'The Promised Land': An examination in light of Saint-Saens's musical aesthetics

Camille Saint-Saens is not generally known as a composer of choral music, yet he wrote approximately one hundred compositions for choirs of various sizes and configurations. These works span his entire career---from his student days until the year of his death---and played a significant role in advancing his position as a leading figure in French music of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Unfortunately, although the quality of the choral music is high, most of it is unknown and rarely programmed. Little has been written about it. In studies of the composer's life and works, discussion of the choral music rarely achieves any depth. The exception is the Oratorio de Noel which Smither examines in some detail and which has enjoyed a long performance history.;A new perspective on Saint-Saens's choral music emerges from a study of his prolific writings on music. Beginning in the early 1870s and for the rest of his life, Saint-Saens wrote articles for publication in such prestigious journals as the Gazette musicale. He published many of the articles in books on widely ranging topics that included art, philosophy, science, personal remembrances, and---of course---music and music criticism. These important works reveal much not only about the composer's biography and personality, but also about his understanding of music history and his musical aesthetic. The latter offer views that are consistent and clearly stated regarding form, harmony and melody, and expression---all aspects that have a direct impact on our understanding of his choral music.;The writings reveal that for Saint-Saens, form was paramount. And though the concept of form shapes a myriad of artistic issues, the works that he admires plainly indicate that in its most basic sense, this meant clear structures. As Saint-Saens considered modern harmony to be the culmination of musical evolution, it holds the next most important place in his musical aesthetics. Specifically, this meant restraint with regard to chromaticism, especially of the Wagnerian type against which Saint-Saens remonstrated. Melody holds a lesser position in his aesthetics but reflects Gluck's idea of a "beautiful simplicity." Finally, Saint-Saens considered expression, which was derived from form and achieved its realization via harmony, to be the central mission of music.;The Promised Land, op. 140 was Saint-Saens's last major choral-orchestral work, and the work which he said "must worthily crown my career!" Therefore, it is well-suited for examination with regard to the composer's aesthetics. Premiered at the Gloucester Festival in 1913, the oratorio is scored for SATB soloists, mixed double choir, and large orchestra and seeks to explain why Moses was not allowed to enter the Promised Land. Examination of the structural procedures, harmonic language, melodic features, and expressive qualities shows that The Promised Land exemplifies all of Saint-Saens's aesthetic principles in appealing music thus advocating for more frequent performances of this neglected work.