tremendae majestatis - chorus

6. Confutatis maledictis -- chorus

7. Lacrimosa dies illa - chorus

8. Offertorium: Domine Jesu Christe (Lord Jesus Christ) - choir and solo of four voices

9. Hostias et preces - chorus

10. Sanctus: -- choir and solo

11. Benedictus (blessed) -- solo of four voices, then chorus

12. Agnus Dei (Lamb of God) - chorus

· Lux aeterna (eternal light) -- choir

Of the twelve numbers of the "Requiem", nine were written for the choir and three ("Tuba mirum", "Recordare" and "Benedictus") for the quartet of soloists.

The first part of “Requiem aeternam” (eternal peace) begins, as it were, from the birth of a person, from his childhood - with “steps”, which from cautious ones become harder and more confident, he unfolds, straightens up, the palette of feelings becomes richer and more perfect. Disturbing motifs are interspersed in infantile blissful melodies, speaking of great upcoming life collisions. Further, in the second part, in the face of future troubles, it would seem that there is a prayer - a request for forgiveness "Kyrie eleison" (Lord have mercy), but not everything is so simple...

From prayer there are only words. The request for pardon sounds demanding, imperative, sometimes even menacing, and at the end solemnly, does not carry any real repentance. Ambitious, arrogant youth cannot do otherwise.

The words are repeated, the melody itself, as it were, walks in the same circle (fugue) - this is an image of the problematic cyclicity that is always present in the destructive system of relations ("the devil is circling", "circles of hell"). Destructiveness, evil is always doomed to repeat itself, circling along the same trajectory.

The peak of destruction, the “funnel” that ends the “circles of hell” is some kind of catastrophe, misfortune, illness. It is this state that is conveyed by the third part - “Dies irae” (day of wrath), written by Mozart under the influence of the plague that raged in Europe from the 14th to the 18th centuries, and claimed a total of 75 million human lives. And just like the plague that rolls periodically, so do personal negative, non-purifying sufferings go around in the same circle, in a crazy diabolical catastrophic carousel.

Day of Wrath... Whose wrath is meant? God? Who is he, Zeus - a thunderer, only looking for something to punish? No. This suffering is not from God. A person is ready to endure any kind of suffering, just to avoid even greater suffering. Moral suffering, purifying suffering, associated with a reassessment of values, spiritual rebirth, “Resurrection”, are terrifying, and cyclic ones are at least familiar, but with them death, or the Judge will come ...

And He comes, but when the person himself desires it, when he takes a position of confrontation with destructiveness: “I have nothing to lose, I’ll do anything, but I won’t live before.” It is at this moment that an amazing, firm and confident, inescapably calling "trumpet voice" sounds in him - this is the name of the next part of the "Requiem".

Tubamirum

Tuba mirum spargens sonum

per sepulcra regionum,

coget omnes ante thronum.

Mors stupebit et natura.

Cum resurget creation

judicanti response.

Liber scriptus proferetur

in quo totum continuous

unde mundus judicetur.

Judex ergo cum sedebit

quidquid late apparebit:

nil inultum remanebit.

Quid sum miser tunc dicturus,

quem patronum rogaturus,

cum vix justus sit securus?

Trubnyvoice

The trumpet voice resounding

over death in all lands,

calls everyone to the throne.

Death will numb and nature

when the creature appears,

to answer the judge.

The prescribed is proclaimed,

in which everything was foretold

whence the world will be judged.

When the judge sits

all secrets will be revealed

nothing will be left without vengeance.

How can I justify myself, unfortunate,

to which intercessor shall I turn,

if only the righteous will be delivered from fear?

So, all the bridges are burned, the devil is rejected, the Judge is on the throne - an idea that lives inside a person.

Then the agonizing phase of analysis begins. A person suffers, overestimating his past and present, the old system of relations, seeing how much evil he received from outside and spread it himself, for which he paid. He tries to hold on to something, but his strength is less and less.

Recordare

Recordare, Jesu pie,

quod sum causa tuae viae

ne me perdas illa die.

Quaerens me sedisti lassus;

redemisti crucem passus.

Tantus labor non sit cassus.

Juste Judex ultionis

donum fac remissionis

ante diem rationis.

Ingemisco tanquam reus:

culpa rubet vultus meus.

supplicanti parce, Deus.

Qui Mariam absolvisti

et latronem exaudisti,

mihi qouque spem dedisti.

Preces meae non sunt dignae,

sed tu bonus fac benigne,

ne perenni cremer igne.

Inter oves locum praesta

et ab haedis me sequestra,

statuens in parte dextra.

Remember

Remember, merciful Jesus,

that for me you went your way,

so that I don't die that day.

me, sitting in despair,

Redeemed by suffering on the cross.

May the sacrifice not be barren.

Righteous Judge, Retributing Vengeance,

grant me forgiveness

before reporting time.

I sigh like a defendant:

Guilt burns my face.

Spare the one who prays to you, O God.

Forgiving Mary,

listening to the robber

you gave me hope too.

My prayers are unworthy

but you, just and omnipotent,

don't let me burn forever in the fire.

Give me a place among the lambs

and separate me from the goats,

put on the right.

The process of moral suffering reaches its climax in the chorus of "Confutatis maledictis" (overthrowing the slanderers). This is already Golgotha. In music, this is expressed by breaking through weak and powerless pleas: "Voca me ...".

