Lukas-Passion SWV 480 (rec 1965)

Heinrich Schütz was one of Germany's most important composers of the 17th century. Standing at the cross-roads of Renaissance and Baroque music, he profited from a four-year stay in Venice, where he studied with Giovanni Gabrieli, to learn "nuove musiche". This new form was to break with the long tradition of music designed solely to reflect the divine order of things and praise God, and to be more appealing to listeners, through more varied melodies and accompaniments.

Nevertheless, in a period of fecund maturity, Schütz returned to the more traditional style of composing. These three passions all date from the latter decades of Schütz's life - from the period between the late 1640s and the 1660s.

It is useful to put into perspective the role of sacred music in the 17th century. Principally designed to praise God, music was performed in churches by men only. The period up until the 17th century saw music that was essentially an extension of Gregorian chants - a cappella works with vocal soloists, choirs, or a combination of the two. Soloists declaimed more than they sang.

Schütz's passions follow this tradition. Scored for several soloists and choir, they all present the story of the passion, that of Jesus's suffering and death, according to the various gospels that relate this story. As far back as the story of the passion goes, this form of performance seems to have a long history as well. Gospel readings of the passions were probably made as early as the ninth century (if not even longer), when a deacon, priest and subdeacon would read the different parts of the gospel (the evangelist, Christ and the other people) in varied registers.

These passions can therefore be seen as a continuation of an ancient practice, with the difference that choirs are also used. Each of them features an evangelist (Peter Schreier) recounting the story of Christ's punishment and death, in alternation with other characters (Judas, Peter, Pilate, etc.), and a choir.

The St. Luke Passion is, naturally, similar to the St. Matthew Passion. Written in the 1650s, but only completed in the following decade, with the other two passions, it features even shorter choral works than the St. Matthew Passion, and is a much more intimate work as a result of this.

If anything, this passion shows a higher level of vocal emotion than the St. Matthew. There are fewer soloists, and their parts have less melodic range. The singers must attain a higher level of expressiveness, and they all do.
(notes from MusicWeb)