Am Grabe, WAB 2
Am Grabe, WAB 2, is an elegy composed by Anton Bruckner in 1861, for men's voices a capella.
History
Am Grabe is a revised a cappella setting of the elegy [Vor Arneths Grab, Werkverzeichnis Anton Bruckners|WAB 53|Vor Arneths Grab], WAB 53. The elegy was performed on the funeral of Josephine Hafferl on 11 February 1861.The original manuscript is stored in the archive of the Liedertafel Frohsinn. The song, which was edited first by Wöß, Universal Edition, in 1924, is put in Band XXIII/2, No. 13 of the Gesamtausgabe.
In addition, an autograph slight revision of the song has been found on an undated copy of the manuscript.
Music
The 21-bar-long, a cappella setting discarded the fourth strophe of Marinelli's text. The voice score of the first two strophes is almost identical to that of Vor Arneths Grab. The score of the third strophe is 5 bars longer. From bar 15 the score is different and ends at bars 19-21 alike bars 26-28 of the original setting.A score with another text by Gottfried Grote has been issued by Schott Music in 1961.
There is also an arrangement by Jeff Reynolds for 4-part trombone ensemble.
Discography
There is only one recording of the full setting of Am Grabe:- Łukasz Borowicz, Anton Bruckner: Requiem, RIAS Kammerchor Berlin, Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin – CD: Accentus ACC30474, 2019 - revised version.