His subjects focused on national leaders as role models (the Greeks Odysseus and Achilles, the German Arminius, the Swedish Gustav Adolf, and the biblical Moses).
have been made with his works in the cantata form, as he is a recognised master of writing for large masses of voices and instruments, though many of his solo melodies possess great beauty.
In this class of his compositions the most conspicuous are Scenes from the Frithjof-Saga… Flight of the Holy Family, Roman Triumph Song, Roman Obsequies, Salamis, Fair Ellen, Odysseus and Rorate Coeli.”[4] The Birch and the Alder (German: Die Birken und die Erlen) (opus 8) (2.2.2.2.-4.2.0.0. str, timp mixed (s))[5]: 103 [a] is a setting of a poem from the Waldlieder of Gustav Pfarrius.
is above all proof of the truth and purity of expression with which this composer has rendered his feelings.”[7]: 50–51 Together with opus 21, The Song of the Three Wise Men (Gesang der heiligen drei Könige), this work appears to have been part of an unfinished trilogy based on the Christmas story.
[7]: 62 The work was reviewed in the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung of February 1868, in a piece by the editor, Selmar Bagge, who opined that “Bruch’s music bears the mark of sophistication, but which borders on degeneracy in its sumptuousness and extravagance.”[18] A July 1881 performance in Chicago was described by one critic as “a most interesting work, though not as effective (owing to greater intricacies) as the “Battle Prayer” [by Ferdinand Möhring].”[19] Another critic commented that “it is a very ambitious hymn of triumph and its difficulties were no doubt felt by the chorus.”[20] The Flight into Egypt (German: Die Flucht nach Ägypten) (opus 31) (1.1.1.0.-3.0.0.0. str, female (s))[5]: 104 [a] for soprano, choir and orchestra is a setting of a text by Robert Reinick.
[22] The Lay of the Norsemen (German: Normannenzug) (opus 32) (2.2.2.2.-4.2.3.0. str, timp, mixed (b))[5]: 104 [a] is a setting of part of the historical romance Ekkehard by Joseph Viktor von Scheffel.
[25] The setting is of material from the ninth chapter of Ekkehard, in which the eponymous hero is travelling through the forests of Swabia in late November.
The Lay of the Bell (German: Das Lied von der Glocke) (opus 45) scored for soloists, choir and orchestra (2(=picc).2.2.2-4.2.3.1-timp.perc:2-org-strings)[a] is a setting of a poem by Friedrich Schiller that was one of his most popular in the nineteenth century.
Bruch therefore had manuscript performance copies made at his own expense, so that the premiere could take place on 12 May 1878 under his baton in the Gürzenich concert hall in Cologne.
[7]: 196 The three songs are Beweinet, die geweint an Babels Strand (O Weep for Those That Wept…), In ihrer Schönheit wandelt sie (She Walks in Beauty, Like the Night) and Arabien’s Kameele (On Jordan’s Banks the Arabs’ Camels Stray).
[2] de:Josef Sittard judged that in the work “the beauty of language and the highest expression of form are harmoniously united...
In Achileus Max Bruch has once again given proof of his gift for dramatic effect, for the handling of large musical forces, his great talent for colour and his sense of harmonic euphony.”[34] Greeting to the Holy Night (German: Gruß an die heilige Nacht) (opus 62) (2.2.2.2.-4.2.3.1. str, timp, perc, org, mixed (a))[5]: 104 [a] It was written in 1892, based in a poem by Robert Prutz.
[7]: 256 Sparta, with its elite male military society, was a subject of widespread cultural interest in the German Empire; in particular the battle of Thermopylae, exemplifying selfless devotion to the fatherland, was much admired in conservative circles.
Further work followed, and the final libretto was compiled by Bruch himself, combining Rückert’s translation of the ancient Indian epic with fragments of the poem by Bulthaupt.
[41] The subject of the work is Damajanti, wife of the young Indian king Nala, who, led astray by an evil spirit, has gambled away his realm and is wandering in a desolate wilderness with her.