Chorvereinigung St Augustin.

I was lucky enough to be able to sing Schubert's 'Deutsche Mass' on Sunday morning with the Chorverinigung St Augustin to a packed Jesuitenkirche, with listeners standing in the aisles and crowded around the narthex. The performances attract an audience from across the city and from much further afield often, so I was told, just to hear the music. It was a fantastic experience to sing a mass composed in Vienna, in its intended liturgical context and accompanied by a correctly configured wind ensemble; with which the setting was originally scored.

What is remarkable is that this happens every sunday, excluding July and August and costs the choir nearly 4000 euros for each mass; primarily in hiring the professional orchestra. These costs then have to be recouped from donations after the service and CD sales. I was also informed that currently, apart from the Stephansdom, it is the only Church in central Vienna that performs a sung mass with full choir and orchestra every Sunday.

The informality of the ensemble is also refreshing with no hierarchical processions or robes, which initially seems at odds with the ornate and opulent setting. After a one hour rehearsal choir members simply file into the area in front of the high altar, sing at the appropriate intervals and then dissipate with the rest of the congregation.

A review regarding one of the choirs performances in 2008 can be found at http://www.brucknerfreunde.at/forum/konzertkritiken/7336-bruckner-em-mass-chorvereinigung-st-augustin-%96-vienna-16-11-08-english.html