Masonic music has been defined as "music used in connection with the ritual and social functions of

freemasonry Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

." Two major types of music used in

masonic lodge A Masonic lodge (also called Freemasons' lodge, or private lodge or constituent lodge) is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also a commonly used term for a building where Freemasons meet and hold their meetings. Every new l ...

s are lodge songs, played to keyboard accompaniment before or after meetings, or during meals; and music written to accompany specific masonic ceremonies and events. Because the number 3 and the letter 'B' are of particular significance to freemasonry, music written in the keys of

C minor C minor is a minor scale based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. Its key signature consists of three flats. Its relative major is E major and its parallel major is C major. The C natural minor scale is: Cha ...

or E flat major, which both involve 3 flats, (whose symbol '♭' resembles the lowercase letter 'b'), in their

key signature In Western musical notation, a key signature is a set of sharp (), flat (), or rarely, natural () symbols placed on the staff at the beginning of a section of music. The initial key signature in a piece is placed immediately after the cl ...

s has been considered especially appropriate for masonic ceremonial music. Although there had been earlier examples, like

Jean-Philippe Rameau Jean-Philippe Rameau (; ; – ) was a French composer and music theory, music theorist. Regarded as one of the most important French composers and music theorists of the 18th century, he replaced Jean-Baptiste Lully as the dominant composer of ...

's opera '' Zoroastre'' (1749), whose librettist Louis de Cahusac was a Freemason, the masonic music of

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

is among the best-known of its kind. Mozart's opera ''

The Magic Flute ''The Magic Flute'' (, ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. It is a ''Singspiel'', a popular form that included both singing and spoken dialogue. The work premiered on ...

'' and his incidental music to ''

Thamos, King of Egypt ''Thamos, King of Egypt'' (or ''King Thamos''; in German, ''Thamos, König in Ägypten'') is a play by , for which, between 1773 and 1780, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart wrote incidental music, K. 345/336a, of an operatic character. The autograp ...

'' have masonic connections. Other openly masonic compisitions by Mozart include the '' Maurerische Trauermusik'' (''Masonic Funeral Music'') and a number of songs and

cantata A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian language, Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal music, vocal Musical composition, composition with an musical instrument, instrumental accompaniment, ty ...

s. Lodges sometimes used the music of other composers for their proceedings (with or without permission) often adding different words. For example, in 1810,

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...

, who is not documented as a mason, wrote to his friend the doctor Franz Wegeler: "I was told you were singing a song of mine in the Masonic Lodge... Send it to me, I am going to replace it and you won't be sorry." Wegeler himself published two masonic texts suggesting melodies of Beethoven (the ''Opferlied'' WoO 126 and the song ''Der freie Mann'' WoO 117) which could be used for them. Music especially composed for masonic rituals began to be published in the 18th century, including music written by

Georg Benda Georg Anton Benda (; 30 June 17226 November 1795) was a Kingdom of Bohemia, Bohemian composer, violinist and ''Kapellmeister'' of the Classical period (music), classical period. Biography Born into a Benda family, family of notable musicians in ...

, Ignaz Pleyel,

François-André Danican Philidor François-André Danican Philidor (7 September 1726 – 31 August 1795), often referred to as André Danican Philidor during his lifetime, was a French composer and chess player. He contributed to the early development of the ''opéra comique''. ...

Johann Gottlieb Naumann Johann Gottlieb Naumann (17 April 1741 – 23 October 1801) was a German composer, conductor, and Kapellmeister. Life Johann Gottlieb Naumann was born in Blasewitz and received his musical training from the teachers at his town school, where h ...

Johann Christian Friedrich Hæffner Johann Christian Friedrich Hæffner (2 March 1759 in Oberschönau – 28 May 1833 in Uppsala) was a German-born Swedish composer. Hæffner received his first musical education with the Schmalkalden organist Johann Gottfried Vierling. H ...

and Christian Gottlob Neefe. Anthems and other works for use in masonic lodges were written by, amongst others, in the 18th century William Boyce, in the 19th century

Albert Lortzing Gustav Albert Lortzing (23 October 1801 – 21 January 1851) was a German composer, librettist, actor and singer. He is considered to be the main representative of the German ''Spieloper'', a form similar to the French ''opéra comique'', which ...

, and in the 20th century

Jean Sibelius Jean Sibelius (; ; born Johan Julius Christian Sibelius; 8 December 186520 September 1957) was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic music, Romantic and 20th-century classical music, early modern periods. He is widely regarded as his countr ...

. French composer André Gedalge wrote the anthem for the International Order of Freemasonry

Le Droit Humain The International Order of Freemasonry ''Le Droit Humain'' is a global Masonic order, membership of which is available to men and women on equal terms, regardless of nationality, religion or ethnicity. This practice is known as Co-Freemasonry ...

, with lyrics by his wife Amélie André-Gedalge, who was initiated at Lodge No. 1 of Le Droit Humain in 1907.

References

Notes Sources *Abert, Herman, tr.Stewart Spencer (2007). ''W. A. Mozart''. New Haven and London: Yale University Press. * Hill, Cecil (1980). "Masonic music", in ''

The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language '' Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and t ...

'', ed. Stanley Sadie, vol. 11, 753–756 * Nettl, Paul (1994). ''The Beethoven Encyclopedia''. New York: Citadel Press. * Sichrovsky, Heinz (2009)
Liner notes to ''Mozart, W.A.: Masonic Music (Complete)''

Naxos Records Naxos comprises numerous companies, divisions, imprints, and labels specializing in classical music but also audiobooks and other genres. The premier label is Naxos Records, which focuses on classical music. Naxos Musical Group encompasses about ...

CD 8.570897. {{Authority control Masonic culture Musical subcultures Classical music styles Music genres

See also

References