Before, Bruckner composed the same prayer in 1856 for soprano, alto, a four-part mixed choir, organ and cello, WAB 5.

Later, he set the text in 1882 for a solo voice (alto) and keyboard (organ, piano or harmonium), WAB 7.

[4] Bruckner was their organist and was also from 1860 director of the Liedertafel (choral society) "Frohsinn"[5][6] who performed the motet to celebrate the anniversary of its founding.

It begins in canon on "Sancta Maria", and evolves diminuendo with a point d'orgue on bar 30 ("ora pro nobis"), when Mary is asked to "pray for us sinners".

James Liu notes about Bruckner's motets in general: They express his devout Roman Catholic beliefs, using the modal chords and long, Gregorian chant-like lines of the Renaissance masters.