Franz Schubert's so-called German Mass, D. 872 is one of his last works of sacred music and was written in 1827. The work was commissioned by Professor J P Neumann of the Polytechnic School of Vienna who provided the texts for the nine short sections. It was Neumann's idea that the work be as musically simple as possible and able to be performed by amateurs. This arrangement of the Sanctus seeks to preserve the simplicity of the original, allowing the sheer beauty of the melodic lines to have prominence.