If we return to the image of the “steps” of a man at the beginning of the Requiem, then “Confutatis” begins with a formidable, frantic, if not furious step. This powerful step sometimes stops to rest, the helpless “Voca me ...” sounds, and again forward: “Confutatis maledictis ...” Then the step exhales, an image of a man barely moving his legs appears, weaker and weaker, and at the end stop and ... fall, a man collapsed to the ground - a completely separate third quarter chord sounds, a chord - a sigh seeking help. And then "Lacrimosa" (tearful) begins - probably the saddest work known.

This is no longer an image of steps, these are the movements of a person crawling with the last of his strength. The incredible rhythm of "Lacrimosa" -12/8, barely warm, almost "threadlike pulse", rare beats through 12 beats, introduces into a special experience of death, this is not a funeral march, this is something much deeper. The movements become weaker and weaker and that's it, the end, the stop. The long, underlined "amen" divided into two syllables that ends "Lacrimosa" is, as it were, two strokes that put a final cross on the old, ended life. This point divides the Requiem into two radically different halves. Further - flight, higher and higher.

“Domine” reflects that state when the old has already died, gone, and the new has not yet been formed. A striking cheerful freshness of “Sed signifer sanctus Michael...” arises, there is no longer room for tragedy, there is positive confidence, a thirst for the new, a kind of impatience that leads a little into the old, circular: “quam olim Abrahae promisisti...”, but this is completely not what we heard in “Kyrie”, there is no longer that gloomy exactingness, and these “circles” break off with beautiful codes.

Further positive development is presented in the unusually harmonious choir "Hostias". Where there used to be conflict, there is now harmony. Instead of fighting the bad, joining the good comes forward.

And again, at the end, the circular “quam olim Abrahae promisisti…” breaks through, and again ends just as harmoniously.

Next comes the hymn to God: "Sanctus" (Holy). A person approaches holiness - becomes a servant of an idea, relationship, goodness, love, happiness. The next movement reflects the same: "Benedictus", but more calmly, without solemnity, the first delight leaves.

In the next part of "Agnus Dei" (Lamb of God), a new essence of the renewed personality is revealed: if before it was actual own suffering, now there is compassion, understanding of oneself and others

AgnusDei

dona eis requiem.

Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi,

dona eis requiem sempiternam.

LambGod's

grant them peace.

The Lamb of God, who took away the sins of the world,

grant them eternal rest.

The work ends with a part repeating the same leitmotif with which the Requiem began, depicting birth, childhood, the formation of a person, but now cleared of anxiety.

Maturity, the perfection of man has joined childhood. The genius of Mozart overcame time and showed what we can more or less substantiate only now - overcoming old age, illness and death is possible only on the basis of human renewal. This is the meaning of the gospel covenant “Be like children” (Matt. 18:3)

Now let's take a closer look at the analysis of the part Confutatismaledictis.

It is written in a simple two-part form: the first part is a roll call of the male and female parts of the choir, and the second part is a sequence in choral tutti. Before and after the Confutatis maledictis, other parts follow without interruption, so there is neither an introduction nor a final construction.

For accompaniment, Mozart used the chamber composition of the orchestra:

Brass :

2 basset horns in F (in F), 2 bassoons, 2 trumpets in D (in D), 3 trombones (alto, tenor and bass).

Drums : timpani.

Strings : violins, violas

as well as basso continuo - organ, cello, double bass

Turning directly to the analysis of the melody, I think it would be appropriate to consider the parts of the Confutatis separately.

FirstPart, written in an imitation-polyphonic form, it is especially striking in its dramatic expressiveness and tragic pathos. Bass and tenors come on ѓ Agitato :

Example 1:

a - mall since the Middle Ages it has been considered a lyrical tone in which the soul and its memory can best be described: inner world; imagination, daydreaming, sentimentality, sadness. But here it sounds very insistent and passionate: in a touch Agitato the melodic line, broken with a sharp dotted line, rises higher and higher in mind 5 and sixths (intonation of appeal, determination), and then descends downward to the dominant tone.

Example 2:

Movement by small durations conveys a state of extreme excitement; and the alternation of 32s and 16s sounds like tirats - the intonations of an appeal and a decisive mood.

With the introduction of tender tender phrases of female voices ( call me) the pace slows down to Andante , the melodic line is smoothed out, the rhythmic pattern is aligned. In key WITH- dur and stroke sotto voice the chorus sounds light and almost incorporeal.

Example 3:

The nature of the accompaniment is also changing. One measure before the entry of female voices, the movement slows down through the enlargement of durations (in the part of wind quarters, for strings - eighths), which gradually, according to the chromatic scale, smoothly descend from the dominant A- mall to tonic WITH- dur , in the party basso continuo only the cello and cotrobass remain, lightening and brightening the overall sound of the accompaniment.

The female choir is accompanied only by violins in unison with soft, sometimes arpeggiated, sometimes stepwise moves in a stroke. R.

Example 4:

And again, according to the principle of invading contrast, male voices enter in the same key a - mall .. The dynamics, tempo, rhythmic pattern and melodic line have hardly changed, but a higher tessitura speaks of the intensity of passions. In the orchestra, timpani return, brass, echoing the male choir, and strings with the same undulating excited melody. Through a series of deviations in the key of the first degree of kinship ( WITH - dur , h - mall , d - mall ) the melodic line moves towards e - mall (dominant A- mall ), and then with the stepwise movement of the bass through - into the actual A- mall . When approaching the entry of the women's choir, the previous pattern is repeated: enlargement of durations, slowing down the tempo to Andante , facilitating accompaniment.

