For the Spiritual / VIP 4
Programme
Slovenian Philharmonic Choir and Orchestra
Holger Speck, conductor
Since the time of its creation, the music of Anton Bruckner has often been subjected to unfavourable remarks from music critics. In the late nineteenth century, the central European region was dominated by two musical currents: the first with ardent defenders of Bruckner’s work and the second with fierce opponents. Today, Anton Bruckner is one of the central pillars of symphonic music and, with his vocal and vocal-instrumental works, which are mostly of a sacred nature, he is considered one of the most important composers of his time. The present concert commemorates the 200th anniversary of his birth.
After his youthful compositions, in was only in his the late thirties that Bruckner began to seriously study harmony and counterpoint, and later also orchestration. At the same time, he maintained contact with vocal music through his participation in the vocal group Liedertafel Frohsinn. During this time, he was closely connected with musical life in Linz, where the construction of a neo-Gothic cathedral began. Bruckner wrote the Festive Cantata for the laying of the cathedral’s foundation stone in 1862, and he commenced the Mass in E minor a few years later. The completed work was performed in 1869, when the votive chapel was added to the then still unfinished part of the cathedral. The performance in the square in front of the cathedral required a special choice of instruments, without strings.