Friedrich Schneider

Gethsemane und Golgatha op. 96

The Passion Oratorio Gethsemane and Golgotha was written in the astonishingly short time from July 22 to 28, 1838, with texts by the preacher Wilhelm Schuber, a close friend of Friedrich Schneider. The first performance took place on Good Friday of that year, March 29, 1839 in the Schloss- und Stadtkirche Dessau, conducted by the composer. Contemporary reviews ranked the 'peculiar' work '...in terms of form, with the Passions of the great J. S. Bach, composed with such a pious sense and high art [...]'. Bach [...]' and were equally carried away to partly exuberant statements. The composer himself was meticulous about the use of his work and also involved the congregation present as listeners in the performances to great effect, using for the chorales such melodies as were sufficiently familiar from the church service. At the same time, Schneider points out that this should only be done when the work is performed in a church setting. As a pure Passion oratorio, Gethsemane and Golgotha thus ranks between Johann Sebastian Bach's Passions and Carl Loewe's Das Sühnopfer des neuen Bundes. You can look into the piano score here. 'An interesting enrichment for Passion concerts, but also ideally suited as Good Friday music in church services.' (Markus Utz, Schweizer Musikzeitung)