St. Paul (oratorio) St. Paul (oratorio) St. Paul (in German Paulus), Op. 36, is an oratorio by Felix Mendelssohn. The libretto was begun in 1832 by the composer with pastor , a childhood friend, pulling together passages from the New Testament (chiefly the Acts of the Apostles) and Old Testament. It also features chorales or hymn settings after Bach's model. Composition of the music began in 1834, and the work was premiered on 22 May 1836 (having been completed in April of that year) at the Lower Rhenish Music Festival in Düsseldorf. The English premiere was in Liverpool on 3 October 1836 in
Christus. Mysterium in a Prelude and Three Oratorios International Draeseke Society, he played them in the town church of Coburg. Christus is composed of four separate sections: Though the work is composed of three oratorios, it bears more resemblance to Wagner's "Ring Cycle" than to traditional oratorio. Draeseke intended for it to fit into the category of Wagner's "Musikdrama," and in fact he used leitmotif throughout the work. Because of its length, a performance of "Christus" spans three evenings. The work was only performed twice in its entirety and, unlike Wagner's "Ring Cycle", Draeseke preferred that his work be performed in a church. Draeseke wrote in program notes