"From the heart - May it go again - to the heart", writes Ludwig van Beethoven in the dedication of his Missa solemnis to the Austrian Archduke Rudolph. The appointment of his pupil and patron as Archbishop and Cardinal of Olomouc in 1819 is the external occasion for the composition of the almost 80-minute mass setting, which is admittedly not completed until years later and goes beyond the liturgical framework.
Actually, we wanted to deal with this grandiose piece in 2020 on Beethoven's 250th birthday, but then the pandemic intervened. Now we are making up for this evening on the commemoration day of St. Cecilia, the patron saint of church music.