The introduction of female voices is again accompanied by violins, compared to the first one, expanded from 4 to 9 measures due to the appearance of a roll call in words Voca me . The smoothness of the melodic line, tonality and dynamics remained the same, but the tonality changes to a - mall .

Example 5:

That. the severity of the intonations of the male choir is, as it were, balanced by the transparent and gentle timbre of female voices: the desperate cries of an earthly being on the verge of death are opposed by the humble voices of angels.

SecondPart is a chorale, takes place in dynamics p and tempeh Andante . The music sounds more restrained, gradually calming down and dying down in prayerful humility.

Here Mozart showed courage and innovation in the field of harmony, almost unbelievable for his time: starting with the words oro supplex et acclinis through anharmonisms and diminished seventh chords, a series of descending chromatic modulations from a - mall , V as - mall , then in g - mall , V ges - mo ll and finally in F - dur

Example 6:

This gradual chromatic lowering of keys and the bass moves to the tritone at the moment of the entry of a diminished seventh chord give the impression of an ever greater immersion.

In the orchestra, the wind part duplicates the choral parts, high strings seem to fill their long frozen chords with the movement of 16s, grouped in triplets and separated by a 16th pause, gradually moving up and down along the sounds of the same harmony. The basso continuo part - low strings and an organ that enters simultaneously with low male voices to give a deliberate density to the sound - passes 8 durations evenly through 8 pauses.

With such minimal means of orchestration, Mozart managed to draw a very bright picture, enhancing the effect of the text: the frozen woodwind chords, gradually descending through the semitones, create the image of a man bound by suffering.

Example 7:

The high strings with a triplet pulsation convey awe, and the low strings and the organ convey muffled heartbeats.

Example 8:

It is amazing and rare in music XVIII century is an example of coloristic writing, when the effect of increasing immersion is created by timbre colors and means of harmony.

Vocal-choral analysis and performance plan

mozart requiem musical vocal

This work was written for a mixed 4-voice choir. The range of the choir as a whole is from F before .

Range of choral parts:

· S from to

· A from to .

· T from

· B from F before

Dynamic range: from to

Tempo: from Moderato before Andante .

When performing the first part of the work, it is necessary to emphasize the contrast between the introductions of the male and female choirs, because the composer specifically used the juxtaposition of choral groups to fulfill the principle of invading contrast.

The male introduction should sound, according to the musical and literary text, firmly, resolutely, persistently; sound attack is solid. High tessitura and suggest a high singing position and strong breathing. Male choral parts are, as it were, an analogue of brass wind instruments (fanfare-like, calling moves) - it is no coincidence that this orchestral group doubles the male choir in the 1st part. During the performance, the attention of the choristers should be drawn to the clear execution of the dotted line and the pure intonation of the mind5 and sixth, and also, despite the high tessitura and , do not allow hysterical or clamped sound.

The part of women's voices, on the contrary, should sound very soft. Sotto voice and require a soft attack, a very light timbre and a minimum of vibrato to create the effect of angelic singing, as well as the ultimate legato And chain breathing, especially in the long phrases of the 2nd female introduction.

The second entry of the male choir in the first half of the work can be considered the culmination of the entire number (it corresponds to the highest tessitura and ), after which you need to clearly distribute the gradual decrease in sonority over 4 steps of the sequence for a smooth transition to the next number of the Requiem.

In the second part, in the choral Tutti, which is duplicated by the brass band of the orchestra, it is necessary to achieve a very pure ensemble in the sound of voices and instruments. All choral parts of this movement are performed on a chain breath with a soft sound attack as smoothly and coherently as possible.

The phrasing of the work is very clear, corresponds to the literary text; caesuras in pauses; share withdrawals. Both in the 1st and in the 2nd parts, the dynamic development within the phrases is small, therefore, in order to avoid monotony in sound, one should consider the nuance within each phrase: cresc . followed by a smooth dim .

The performance difficulties can also be attributed to the moves on the mind5 in the bass part, because. there are no sounds in the orchestra part that would anticipate or support the appearance of this interval, unlike the other voices, whose parts are duplicated by strings. Therefore, preliminary testing of the pure intonation of this interval and subsequent constant monitoring of its performance are necessary, as well as control over the pure sounding of the diminished seventh chord at the beginning of each link of the sequence when the remaining voices of the choir enter.

The text in Latin is also one of the difficulties in terms of performance. In addition to controlling clear diction, the choirmaster should convey to the performers not only the translation of this text, but also the idea of the work as a whole.

To perform this work, a large or medium composition of a professional or experienced amateur choir is required. Particular attention should be paid to the preparation of the male parts of the choir due to the high tessitura of their parts.

