Ave Maria (on a Theme of Mahler) [SSAATTBB]

Ave Maria (on a Theme of Mahler)

The Blessed Virgin Mary is honored in Christian communities as the Theotokos, “the bearer of God”, carrying within her finite womb the infinite Christ. She is honored as first among the Saints, the first Christian. She is the recipient and earthly stewardess of God’s Son, the incarnate Jesus Christ. The prayer is based on two biblical passages featured in the Gospel of Luke: the Archangel Gabriel's visit to Mary (the Annunciation) and Mary's subsequent visit to her Aunt Elisabeth, the mother of John the Baptist (the Visitation).

This setting is based on the opening section of Gustav Mahler’s Symphony #5, Fourth Movement “Adagietto”, which is also my all-time personal favorite piece of music. This theme was (as it often does) going through my head like an earworm one morning. This particular time I was struck with the idea of setting text over the opening section of the movement. After a little trial and error with various texts, the Ave Maria came to mind. I was quite moved emotionally by how the text laid so naturally on top, seeming to follow the contour and mood of Mahler's theme (written as an adoration to his wife) with little effort.