Bach may have expanded his Missa corta into a full Missa tota to demonstrate his comprehensive compositional skills in all styles, creating a vocal counterpart to his 'Art of Fugue' as a summary of his life's work.
Compositional Technique
More than ninety percent of Bach's Mass in B minor is "recycled" material from his earlier vocal works, spanning 30-35 years.
Composition History
Bach dedicated his Missa corta to the new Catholic sovereign, Friedrich August, in an attempt to secure an appointment as court composer in Dresden.
Critical Reception
The first complete performance of Bach's Mass in B minor took place in Leipzig more than 110 years after the work was completed.
Compositional Technique
Bach was a master of 'parody,' a compositional technique of adapting new text to existing vocal music, which in his time meant creating an equally valid new version.
Composition History
Bach initially composed a shorter version of the Mass, a Missa corta (Kyrie and Gloria), during a period of national mourning when music-making was prohibited.
Composition History
Only the first four bars of the Kyrie, the Confiteor, and the Et incarnatus est were newly composed for Bach's Mass in B minor.
