The Music
Choral Masterworks Series
Each year the choral workshop showcases a masterwork, carefully selected to exemplify what makes a piece endure through time. Participants take a deep look into the piece and the historical context in which it was composed. The 2021 masterwork will be …
Requiem Mass in B♭ minor by Antonín Dvořák
This funeral Mass, scored for soloists, choir and orchestra, was composed in 1890 at the peak of Dvořák’s career and performed for the first time in October 1891 in Birmingham, England, with the composer conducting. It demonstrates the composer’s inexhaustible gift for memorable melody and rich harmony and reflects his deep faith and spirituality.
Read about the Mass. | Read about the composer. | Listen to the Mass. | Study it.
If you don’t own the score and don’t wish to purchase it, you may download a public domain edition of the vocal score here.
If you wish to purchase the score, the Kalmus edition is recommended since its rehearsal letters match those of the downloadable edition. It is available from Sheet Music Plus and J.W. Pepper.
European Sacred Music, ed. John Rutter
This collection of over 50 examples of the finest sacred choral music from continental Europe, ranging from the 16th to the 20th century, was selected and edited by John Rutter.
It was used at Ogontz in 1997 and 2017, so past participants might already own it. Others will need to purchase their own copies ahead of the workshop. It is available for about $23 from several online sources, including Sheet Music Plus and Peters.
Listen to some of the exquisite gems in this volume:
Josef Rheinberger: Abendlied
Victoria: O Quam Gloriosum
Felix Mendelssohn: Verleih’ uns Frieden