When conducting, the choirmaster should:

· pay attention to the clear display of phonies for basses and tenors during their imitative introduction, as well as for sopranos and altos in the second performance of their theme (roll call) in the 1st movement

pay attention to the dotted line in the parts of male voices in the 1st part

avoid fuss and speeding up the tempo while increasing sonority in the 1st part, as well as a sweeping gesture

pay attention to the clear display of slowdowns before the entry of the female choir in the 1st movement

keep an even tempo in the 2nd movement (feeling the triplet pulsation in the string part in the orchestra will help)

Conclusion

Vocal and choral skills acquired by performers in the process of working on this work:

Chain breathing and ultimate legato

Expressive performance on a quiet sonority and soft dynamics

timbre ensemble

Clear intonation of diminished and augmented intervals, chromatic moves and diminished seventh chords

The meaning of the work from the point of view of modern choral art it is impossible to overestimate: innovation in the field of harmony, bright coloristic writing, brilliant use of the method of interpenetration of vocal and choral parts, the strongest emotional impact when using minimal expressive means. In Mozart's Requiem at the end of the 18th century, such combinations sounded that completely remove the composer from the environment of his contemporaries and transfer him to the individualistic art XIX centuries, into the very center of tragedy: lamentation about the lost paradise, about the clarity and integrity of the worldview that have disappeared forever and the coverage of life with the single gaze of the Mind.

Mozart's music connects peoples, centuries, worlds with an invisible thread of reason. For the edification of mankind, the power of the impact of the music of a genius does not fade away, but from century to century it is gaining strength and influence as opposed to the unrestrained swing of the forces of corruption, greed, crime, inhumanity. The choir performing this work joins the masterpieces of world musical culture.

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...

What is a requiem

From Latin the word "requiem" is translated as "peace". This solemn, sad and sublime work belongs to the genre of religious concert music and at first was part of the funeral Catholic mass. However, starting from the 15th century, as a rule, the requiem was performed in memory of the dead, but had no direct relation to worship. It was only a tribute to the memory of people who left this world, as well as a reminder of the wrath and mercy of God. The work had a strict structure, included a musical part and text, divided into 9-12 separate chants.

In the 18th century, the requiem became one of the most popular genres of sacred music, so that almost all composers of the time created their own versions of the work. Michael Haydn, Antonio Salieri, Johannes Brahms, Giuseppe Verdi and many others wrote their own variations of the funeral mass. Over time, the requiems lost their ceremonial component and turned into concert piece dedicated to tragic events: the death of a person, the victims of war or natural disaster. The traditional structure was hardly respected.

Brief biography of the author

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born on January 27, 1756 in the Austrian city of Salzburg in the family of the court violinist Leopold Mozart. Already at the age of three, he began to take his first steps in music: he listened to his father play the harpsichord, and then picked up harmonies by ear. His father began to learn plays and minuets with him, and at the age of 5, the future composer showed a desire to independent creativity and wrote his first small works. Mozart never went to school, but Leopold managed to give his son a wonderful home education. He dreamed that the boy would become a great composer and devoted almost all his time to teaching the child. Wolfgang masterfully mastered the harpsichord, so that at the age of 12 he played better than adult musicians of that period.

He also had an amazing capacity for work, throughout his life he created many marches, minuets, plays and other small works commissioned by aristocrats. Unfortunately, most of these writings are now lost. For the creation of musical works, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart received huge fees and lived in luxurious apartments. However, then the number of orders dropped sharply, and his financial position seriously deteriorated. The money earned was barely enough to live on, and in 1791 the composer died at the age of 35 from unknown disease.

Who ordered Mozart's "Requiem"

In the summer of 1791, a mysterious stranger came to Mozart, wrapped from head to toe in a black cloak. He did not introduce himself, but paid a significant amount for the creation of a funeral mass - a requiem. The customer did not set a time limit, but demanded that the name of the author be kept secret. Exhausted by poverty, Wolfgang Amadeus accepted this offer, humiliating for the great composer. A few years after the death of Mozart, it became known that the mysterious customer was Count Franz von Walsegg, who had a habit of anonymously buying works by talented authors and passing them off as his own. He ordered music to honor the memory of his wife, and when the work was performed for the first time in 1793, the score was written "Requiem composition of Count von Walsega".

The history of the creation of "Requiem" by Mozart

The author took up writing the essay. Shortly before this, the composer felt unwell, he began to be tormented by pains of unknown origin, a strange weakness. He realized that he was dying. Work on the order began immediately, but the author could not get rid of the thought that he was writing a funeral mass for himself.

Meanwhile, new orders for musical works Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. In between work on the "Requiem" he managed to write "The Magic Flute" - a cheerful and cheerful piece, which was more familiar to his talent. The composer died on December 5, 1791, without having had time to finish the work. However, the history of the creation of Mozart's "Requiem" did not end there.

Unfinished tune

Constanza, Mozart's wife, was worried that after her husband's death, the mysterious customer would demand the return of the advance for the "Requiem" and would not pay the rest of the fee. She turned to another composer, Josef Eibler, for help to complete the work. It is believed that it was he who wrote the instrumental part in several sections, up to Lacrimosa "Requiem" by Mozart, and then left the work for unknown reasons. Subsequently, Constanta applied to other authors, but was refused. As a result, the manuscript ended up with Franz Xaver Süssmeier, a student of Wolfgang Amadeus. Researchers who are studying the question of who completed Mozart's "Requiem" are inclined to believe that it was this author who completed the work.

Joseph Eibler

This famous Austrian composer, who took part in writing the great work, was born in 1765. Wolfgang Amadeus highly appreciated his talent and, according to some reports, the musicians had friendly relations. It is noteworthy that in 1833 Eibler had an apoplexy. It happened during the performance of Mozart's music "Requiem".

