Episcopal Church of the Apostles

Music for Advent II, December 8, 2019

Sonata in F Major                               Antonio Vivaldi

String trio and organ

Missa brevis in G Major (K. 140)       W.A. Mozart

Solo quartet, choir, string trio and organ

Vivaldi’s Sonata in F for two violins, like his “Four Seasons” concerti, often evoke thoughts in listeners’ ears of Winter, Advent or Christmas. The genre is called a “Trio sonata,” although four instruments are required because the Baroque “Basso continuo” duo of keyboard instrument and cello was regarded as one unit. In a “Sonata da chiesa” (“Church sonata”) the organ quite logically substituted for the harpsichord.

A “Missa brevis” (Latin for “short mass”) was an alternative to a complete mass for larger forces (usually orchestra) called a “Missa Solemnis.” They are generally shorter, simpler, and for smaller forces, both vocal and instrumental. In Austria in the 1700s a tradition developed for an instrumental complement of two violins, cello and organ (the same forces used in the already established Sonata da chiesa genre) to accompany a small choir and solo quartet in mass settings. Mozart drew upon the tradition of the “Pastoral Mass” for his Missa brevis in G Major (K. 140), which employs musical devices like familiar Christmas melodies and 6/8 meter that listeners would associate with the shepherds and fields referred to in the Advent and Christmas texts.