Biography
Schütz fused the polychoral textures and rhythmic drive of Italian practice with German dramatic force and melodic clarity, yielding music of intense feeling held in check by classical poise that actually heightens its expressive force. The approach stands out in the Symphoniae Sacrae, in Saul, Saul Was verfolgst du mich? ("Saul, Why Persecutest Thou Me?"), in the anguished Fili Mi, Absalon ("Absalom, My Son"), in the antiphonal grandeur and tone-painting of the Psalms of David, and in the funeral mass Musicalische Exequien. Later, Schütz cultivated a leaner manner, demonstrated by the Christmas Oratorio of 1664, where each character is assigned its own instrumental scoring and the evangelist/narrator is supported only by continuo.