Franz Xaver Süsmeier

Franz Xaver Süssmeier was born in 1766. At 21, he became a student of Mozart's archrival, but then moved on to Wolfgang Amadeus. whole year he lived in his house as a member of the family, helped the composer in his work and assisted in writing many works.

Creative researchers have found similarities between the music of Mozart's "Requiem" and similar works by Bach, Haydn, Cimarosa and Gossec. However, the presence common features explained by the requirements of the traditional structure of the composition and the general principles of religious music of the 18th century.

The image of a mysterious customer dressed in black shook the imagination of the composer, who was receptive to mysticism. Pushkin played this story with the demonic messenger of death in "Little Tragedies", and later the same character appears in Yesenin's work in the poem "The Black Man".

It is believed that the basis of the "Requiem" was written by Mozart long before the order, but the work was not published. After the composer received the order, he only had to make some changes and adapt the finished composition to the requirements of the buyer. However, this version has no hard evidence.

Thanks to Franz von Walsegh, the music was published 2 years after Mozart's death and was first performed on December 14, 1793 at the funeral service for the count's wife. Von Walsegh tried to attribute authorship to himself, but none of the listeners had any doubts that this was a genuine work of Mozart.

The researchers found a letter from Constanza, dated 1827 and addressed to an unknown recipient, in which the woman wrote: "Even if we assume that Süssmeier wrote everything completely according to Mozart's instructions, the Requiem still remains Mozart's work." These words cause a lot of speculation and fair doubts, but now that not a single participant of those events has survived, it is almost impossible to find out the truth.

On September 11, 2002, on the first anniversary of the tragedy that occurred in the United States, Mozart's "Requiem" sounded all over the planet. At 8:46, exactly at the same time that the attack on the Twin Towers began, an orchestra from the first time zone located in Japan began to play. An hour later, the music was picked up by the next band in the next time zone, and then the next one. The funeral requiem that day sounded continuously throughout the planet. The choice of this particular sad music was not accidental: the young composer's life ended just as tragically and prematurely as hundreds of lives of victims of the terrorist attack. The history of the creation of Mozart's "Requiem" is filled with suffering, the work remained unfinished, just like dreams about the future of those who died in this disaster.

The meaning of "Requiem" for listeners

"Requiem", written by Mozart on the verge of his death, is one of greatest creations musical genius which has inspired many composers. Deep, sublime and touching music does not leave listeners indifferent, penetrating into the most remote corners of the soul and touching the living. "Requiem" is a true anthem of grief and sadness, brightly and purely reflecting the feelings of a person who yearns for the departed.

Mozart's Requiem today

Mozart's "Requiem" was created in 1791. Although more than 200 years have passed since the publication of the work, this music is still played at memorial ceremonies and classical concerts. The version written by Süssmeier received the highest recognition, however, many composers repeatedly try to rewrite the work in order to improve it and adapt it to modern traditions.

The death of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart prevented him from completing famous work. Despite disputes and contradictions, no one can dispute greatest talent young author. Even after centuries, his brilliant music continues to sound.

V.A. Mozart- one of the greatest representatives of world musical classics, humanist artist , whose creative activity was associated with the advanced ideas of the Enlightenment.

Mozart's creativity is characterized by depth of thought, breadth, richness of content, variety of forms, optimism, life force, expressiveness of melody, rare artistic perfection of form. Mozart synthesized in his work the diversity of European musical culture XVIII century and had a great influence on the development of almost all genres of musical art, raised choral music to unattainable heights.

A large part of the huge creative heritage Mozart is composed of choral music. They wrote essays large form for choir and orchestra: the oratorio "The Penitent David", "The Liberated Betulia", masses (among them the Great Mass in c-moll stands out), cantatas of spiritual and secular content (the most famous cantata "Towards the Sun"), Requiem - the composer's last creation.

Among the chamber choral works Mozart can distinguish a number of motets, separate spiritual works ("Kyrie", "Miserere"), hymns, canons. The choirs "Summer Evening" and "Are verum corpus" are very popular in performing practice.

"Requiem" is one of the stable types of the Catholic Mass. Unlike its other varieties, it has undergone very significant changes in the last two centuries, without losing the overall continuity of traditions. Destined for the funeral liturgy it consisted of a number of hymns - unchanging parts of the ordinary mass and graduals, psalms, sequences, directly marking the purpose and nature of this liturgy. As traditional hymns, the requiem included "Kyrie", "Sanctus", "Agnus Dei". As the most ancient ritual, "Offertorium" was included. Stable among the graduals were "Dies irae" ( With

included in it, except for the title section "Tuba mirum", "Rex tremendae", "Recordare", "Confutatis", "Lacrimosa"). He opened the liturgy "Introitus" with the words "Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine" - "Give them eternal rest, Lord." From initial words this genre got its name.

During the period of stabilization - until the XV century. - the requiem took shape as a genre addressed to the mass audience, aimed at the spiritual unification of its various groups through empathy, sympathy. Ideas about death and the "other world" are reflected in this genre.

The canonization of the text led to a sharply defined structure of the genre and determined its stylistic features: the predominance of slow movements, reprise-closed forms, and a special type of thematicism. Moreover, the hymn parts in terms of musical material, as a rule, did not differ from the sections of the same name in the ordinary mass.

