At the same time as the canon of classical masterpieces, the custom arose in the nineteenth century to commemorate the birth and death years of the masters of the past. What has now become a circus of commerce and is mainly used as a basis in the rat race for publicity, was, however, a considerably more sluggish undertaking at the time, in which especially the seriousness and value of the jubilee
… were emphasized. An example of this is this Requiem op.146 by Franz Lachner (1803-1890), which was composed on the occasion of a Mozart year of yesteryear, namely 1856, a century after the birth of Mozart. Lachner made no effort to find a connection with Mozart's style, which was also not obvious to him, because with his orientation towards the classical style he already arrived at a result that naturally followed the tradition of Catholic church music in South Germany. With this work he paid a final ode to this tradition in Munich, the city where he had worked as court chapel master since 1852, because ten years later the city would fall completely under the spell of Wagner, much to Lachner's chagrin. His contribution to Mozart's memory is superfluous to the extent that anyone without this piece knows who Mozart is. Perhaps it would be helpful to turn things around and take advantage of the Mozart year of yesteryear to get to know Lachner's exquisite and skilled music better. (JvG) the city where he worked as court chapel master since 1852, a final ode to that tradition, because ten years later the city would fall completely under the spell of Wagner, much to Lachner's chagrin. His contribution to Mozart's memory is superfluous to the extent that anyone without this piece knows who Mozart is. Perhaps it would be useful to turn things around and take advantage of the Mozart year of yesteryear to get to know Lachner's exquisite and skilled music better. (JvG) the city where he worked as court chapel master since 1852, a final ode to that tradition, because ten years later the city would fall completely under the spell of Wagner, much to Lachner's chagrin. His contribution to Mozart's memory is superfluous to the extent that anyone without this piece knows who Mozart is. Perhaps it would be helpful to turn things around and take advantage of the Mozart year of yesteryear to get to know Lachner's exquisite and skilled music better. (JvG) Perhaps it would be useful to turn things around and take advantage of the Mozart year of yesteryear to get to know Lachner's exquisite and skilled music better. (JvG) Perhaps it would be useful to turn things around and take advantage of the Mozart year of yesteryear to get to know Lachner's exquisite and skilled music better. (JvG)more
