Posted July= , 1997
By Bro. Major Byron Gardner -
Secretary
Presented to The Glenlyon Lodge No. 346 S.C. on Wednesday 9th July, 1=
997.
Over the years we have had fine evenings of music where we have listened= as our illustrious brethren played selections on the organ and other wise.
This evening we hope to present a slight variation and at the end of it = to invite your comments how such an evening as this can be improved or changed= for the listening pleasure of the brethren.
Throughout the centuries there have been many composers who were masons, offspring of masons, or otherwise related to masons. My reason for mentioni= ng this is that throughout this presentation, we will try to inform you of the= se relationships and thereby analyze how they influenced the compositions.
Of course this very short presentation does not claim to record them all, but rather present a varied view of some of them. Because of time and space some names may not be included and is not directly related to the composers' ability and prominence.
The list includes Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Jean Sibelius, Franz Liszt, Johann Sebastian Bach, Joseph Haydn, John Phillip Souza, and Gilbert & Sullivan.
Those who were possible masons but with no definite records as such, were Beethoven and Vivaldi. The former composed two known pieces for Masonic purposes, "Maurerfragen" (Masonic Questions) and "Der Freye Mann" (The Free Man). This article is designed to whet your appetites = and therefore some very interesting and contrasting pieces will not be played b= ut with the hope that you will be enticed to explore the hidden benefits of go= od classical music more.
As Mozart's Masonic connections were strongest during the latter part of= his short life and in fact was the composer to whom most others were eternally grateful, more will be said about his, and we will hear more of his pieces.=
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart has been called that genius among all geniuses a= nd the greatest inventor in the history of music. Many aspects of music which = we take for granted today would simply not exist without him; the classical pi= ano concerto, the clarinet as a member of the orchestra, the string quintet and= the piano quartet are only a few inventions in the field of instrumental music.= His desire to create unity and his intuition for drama influenced by freemasonr= y is found in his late works.
Mozart was born in 1756 and by the time he was four he could play simple pieces and by the age of five he was composing. From seventeen to twenty ye= ars of age, he continued to compose church and chamber music. At seventeen he w= as commissioned to write two choruses for the play "Thamos, Koonig in Aegypten" which deals with the Masonic conflict between light and darkness. As a result of this he had composed his first Masonic piece the cantata, "Dir, Seele des Wettalls". In 1784 he was initiated into masonry and in the spring of the following year he took on a young boy as a pupil who was called home after two weeks as his mother was ill - that pupil was Ludwig von Beethoven.
Between the 7th and the 10th of November, 1785, Mozart wrote one of his greatest numbers. Though not a church work, it is a religious composition. According to his biographer, Jahn, "Mozart has written nothing to surp= ass this short Adagio. It is the musical expression of that manly calm which gi= ves sorrow its due in the presence of death, without exaggeration or unreality".
It therefore expresses what Mozart wrote to his father shortly before the latter's death in 1787: -
"As death (strictly speaking) is the ultimate destiny of our lives, I have, in the last few years, made myself so well acquainted with t= his, the best friend of mankind, this his picture not only holds nothing terrify= ing for me, but much that is soothing and consoling, and I thank God that He has granted me the good fortune to make for myself an opportunity (you understa= nd me) of getting to know Him as the key to our true happiness." <= /p>
What Mozart hints at in this passage is taught by Freemasonry in the symbolism of its most beautiful degree. Also Mozart's father was a mason, a= s we will later learn, and thus his inference in a suttle manner, a style which = is present in his piece "Masonic Funeral Music." Therefore let us li= sten to this piece.
In 1793 after he listened to his cantata "Die Maurefreude" whi= ch was performed, he promised his brethren that he would shortly be offering a better tribute to the Masonic spirit. The plot expounds a serious moral, but with scenes of light relief and is riddled with Masonic symbolism. That pie= ce is "Die Zauberflote." Unfortunately, Mozart always had money prob= lems and had trouble living within his means, although he received very good pay= . He continued to write to his fellow masons, among them Haydn, inviting them for various rehearsals, and taking the opportunity to borrow money.
Haydn was twenty-four years older than Mozart was and it is assumed that= his sonatas must be earlier in style. He became a Mason at the age of fifty-thr= ee on the 11th February, 1785. The lodge of which he was a member held the view that "The Freemason serves Mankind in all parts of the world, under all kinds of Governments, in public or in secret." It is believed that it = was his friendship with the great one, (Mozart), which brought about his intere= st in Masonry. Also, it was in this lodge that Mozart's father Leopold, was a member. It was also a Freemason, Leopold Haschka, whose words were set to m= usic by Haydn in "Gotterhalte" as the German National Anthem.
In 1791 he was in England performing at various concerts which included = one at the Academy of Ancient Music at Freemason's Hall. At the end of the year= the sad news of Mozart's death reached him and he wrote to a fellow mason and banker Johann Michael Puchberg, "For some time I was beside myself abo= ut his death, and I could not believe that Providence would so soon claim the = life of such an indispensable man." Mozart had died at the early age weeks short of his thirty-sixth birthday on 15th October 1791.
Haydn on his return to Vienna, met a young musician named Ludwig von Beethoven, whom he invited to come to Austria and study with him, therefore Beethoven had two other persons closely connected with him who were also Freemasons: his doctor/biographer and his teacher.
In 1795 Haydn returned to England and left shortly after with a small libretto of an oratorio called "The Creation" which was destined = to become one of his greatest works. The scholars believed that he carried with him a deep impression of his visit to Westminster Abbey where the choir san= g Handel's "Messiah" and during the "Hallelujah Chorus" the congregation rose to their feet. This had a marked effect on him and created the desire to write such a work. This piece is by Handel and closely resemb= les that well-known piece.
Masonry, facing persecution both in Austria and France, Haydn set about = to complete the script and had a great interest in the Masonic works completed= by Mozart and it was and is still believed that "The Creation" is of= the same nature as "Die Zauberflote." This piece is called the "= The Miracle" and relates to the beginning and once again Masonic symbolism= is caught up in it. Another composition that I would recommend for your listen= ing pleasure composed by this legend is "Surprise."
This artist was deeply devoted to music and religion and for him they co= uld not be separated. He prayed in his music, as it was his expression of his belief in God.
He was born on 22nd October 1811 and was surrounded by musicians who cam= e to play recitals with his father. Later when he was sent to study in Vienna he= met with Beethoven and was placed in such positions that he was able to help contemporary composers such as Richard Wagner perform their works for the f= irst time. He had many female friends and had the following of a particular countess, but left her to be free and "to live only for his music, God, and his mother." He spent a fortune during his life aiding institution= s, funds, and pupils (one of whom was Wagner). He never charged for lessons. Liszt's character made him suited for Masonry. He was initiated on 18th September, 1841.To this end he composed a very popular piece entitled "Love Dream."
Although Richard Wagner applied to join a lodge and was not accepted, I = will introduce you to a piece which it is said ruined his chances, it is called = "Ride of the Valkyries" by Richard Wagner, which is a very powerful piece and is believed to be very opposite to "The Magic Flute.&= quot;
Brethren, this has brought us to the end of these recordings and I do tr= ust that those of you who have not yet discovered the magic of music and in particular classical themes will take the opportunity to try it.
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Finally brethren let me leave you with two pieces for your inner thought= s, "Spring= for The Four Seasons" by Vivaldi and "Overture to the marriage of Figaro" and may I challenge you to try and interpret these. Or better still do a research.
Happy listening and THANK YOU!!