Ludwig van Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis is, next to Johann Sebastian Bach’s Mass in B minor and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Requiem in D minor, one of the greatest works of sacred music. Although this is not the only setting of the mass by Beethoven, it occupies a unique place in his work.

Composing Missa Solemnis took five years, from 1819–1823, so it fell on the last stage of Ludwig van Beethoven’s work. It was a time when Beethoven’s other great works were created, such as the Hammerklavier Sonata or the famous Symphony No. 9. The Missa Solemnis consists of five extensive sections: Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus and Agnus Dei – developed in a way that goes far beyond the traditional mass cycle. The line-up of the work is vast, as it was entrusted to a quartet of soloists, a choir, as well as a large orchestra supported by the sound of the organ. The Mass was commissioned by Beethoven’s friend, student and patron, Archduke Rudolf Habsburg, who, with its performance, wanted to celebrate his enthronement as Archbishop of Olomouc. The event took place in 1819, but the composer did not manage to fulfil this obligation and added the last notes in the score only four years later. Full of virtuosity, impressive sound of the monumental mass, rewarded the prolonged waiting for is completion. The composition bears the hallmarks of Beethoven’s late style, with sudden contrasts of dynamics, tempi and harmony. Beethoven’s treatment of the mass form significantly emphasized its expression as an innovative work created on the threshold of Romanticism. During this concert of 57th International Festival Wratislavia Cantans, it will be conducted by Sir John Eliot Gardiner. In the Main Hall of the National Forum of Music, Gardner will perform with the soloists and the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique, of which he is Artistic Director.