Stadlmayr's Missa Fuggi pur se sai, based on Giovanni Gabrieli's secular composition of the same name, is one of four masses that borrow material from other composers, and one of two that borrow from works of Gabrieli. These two works in particular testify to the marked influence of the Venetian school in southern Germany during the first half of the seventeenth century. Both of Stadlmayr's masses based on works of Gabrieli use the original material sparingly. The Missa Fuggi pur se sai illustrates this economy while demonstrating some remarkable inventiveness on the part of Stadlmayr, particularly in his treatment of rhythm. Together, all four masses illustrate that imitation technique was far from being a unified procedure in seventeenth-century compositional practice.

Works: Stadlmayr: Missa Fuggi pur se sai.

Index Classifications: 1600s

Contributed by: Randal Tucker