Ludwig van Beethoven, Anton Bruckner

3 Equale - 2 Aequale

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827) was commissioned by the Linz Cathedral Kapellmeister Franz Xaver Glöggl during of a visit "amicably approached" for All Souls' Day (2 November) to so-called [A]Equale compose. This type of music consists of short, chorale-like works of solemn, serious Character. The "blowing off" of such pieces at funeral ceremonies (funerals, commemoration of the dead) is a special local tradition in the Linz area. Anton Bruckner (1824 - 1896) composed the two Aequale in C minor for three trombones in 1847 in the monastery Sankt Florian near Linz. Bruckner research considers the funeral of his great-aunt and godmother Rosalia Mayrhofer on 28 January 1847 in Sierning (Upper Austria/A). He may have liked the 6 Aequale for 3 and 4, also from the 1840s trombones by the Linz church musician Wenzel Lambel (1788–1861).