Thomas Gabriel Der Kreuzweg

The Stations of the Cross are a centuries-old element in worship services which are firmly anchored in the visual arts. There is hardly a Catholic church which does not include a representation of the "via dolorosa" in its interior design. Thus it is all the more astonishing that this subject is not nearly so widely portrayed in music. Franz Liszt ("Via crucis") and Marcel Dupré, with his ingenious improvisation which later became a composition, are practically the only representatives of this genre of composition in music history. The present work for a cappella choir, three dancers, timpani, baritone and soprano soloists, oboe and organ offers a new approach to the literary model of the Stations of the Cross. The emphasis rests with the choir, which is responsible for six Stations of the Cross. Here, in part, the stations are assigned associative text from poetry (e.g., Christian Morgenstern and Michelangelo). Three dancers dance the three Stations of "falling" in a setting filled with black light, accompanied by a speech motet provided on CD. The organ appears in a solo capacity and as an accompaniment to the solo singers. The timpani announce the horror of death by crucifixion. Together this collage-like work forms a magnificent whole. The duration is 60 minutes.