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Aylesbury Choral Society


Programme Notes: Ave Verum Corpus
This page contains information and excepts from Mozart's Ave Verum Corpus. The Society will be performing this work at our December 2003 concert.

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Ave Verum Corpus - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 - 1791)

Even if you do not immediately recognise the title of this work, you will almost certainly recognise the music. It must have been sung at weddings, during the signing of the register, as frequently as any other piece of music and probably more often than most. Many people have declared Ave verum corpus to be their favourite of all Mozart's choral works. Its popularity is probably due to the glorious combination of melody and harmony that succeeds in arousing an emotional response in the listeners.

Mozart composed this little motet in June 1791 for his friend, Anton Stoll, the choirmaster of the parish church of Baden, near Vienna and it was performed there for the first time on Corpus Christi day that year. Written only a few months before Mozart's death on 5 December at the tragically early age of 35, the anthem represents a distillation of his genius and the flawless musical skill that developed during his short but brilliant life. This short choral work has been described as 'virtually perfect in concept and execution' and it is very difficult to disagree with that view. The exquisite modulation of the harmonies touches something deep in the human psyche and there are few musical compositions that concentrate so much affecting power into such a compact entity.

It is indeed truly remarkable that so much feeling can be engendered in a piece of music of only 46 bars and lasting only about three minutes.

© ACS, December 2003

[Note to other societies: you are welcome to use the whole or parts of this text in your own programmes, but if you do please (i) let us know, and (ii) include an acknowledgement to the Aylesbury Choral Society and this website in your programme.]


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