Missa Solemnis

Ludwig van Beethoven's Missa Solemnis, composed at the same time as his Ninth Symphony, is one of the composer’s most fascinating works and the culmination of his creative maturity. Rarely performed in public due to the difficulty of the score and the extensive resources required for its execution, it is a unique composition in the oeuvre of the genius from Bonn because of the synthesis of elements borrowed from both Renaissance madrigals and the classical tradition with innovations from the composer’s late musical period.
Initially conceived as an enthronement Mass for the Archbishop of Olmütz, Beethoven soon abandoned this event to immerse himself for years in the composition of a work of monumental dimensions and destined to be the living testament of his deep spirituality. In the composer’s lifetime, only a few fragments were performed together with his Ninth Symphony, in 1824. Its full version was premiered posthumously in 1830.