Beethoven's Mass in C, Opus 86: Genesis and compositional background. (Volumes I and II)

This is a study of Beethoven's sketches for his Mass in C, Op. 86, principally the document Paris, Bibliotheque Nationale Beethoven MS 60 no. 2. The focus is not solely on the genesis of the final reading, but incorporates some of the compositional factors behind that genesis, specifically two concerns: the traditional contrapuntal identity of sacred music and the recent prominence of Haydn in the genre. While not fully apparent in the published score, signs of Beethoven's concerns for counterpoint and for Haydn are evident in the sketches, during the process of composition.;Chapter 1 attempts to reconstruct Beethoven's experience of church music prior to 1807: the eclectic nature of religious music in Bonn; his studies with Albrechtsberger that reinforced the traditional association of counterpoint and sacred style; his continuing consideration of the Mass in terms of imitation prior to Op. 86, seen in sketches for a fugal Kyrie and Agnus Dei in Landsberg 6 (1803-1804). Chapter 2 looks at the occasion for which Beethoven was writing and presents new evidence on the liturgical basis of the name-day celebration of Princess Esterhazy and its relevance for the liturgical propriety of Haydn's so-called "name-day" Masses. Chapter 3 is a source study of the compositional documents determining their reliability as witnesses of the genesis of the Mass. Chapters 4-8 look at each movement of Op. 86 in turn, presenting Haydn's setting and organization of the text as a basis from which to judge Beethoven's setting; finally looking at the genesis of each movement for how the final reading developed, for evidence of how Beethoven dealt with counterpoint, and the derivation of any ideas from Haydn. The Credo is placed last in consideration as evidence shows it was composed last.;The compositional background only in the context of the sketches reveals that imitation and fugue shaped Beethoven's initial thoughts at a number of locations, that the Gloria of Haydn's "Schopfungsmesse" determined the layout and shape of the "Gloria" section of Op. 86, and that ideas from other Haydn settings (the "Mariazellernesse," the "Theresienmesse," the Missa in tempore belli and Missa in angustiis) inspired isolated moments in Opus 86, not all of which survive in the final reading.