(Ger. Choralkonzert).
A sacred vocal composition, developed during the first half of the 17th century, based on a German chorale and scored for one or more voices and basso continuo and occasionally including obbligato instrumental parts. Like the ‘sacred concerto’ or geistliches Konzert, of which it is a sub-category, the chorale concerto adopted the techniques and aesthetic principles of the concertato style of the early Italian Baroque period. There were two main types, distinguished by the size of the ensembles used: the large-scale chorale concerto, cultivated mostly from about 1600 to 1620, which used two or more vocal or instrumental choirs or both, and was modelled on the elaborate polychoral concertos of Giovanni Gabrieli; and more intimate settings, characteristically set for one or two voices and continuo, which emulated the small concerti ecclesiastici of Viadana. Leading composers of the chorale concerto were Michael Praetorius, Schein and Scheidt.
In the 20th century the German equivalent, Choralkonzert, was used by Siegfried Reda for a group of his organ compositions.
See Chorale settings.
ROBERT L. MARSHALL