A significant genre transformation of the preclassical requiem was carried out by a representative of the Venetian school of Cavalli. The sequence "Dies irae" in his requiems became a kind of dramatic center due to the emphasized sounding of many textual details and the introduction of horror effects.

The process of the genre going beyond the cult style proceeded in the sphere of its contacts with secular instrumental music. The first results appeared in the work of G. Gabrieli (Viennese polyphonic School XVI c.), who created new type requiem - with instrumental accompaniment, which existed until the middle of the 17th century. in parallel with a "cappel. The classics of the 18th century were attracted in the requiem by the original seriousness of the subject matter, which required restraint, nobility of expression. The best examples of the genre of the classical period belong to Gasse (German), Iommelli (Italian) and Mozart.

Since that time, the requiem has acquired the features of a concert genre. This was due to the fact that the XVIII - early. 19th century were associated with the general extinction of the religious feeling that once united the broad sections of the population. Thus, F. Liszt's requiem (1869 - 1870) is an original example of the synthesis of the stylistic elements of the sacred music of the Renaissance and the composer's melodic-harmonic means.

We find a different interpretation of the genre in Bruckner, Faure, Dvorak, Puccini. By keeping the Latin text, the authors do not recreate musical model medieval mass. The verbal basis, as it were, loses its original meaning, and the works themselves as a whole closely adjoin either the cantata or the oratorio.

Thus, the evolution of the genre at the end of the XVIII century. - early XX century. led, on the one hand, to a significant expansion of its ideological topics with frequent appeal to patriotic motives, on the other hand, through interaction with other choral genres and the theater to the final exit into the field of concert practice and the loss of many of the original qualities of the primary model.

First decades of the 20th century marked by a weakening of interest in large choral form, did not give significant results in the field of requiem. In 1916, the English composer Delius created the Requiem for the first time on prose texts from the writings of Nietzsche. Only D. Weil's Berlin Requiem belongs to the 1920s.

Therefore, when classifying modern requiems according to the type of text model, three main groups are formed:

requiems to the Latin liturgical text: "Requiem Canticles"
(chants for the dead) by I. Stravinsky, requiem by D. Ligeti (Hungarian), music by A. Schnittke for F. Schiller's tragedy "Don Carlos".

· Hindemith's "Requiem for those we love";

· Britten's war requiem, "Dies irae" by Penderecki.

In conclusion, we can say that the requiem genre has gone through various stages of the evolution of artistic consciousness, various stylistic eras and trends. At the same time, the main qualities of the primary model were preserved by composers under the conditions of a particular system of musical language.

Mozart's "Requiem" is, without a doubt, not only one of the best creations of its brilliant author - it is one of the best creations of world musical literature. All the pages of this work - from the most tender lyrical to the most tragic - are deeply humane. "Requiem" was created by Mozart in recent months prior to his death. The order was received in May 1791 on behalf of mysterious stranger sent by Count Franz von Walsegg. The count intended to pass off this work as his own, since it was customary for rich amateurs to buy works from needy composers and rank them among their opuses. And, only to chance the world owes the greatest amazing work also because in Mozart's work "Requiem" appears as a completely different, unusual and, moreover, the final stage in the evolution of the creative consciousness of the master.

As you know, the dying Mozart wrote "Requiem" with an incredible effort of the last forces and still did not have time to complete it. He bequeathed to finish his last composition beloved student - Süssmeier. It is more or less reliably established that in the "Requiem" belongs to Mozart and what was completed by his student. The first number "Requiem aeternam" was written entirely by the composer in the form of a complete score. In the following numbers (Dies irae; Tuba mirum; Rex tremendae; Recordare; Confutatis; Domine Jesu, Hostias, partially Lacrymosa), Mozart wrote the vocal part, gave the harmonic basis and in some places orchestrated. Most of music composed by Süssmeier belongs to the last three numbers. However, it should be noted that, fulfilling the request of Mozart, the fugue from No. 1 (Kyrie eleison) was included in the last number (Agnus Dei).

The genre of the funeral mass (as well as the Sunday, festive mass) is based on the canonized texts of prayers pronounced in Latin. Some of them ("Kyrie eleison", "Sanctus", "Benedictus", "Agnus Dei") are the same as in the Sunday Mass. However, the essence of the funeral service is revealed in other texts, characteristic only for it, and the musical numbers corresponding to them. The first of them "Requiem aeternam" ("Give them eternal rest"), opening the service, he, together with "Kyrie eleison" ("Lord have mercy"), forms a large introduction. The next section "Dies irae" ("Day of Wrath") is the main one in "Requiem". Draws pictures of the end of the world, the Last Judgment. Two numbers - "Domine Jesu" ("Lord Jesus") and "Hostias" ("Sacrifice") - form the third section (offertorium), which leads to the rite performed over the deceased. "Sanctus" opens the fourth section, which includes "Benedictus" and "Agnus Dei". From that moment on, the motives of grief are removed, the idea of communing the deceased to eternal life gives rise to images of joy and jubilation. The funeral Mass approaches the Sunday Mass only in "Agnus Dei". The prayer text has been changed in accordance with the content of the service, in particular, this section ends with words reminiscent of its beginning; "cum sanctus tuis in aeternam" ("rest with the saints").

