The Classical Music Book

173

the Te Deum specifies 12 harps. As

a result, performances were—and

still are—rare and impractical, and

so this music had little opportunity

to affect the genre. Composers

such as Rossini wrote a number

of cantatas, but these tended to

be overshadowed by their more

popular operas and are seldom

heard. It was Verdi’s Requiem

that managed to bridge the gap

ROMANTIC 1810 –1920

between secular operatic and

sacred choral works. Verdi

composed it in the operatic style,

with immense drama, especially

in the powerful “Dies Irae,” and

wrote parts for female voices at

a time when the Catholic Church

used only men in its choirs. The

Requiem’s first performance was

at St. Mark’s in Milan, but its

second was at La Scala. Ever

Four strong

chords introduce

drama and

foreboding.

Somber

woodwind and

brass are used. The

brighter strings

are silent.

A final drum roll

imparts a sense

of doom.

Descending

tritones,

signaling danger,

are capped by a

trombone blast.

Elijah’s curse

since, opinion has been divided

as to whether it is a religious work

or an outpouring of rather more

drama than sacrament.

A “human” requiem

Brahms’s German Requiem was

perhaps the most singular sacred

choral work of the period. It was his

first major composition and brought

him international acclaim. He

avoided the traditional requiem

Mass text, instead creating his

own from the Lutheran Bible. There

is a focus in the work on comforting

the living, no reference to the Day

of Judgment, and no mention of

Jesus. Brahms thought of it as a

“human requiem” rather than

belonging to any particular

theological outlook, which is

perhaps why it is still so frequently

performed. Written in seven large

sections, the musical material

is tightly organized around the

opening notes sung to Selig sind

(“Blessed are”). This creates a very

unified whole, in which Brahms

seems to have avoided using any

previous models. A work of subtle

majesty, the German Requiem

stands in sharp relief to most

choral music of the 19th century. ■

Mendelssohn’s Elijah begins with the prophet’s curse on King

Ahab and the Israelites. Their punishment for corrupt governance

and the worship of false idols will be a terrible drought.

Prince Albert plays the organ for

Mendelssohn as Queen Victoria looks

on. The composer enjoyed several

visits to Buckingham Palace in 1842.

Music in Victorian Britain

Between industrial innovation

and empire building, the arts—

especially music—were rather

marginalized in early Victorian

Britain. Although there was a

thriving concert culture, it was

predominated by foreign artists.

Yet, with a rapidly expanding,

wealthy middle class, there

were many amateurs—young

women especially—who needed

socially acceptable music to

play. In this climate, Songs

Without Words by Mendelssohn,

a “respectable” composer from a

wealthy background, and even

feted by the Queen, became

ubiquitous. Meanwhile, the brass

band movement in northern

England and music halls in the

cities were both thriving musical

outlets for the working classes.

Later in the century, the search

for a cultural identity inspired

British classical musicians, which

also led to the creation of British

conservatoires. Figures as diverse

as Sullivan and Elgar emerged

from this new, so-called “English

Musical Renaissance.”

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