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Bernstein's Credo in unum Deum

This is an extract from Bernstein's Mass (Credo in unum Deum).

Bernstein casts his mass as drama. During the credo we hear his development of the crisis of faith that sits at the play’s heart. The traditional text is intoned in Latin by a chorus, in increasingly hysterical tones, while solo numbers undermine their statements with angry questions, challenges and complaints. It’s a kind of anti-credo. The iconoclasm feels a bit too easy though – this is music more concerned with its own spectacle than offering any profound message.

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Duration:

1 minute