Ave Maria (Bruckner)

History#

Bruckner composed the motet, also known as Ave Maria II, in 1861. He did this after completing five years of studies with Simon Sechter. Bruckner was their organist and was also from 1860 director of the Liedertafel (choral society) “Frohsinn” The piece, sometimes named an Offertorium, was published together with Tota pulchra es by Emil Wetzler in Vienna in 1867.

Music#

Bruckner set the prayer in F major and scored it for seven unaccompanied voices SAATTBB. It takes about 4 minutes to perform. Bruckner applies his understanding of older styles to express his personal faith with simplicity but “Romantic sensibility of expression”. James Liu notes about Bruckner’s motets in general:

Selected discography#

The first recording of Bruckner’s Ave Maria occurred in the early 1920s: * Pius Kalt, Choir of the St. Hedwig’s Cathedral, 78 rpm: Grammophon J 25010, before 1925 A selection among the about 150 commercial recordings: * John Alldis, John Alldis Choir, Bruckner, Messiaen, Debussy, Schönberg – LP: Argo ZRG 523, 1967 * Eric Ericson, Schwedischer Rundfunkchor, Treasures – CD: Caprice Records CAP 21814, 1975 * Hans Zanotelli, Philharmonia vocal-ensemble Stuttgart, Anton Bruckner, Lateinische Motetten – CD: Calig CAL 50 477, 1979 * Matthew Best, Corydon Singers, Bruckner: Motets - CD: Hyperion CDA66062, 1982 * Philippe Herreweghe, la Chapelle Royale/Collegium Vocale, Ensemble Musique Oblique, Bruckner: Messe en mi mineur; Motets - CD: Harmonia Mundi France HMC 901322, 1989 * John Rutter, The Cambridge Singers, The Cambridge Singers Collection – CD: Collegium CSCD501, 1991 * Uwe Gronostay, Netherlands Chamber Choir, Bruckner/Reger – CD: Globe GLO 5160, 1995 * Winfried Toll, Frankfurter Kantorei, Der Himmel lacht, die Erde jauchzt – CD: Peters Musikverlag, 2002 * Dan-Olof Stenlund, Malmö Kammarkör, Bruckner: Ausgewählte Werke - CD: Malmö Kammarkör MKKCD 051, 2004 * Peter Dijkstra, Chor des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Machet die Tore weit – CD: Oehms Classics OC 535, 2005 * Petr Fiala, Tschechischer Philharmonischer Chor Brno, Anton Bruckner: Motets - CD: MDG 322 1422-2, 2006 * Michael Stenov, Cantores Carmeli, Benefizkonzert Karmelitenkirche Linz - CD/DVD issued by the choir, 2006, and on YouTube. * Erwin Ortner, Arnold Schoenberg Chor, Anton Bruckner: Tantum ergo - CD: ASC Edition 3, issue of the choir, 2008 * Tone Bianca Sparre Dahl, Schola Cantorum (Norway), Hymn to the Virgin – CD: Lindberg Lyd 2L-095, 2011 * Otto Kargl, Domkantorei St. Pölten, Cappela Nova Graz, Bruckner: Messe E-Moll, CD: ORF CD 3174, 2013 * Philipp Ahmann, MDR Rundfunkchor Leipzig, Anton Bruckner & Michael Haydn - Motets – SACD: Pentatone PTC 5186 868, 2021

Sources#

• Max Auer, Anton Bruckner als Kirchenmusiker, G. Bosse, Regensburg, 1927
• Anton Bruckner - Sämtliche Werke, Band XXI: Kleine Kirchenmusikwerke, Musikwissenschaftlicher Verlag der Internationalen Bruckner-Gesellschaft, Hans Bauernfeind and Leopold Nowak (Editor), Vienna, 1984/2001
• Cornelis van Zwol, Anton Bruckner 1824–1896 - Leven en werken, uitg. Thoth, Bussum, Netherlands, 2012.
• Uwe Harten, Anton Bruckner. Ein Handbuch. , Salzburg, 1996.

External links#

• Ave Maria F-Dur, WAB 6 (1861) Critical discography by Hans Roelofs
• A live performance by Johannes Kleinjung with the Universitätschor München (2012) can be heard on YouTube: Ave Maria, WAB 6