Leoš Janáček's Otčenáš (Our Father) was originally composed in 1901 for a fundraising performance at a Women's Shelter in Brno, to accompany a series of tableaux-vivants inspired by religious paintings.
Recording & Production
The album's title, KYRIE, links the opening word of the Mass with the Lord's Prayer, and the cover image of 'Broken Bread' alludes to the Eucharist and Kodály's subtitle 'Mass in time of War'.
Historical Context
Kodály's Missa Brevis premiered in the cloakroom of the Budapest Opera House in February 1945, amidst the 50-day siege of the city by the Red Army during World War II.
Composition History
Poulenc's Mass in G was written in August 1937, following a moment of religious revelation he experienced in 1936 at the shrine of the Black Virgin of Rocamadour.
Composer Biography
Francis Poulenc, a French composer, was described by critic Charles Rostand as 'moine ou voyou' (part monk, part rascal/hooligan), a description Poulenc happily accepted.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Janáček, a fiercely spiritual agnostic, saw faith as an expression of national and communal life, rather than a childhood Catholic belief, which influenced his setting of the Lord's Prayer.
Composition History
Zoltán Kodály completed his Missa Brevis while sheltering in an air-raid shelter beneath the Budapest Opera during the 1945 siege, reworking an earlier organ mass.
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Rheinberger: Musica sacra, Vol. 7
Bruckner: Mass in E Minor; Motets
Mozart, W.A.: Requiem / Ave Verum Corpus / Bruckner, A.: Ave Maria / Locus Iste / Christus Factus Est
Rheinberger, J.G.: Stern Von Bethlehem (Der) / 9 Advent-Motetten
