Symphony No.2 "Saint Florian" - Alfred Schnittke

Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra & USSR Ministry of Culture Chamber Choir conducted by Gennady Rozhdestvensky

I - Kyrie. Rezitando: 0:00
II - Gloria. Maestoso - (attacca): 11:48
III - Credo. Moderato - (attacca): 16:46
IV - Crucifixus. Pesante: 24:09
V - Sanctus & Benedictus. Andante: 35:56
VI - Agnus Dei. Andante: 46:39

Schnittke's Second Symphony was written between 1979-80. It was premièred in London on 23rd April,1980, by the BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Gennady Rozhdestvensky. The inspiration came after a travel to Austria in 1977, at the monastery of St Florian, near Linz, where Anton Bruckner lived and worked for a period and where he was buried.

This is what Schnittke himself remembered: "We arrived at St Florian at dusk, when Bruckner’s tomb could not be visited. The cold, gloomy baroque church had a mystical air about it. Somewhere behind a wall a small choir was singing the evening mass: a "missa invisibilis". There was no one in the church but us. Entering the church all of us went at once in different directions in order to feel the cold and powerful void surrounding our privacy."

The work, like his Requiem a few years before, moves very close to the Catholic religious tradition. Its movements follow the ordinary of the Mass with the choral part citing the liturgical melodies, and the work falls into six large sections: Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Crucifixus, Sanctus and Agnus Dei. Musically almost all these sections combine the choral tunes and subsequent extensive orchestral "commentary". Apart from quotes from Gregorian hymns, one can detect a symbolic cross in the instrumental commentaries in the Kyrie, Gloria and Credo, built on a symmetry of the vertical and horizontal lines (twelve-tone rows). This symbol is particularly important in the Crucifixus.

The first movement, Kyrie, begins with the choir singing the traditional Kyrie in Latin a cappella, soon accompanied by the orchestra. Then the orchestral commentaries begins using an abstract style. In the central part the expression hardens as if it were a plea. Powerful clusters accompanied by bells begin the final section that leads to a quiet coda.

The second movement, Gloria, presents the choir singing a cappella the verses of Gloria in excelsis Deo in a polyphonic way, with a certain solemnity. The orchestra, accompanied by the organ, burst in triumphantly. Then the orchestral interventions calm down, leading us to a thoughtful section. In the final part, the majestic music of the orchestra returns, using a strongly chromatic language, which leads to the next movement without interruption.

The third movement, Credo, begins with the intervention of the countertenor, reciting the first lines of the Credo. After an orchestral commentary, the recitative is continued by the tenor. The bells chimes before the entrance of the contralto following the narration. The last part is sung by the bass and tenor. The movement ends with the intervention of the choir.

The fourth movement, Crucifixus, begins with a melancholic orchestral commentary, to underline the phrase of the creed that names the crucifixion. When the maximum tension is reached, the choir sings a calm modal melody, continuing the text of the creed. After a marked pause, the second part of the movement is starred by the a cappella choir reciting the last part of the creed in the form of a responsory. It ends with the corresponding solemn orchestral commentary to the accompaniment of the organ.

The fifth movement, Sanctus & Benedictus, begins with the intervention of the vocal soloists and the a cappella choir, singing the Sanctus in a contrapuntal way, imitating the Gregorian chant. The second part of the movement is dedicated to his orchestral commentary. The music is extremely contemplative and sober.

The last movement, Agnus Dei, like most movements, begins with the quasi-Gregorian chant of the Agnus. The orchestra follows with its thoughtful comments that slowly bring us to their culmination. In the final part the choir intervenes again, repeating the dona nobis pacem with which the symphony quietly ends.

(choral text in the comments section.)

Picture: "The Ecumenical Council" (1958-60) by the Spanish painter Salvador Dalí.

Sources: https://bit.ly/3orr6Q4 and https://bit.ly/37HLVQP

Видео Symphony No.2 "Saint Florian" - Alfred Schnittke канала Sergio Cánovas