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Leoš Janáček’s Glagolitic Mass in Performance at Chicago Symphony Orchestra with Boulez; Now Available for Performance in Two Editions from UE

Nov. 30, 2010

1926 was a particularly successful and productive year for Leoš Janáček, who composed the opera The Makropulos Case, as well as Sinfonietta and the Glagolitic Mass, among other works. Distancing himself from all of the well-trodden paths of the traditional genre, Janáček, with Glagolitic Mass, created a piece of sacred music that is so unique, it begs the question of whether it can be categorized as such at all. Instead of using Latin, Janáček based his piece on a ninth century text written with Glagolitic (Cyrillic) script in Old Church Slavonic. When committing his work to paper his aim was to write a "joyful mass", as Janáček himself said, “I want to show people how to talk to our dear Lord.”

The composer was apparently forced to make major revisions during rehearsals for the mass’s premiere (December, 5, 1927) owing to a lack of instrumental resources and the limited rehearsal time available, and some additional questionable changes seem to have been made prior to the second performance in Prague (April 8, 1928). To make matters worse, the composer died before the full score could be published. As a result, the edition of the work published after his death promulgated a score that is far less exciting and ambitious than the one Janáček originally composed.

After years of consulting various sources, the musicologist Paul Wingfield succeeded in reconstructing the original version. Sir Charles Mackerras then added valuable performance suggestions, after which this hitherto unknown version was presented to the public. The original final version was then subsequently revised, taking musicological and practical performance aspects into account. New performance material is now available for both versions. Directors can choose their preferred version, each of which has its own merits. The Glagolitic Mass has also been published as part of the new UE study score series (UE34298); an informative preface sets out the differences and similarities between the two versions, which can both be found in the study score.

Learn more on the life and work of Leoš Janáček at www.universaledition.com.

Leoš Janáček
Glagolitic Mass (1927)
Missa solemnis
for solo voices, SSAATTBB choir, organ and orchestra
new "First Version," edited by Paul Wingfield
4(2, 3, 4.pic).2.ca.3(3bcl).3(3.cbsn)-4.4.3.1-3timp.2perc-cel.2hp.org-str
45’

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