The symphonies of Anton Bruckner have been in contrast with the structure of an excellent cathedral. Unfolding in an ABA da capo type, the temporary motet, Locus iste (“This Place”), reveals an identical sense of construction and divine thriller. Commentator Peter Strasser has observed that the work’s motifs perform as architectural constructing blocks.
The latin textual content, derived from the biblical tales of Jacob’s Ladder in Genesis and the burning bush in Exodus, is used to commemorate a church’s dedication. It interprets as “This place is made by God, inestimably sacred, irreprehensible.”
Bruckner composed the four-voice motet in August of 1869 for the dedication of the Votivkapelle (votive chapel) on the New Cathedral within the Austrian metropolis of Linz, the place he had served as organist. There are echoes of Mozart’s Ave verum corpus, Ok. 618.
Here’s a 2022 recording by Philippe Herreweghe, Ensemble Musique Indirect and La Chapelle Royale:
This efficiency, recorded at Les Dominicains de Haute-Alsace in Guebwiller, France, options the ensemble VOCES8:
Recordings
- Bruckner: Locus iste, WAB 23, Philippe Herreweghe, Ensemble Musique Indirect and La Chapelle Royale, harmonia mundi
- Bruckner: Locus iste, WAB 23 VOCES8 Amazon
Featured Picture: “Beethoven and Bruckner commemorated on a stained glass window of the Linz Cathedral”
