Missa Solemnis – Collegium vocale Gent (München)

Ludwig van Beethoven [1770–1827], Missa solemnis op.123

Hanna-Elisabeth Müller, soprano
Anna Lucia Richter, mezzo
Ilker Arcayürik, tenor
Tareq Nazmi, bass

Collegium Vocale Gent, choir
Philharmonischer Chor München, choir
Münchner Philharmoniker, orchestra
Philippe Herreweghe, conductor

Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis was regarded by the composer himself as his best work. It shows him at the height of his creative powers, although it never achieved the popularity of his symphonies. Instead of developing musical material in the classical way, Beethoven harked back to Renaissance polyphonic techniques along the lines of Josquin, Palestrina or Ockeghem to write this “symphony with choral accompaniment”. The result is a hugely personal confession of faith and a proclamation of a unique yet universal religious feeling.