During the last summer of his life, Franz Schubert completed the Mass in
E-flat D 950. The occasion for the composition of this Missa solemnis
cannot be clarified with certainty. Schubert did not live to see the
premiere of his sixth mass, which was first performed posthumously in
1829 under the baton of his brother Ferdinand.
Among other
things, the editor has paid particular attention to the articulation. In
order to be able to present Schubert’s differentiated use of accents in
the edition, a new symbol has been introduced: an accent which is
flexible with regard to its length, thus making it possible to precisely
visualize its compositionally intended duration.