Expert: Donald - 10/23/2008

Question
Dear Expert,
Can you tell me why the Credo of Schuberts Mass in G is not complete, ie it does not contain credo in unam sanctam catholicam et apostolicam ecclesiam... I have heard that it is because he was not an orthodox Catholic, and to be honest this sounds a very plausible reason. However my colleague insists that this is just hearsay. Can you enlighten us, with references if possible.
Thank you, MH

Answer
Hi Mavis,

I'm sorry for the delay in my answer. My email rejected the question for some reason, so I just received it!

I don't have a copy of the Mass in G by Schubert handy, so I'll have to rely on memory to retrieve the Credo...Though this Mass isn't labeled as a "Missa Brevis", it could almost be considered one due to its short duration. Often, when a composer desired to abbreviate the Mass, the first section to be abridged was the Credo, for obvious reasons. The creed is lengthy and sometimes unwieldy. Some composers simply placed different sections of text in different voice parts to cover all of it, rather than spinning out the entire text from beginning to end.

Whether Schubert was orthodox in his faith might be a moot point in this case. He probably made the decision based on time rather than faith. A History of Western Music by Grout and Palisca is a great source of info about the Mass and about Schubert, but I don't know if it addresses this specific issue. There are many texts on Choral Music that might shed some light on this very interesting question.

Best regards to you both,

Donald