A choral-orchestral work setting Christ's Seven Last Words, blending Franck's signature chromatic harmony with liturgical solemnity. Composed during his tenure as organist at Sainte-Clotilde, Paris.
Composed in 1859, Franck's oratorio "Die sieben Worte Jesu Christi am Kreuz" (The Seven Last Words of Christ on the Cross) sets biblical texts to music for soloists, chorus, and orchestra. Structured around Jesus' seven final utterances from the Gospels, it reflects Franck's deep religious devotion and Romantic-era harmonic language. The work predates his most famous compositions but reveals his early mastery of dramatic sacred music.
César Franck's "Die sieben Worte Jesu Christi am Kreuz" (The Seven Last Words of Christ) is a sacred vocal work composed in 1859. This oratorio depicts Jesus' final utterances during the crucifixion through contemplative solos, choral passages, and orchestral interludes. "Wort 4" specifically sets Christ's words "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" (Eli Eli lama sabachthani). Franck's setting blends Romantic expressiveness with contrapuntal rigor, characteristic of his mature style.
César Franck's sacred choral work "Die sieben Worte Jesu Christi am Kreuz" (1859) sets Jesus' seven last words to contemplative, harmonically rich music. Composed during his tenure at Sainte-Clotilde, it reflects Franck's devout Catholicism and signature Romantic style, blending dramatic intensity with meditative depth.
Composed in 1859, this oratorio sets Christ's final utterances to music through seven meditative sections. Franck blends Gregorian chant influences with rich Romantic harmonies, scored for soloists, choir and orchestra. It reflects his signature cyclic form and spiritual depth, predating his more famous works.