The main role in the "Requiem" is played by the choir. Of the twelve numbers, nine are performed by the choir with individual phrases of soloists, three by a quartet of soloists. Imitative polyphony is widely used in the work. Many numbers are presented in a mixed warehouse (harmonic and polyphonic). The Requiem contains three fugues, each of which runs twice: Kyrie and Agnus Dei (first and last numbers), Domine Jesu and Hostias (numbers eight and ninth), Sanctus and Benedictus (numbers ten and eleven).

In the choral music of the "Requiem" one can feel the influence of Mozart's remarkable predecessors - Bach and Handel.

1. "Requiem aeternam" (Eternal rest) - a prayer for giving peace to a weary soul and for brightening it, with a dark, eternal light of goodness and joy. This part ends with a tense exclamation "Lord, have mercy."

2. "Dies irae" (day of wrath) - the day of the great judgment, the day of vengeance and
retribution. The harsh anthem of the Middle Ages, when accumulated among people
so much grief and tears, insults and horrors that the human imagination could not
then to come to terms with the consciousness that the judge will not come and the tears will remain
unavenged. The rapidly stormy onslaught of this music is replaced by
threatening exclamation.

3. "Tuba mirum" (Pipe of the Eternal). Mozart has a majestic trombone introduction, followed by lamentations and painful sighs of the convicts against the background of strings: "What shall I say, unfortunate one, to which advocate shall I turn?".

4. "Rex tremendae" (The king is amazing). Trembling and shuddering are replaced by light, smoothly developed.

5. "Recordare" (Sword of mercy) - a prayer for mercy, as if in response sounds a gloomy sentence.

6. "Confutatis" (Confounding) - "into the flames of the damned!". But as soon as the groaning subsides, a plea is heard again: "Call me to the righteous!".

7. "Lacrymosa" (Tearful) - the gentle color of Mozart's lyrics: "make rest your creatures on that mournful day of tears."

8. "Domine Jesu" (Lord Jesus) - "God, save the souls of the dead from hellish torments" - widely deployed, on dramatic oppositions of voice groups in harmony, now in plexuses, now in powerful unison - universal prayer is based.

9. "Hostias" (Sacrifice) - a reverent offering.

10. "Sanctus" (Holy) - brilliant solar message.

11. "Benedictus" (Blessed) - soft flowing, wavy
the melodic line sounds like a good greeting: "Blessed is the one who comes."
Both "Sanctus" and "Benedictus" close with joyful clicks of "Osanna".

12. "Agnus Dei" (Lamb of God) - "take away the sin of the world, grant them eternal
peace" - the final universal prayer, expressively closes the entire
majestically tragic idea.

The whole work is imbued with high humanism, passionate love for man, ardent sympathy for his suffering.

Cast: soprano, alto, tenor, bass, choir, orchestra.

History of creation

In July 1791, Mozart, a pan-European renowned musician, member of the Academy of Bologna and holder of the Order of the Golden Spur, author of numerous symphonies, operas Le nozze di Figaro and Don Giovanni, worked hard on The Magic Flute. He felt very bad: he was tormented by incomprehensible pains, weakness.

One evening he was visited by a stranger dressed in all black. He ordered a Requiem - a funeral mass. The customer left the fee and the deadline for the completion of the order at the discretion of the composer, offered a good deposit, but did not disclose his name. Mozart agreed: exhausted by constant lack of money, extremely impractical in everyday matters, he could not refuse. Work began immediately. But the composer could not get rid of the idea that he was writing the funeral mass for himself. His letter has been preserved, in which the morbid condition is reflected with tragic force: “There is chaos in my head, I can only hardly collect my thoughts. The image of a stranger does not want to disappear from my eyes. I see him all the time. He asks, he insists and demands work from me. I continue to write, because composing music tires me less than doing nothing. I have nothing more to fear. I feel - my condition tells me this - my hour has struck. I must die. I feel it with such certainty that I don't need proof. I stop enjoying my talent. And how wonderful life was! Its beginning promised great prospects. But no one can change what is destined by fate. One must obediently bow before the will of Providence. And so I conclude my dirge. I have no right to leave it unfinished. Vienna, 7 September 1791."

An incomprehensible disease intensified every day. Despite this, Mozart worked extremely hard. The Magic Flute was completed and premiered on September 30th. After that, Mozart also composed the Little Masonic Cantata, which he himself conducted in mid-November. The suffering grew stronger. When the strength completely left the composer, he dictated to his student Franz Süssmeier, who lived in his house. In early December, Lacrimosa was written. On the evening of December 4, friends gathered at the bedside of the sick man sang it. Mozart played the viola part, but burst into tears and could not continue. The next day he was gone. The last number he wrote was Hostias. The remaining numbers of the Requiem, Sanctus (Holy, holy is the Lord God of Hosts), Benedictus (Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord) and Agnus Dei (Lamb of God, who bears all the sins of the world, give them rest), were completed by Süssmeier. The conclusion returns, with a different text, the Mozart music of the first movement.

“Death overtook him while working on the Requiem,” Süssmeier recalled. - So the completion of his work was entrusted to many masters. Some of them, overburdened with business, could not devote themselves to this work. Others were afraid to compromise their talent by comparing it with Mozart's genius. In the end, it came to me, because it was known that even during the life of Mozart I often played or sang composed numbers together with him. He very often discussed with me the development of this work and informed me of the whole progress of the work and the basics of instrumentation. I can only dream that experts at least somewhere would find traces of his incomparable teachings, then my work was to some extent successful.

