Beethoven's Missa solemnis

"From the heart - may it go to the heart again", wrote 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 was the external occasion for the composition of the almost 80-minute mass setting, which was not completed until years later and went beyond the liturgical framework.From the simple chords under the continuous speech rhythm of the Kyrie to the cannon thunder and the military fanfares in Dona nobis pacem, a dramatic arc full of contrasts is spanned in which almost no human emotion is missing - not the jubilation and confidence, not the fear and doubt. Beethoven, who made such ground-breaking contributions to the further development of genres such as the symphony, quartet and sonata, considered the Missa solemnis to be his most successful work, and we actually wanted to focus on this grandiose piece in 2020 to mark Beethoven's 250th birthday, but then the pandemic intervened. Now we are making up for this evening on the feast day of St Cecilia, the patron saint of church music. And next year - this much we can already reveal - our speaker Frank Höndgen is planning one of the rare performances of the Missa solemnis in a church, of course in St. Michael's in Munich city centre.