A few years later, the name of the mysterious customer became known: it was a certain Count Walsegh, an amateur music lover who used to buy other people's compositions and pass them off as his own. He needed a requiem to honor the memory of his dead wife, and in early XIX century, when a message appeared in the press about the forthcoming edition of the Requiem, he demanded "damages" from Mozart's widow!

The requiem was written in the canonical Latin text of the funeral mass, beginning with the words “Requiem aeternam” - “Eternal rest” and transcribed into verses in the poem by Thomas Chelansky (c. 1190-c. 1260) “Dies irae” (Day of Wrath, in Maikov’s equirhythmic translation Day of Retribution ). Presumably, the author of the poem was inspired by the lines from the funeral mass, which are the refraction of a passage from the book of the biblical prophet Zephaniah (Zeph. 1, 14-16) The requiem consists of 12 parts, their content is a prayer for peace, salvation of the soul and a picture Doomsday:

№1 May the quiet light shine on them in peace! In Zion we praise You with song! Jerusalem shines with your glory! Hear, Lord, our prayer! In You is our affirmation! Give them eternal rest, O Lord! May the quiet light shine upon them in peace! Lord, Giver of blessings! God, Giver of blessings! Lord, righteous! Lord, Giver of blessings!

№2 Day of Retribution! He will come! And unexpected, as it comes, Everyone will jump up in fear from the bed! All nations, all languages, Everyone knows the great day In a trumpet voice the call of the Lord!

№3 Voice of the Lord! Over the seas Voice of the Lord! over the seas, over the lands, He will sweep over the coffins with thunders. And suddenly, among the living, Generations in the coffin They will stand in a row at the Judgment of those going. And this book is open to them And nothing is hidden in it, What is punishment for us, what is protection. All to the throne will be cupped Where He sits inaccessible The judge is incorruptible to us. And he will ask you too What are you going to say? God! God! Who will help me, who will?

№4 King of Heaven! I fall down Before You! pour out All in tears!

№5 You are the Savior, the King of Heaven, You are the great flour of the cross Redeemed us wonderfully! You called everyone to eternal life Us with endless love Hear, hear the cry of the heart! You show us the way, You were beaten, You were bound And abused and tortured. For the enemy that was furious, Like crazy, and sneered, Above You, You prayed. I forgave everyone, for they remain In blindness and do not know What they do, what they do. You gave us hope What will wash repentance Crime stains from the heart. Merciful, I surrender Before You, I pour out All in tears, oh I repent, I repent.

№6 Ah, from the host of convicts, Eternal death doomed, Grant me to stand in the host of the saved! Let me stand before You Merciful Judge, Pure in heart and soul.

№7 In this sorrow, O Lord, Great day ahead Man and the universe Be an unchanging intercessor Son of God, be a holy shield to us! Sleeping in the coffin give peace!

№8 Lord Son of God! Giver of blessings, giver of blessings! Bring out the souls of all Thy faithful servants And all the dead from flour, From eternal torment and from final death. Take them out of the lion's jaw, From the death torment of hell From the darkness of hell. Let the angel build under the wing By Your command them to the kingdom of light! Bo Abraham You gave consolation of old!

№9 With sacrifice and with praises to You, Lord! today we run; And we pray for the souls of your servants, We pray, create an eternal memory for them. Grant them, O Lord, to enter from death into the life of the age. Bo Abraham You gave consolation of old.

№10 Holy! Holy is the Lord God of Hosts! The heavens proclaim the glory of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest!

№11 Glory, glory to the coming in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!

№12 The Lamb of God who took all the sins of the world, Grant them eternal peace and bliss! Quiet light shine on them forever, Lord! Let it shine with the saints, for this is good.

Translation by A. Maykov

Mozart's Requiem is one of the greatest creations of the human genius, an inspired hymn to the Lord. Its depth and seriousness, drama and sublimity, touchingness and brightness cannot leave anyone indifferent.

No. 1, the opening prayer Requiem aeternam (Give them eternal rest ... - hereinafter the translation is given not according to Maikov's version, but according to a nameless, less vivid literary, but closer canonical Latin text and corresponding to music) is imbued with deep sadness. Soprano solo intones the melody of the old chorale "The Lord will glorify you in Zion." The central section of the first movement is Kyrie eleison (Lord, have mercy) - a swift double fugue that captures with its flow. The traditional sequence Dies irae (Day of Wrath), divided by the composer into six separate parts, was not completed. Only fragments of the fiery picture of the Last Judgment remained written out (No. 2, The Day will appear in an angry force), successive performances of soloists (No. 3, Tuba mirum - The trumpet will sound for us), choral prayers addressed to the stern punishing God (No. 4, Rex tremendae - King of trembling creation), a bright quartet of soloists (No. 5, Recordare - Oh, remember, Jesus, You are a difficult path for me) and, finally, full of mystical expectations No. 6, Confutatis (Judgment having spoken to the shameful), where the gloomy exclamations of the male choir are answered quivering female voices. No. 7 - the famous Lacrimosa (This day of tears will come), all permeated with the intonation of a sorrowful sigh, is the lyrical center of the Requiem. Full of dramatic appeals and heartfelt prayers, ending with fugue No. 8 - Domine Jesu (Lord God Christ, king of glory). In No. 9, Hostias (Sacrifices, prayers to You, Lord), the noble, full of internal drama melody is replaced by the returning fugue from No. 8.