programme
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Missa Solemnis
performers
Performers in Brussels:
Cappella Amsterdam and Ensemble Vocal de Lausanne choir
Belgian National Orchestra
Hugh Wolff conductor
Camilla Tilling soprano
Marianne Beate Kielland alto
Thomas Walker tenor
Hanno Müller-Brachmann bass
Performers in Nantes and Lausanne:
Cappella Amsterdam and Ensemble Vocal de Lausanne choir
Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century
Daniel Reuss conductor
Robin Johanssen soprano
Marianne Beate Kielland alto
Thomas Walker tenor
Tobias Berndt bass
background
“‘From the heart—may it go to the heart,’” Beethoven wrote in the score of his Missa Solemnis. The work was originally intended for the inauguration of Archduke Rudolph as Archbishop, but Beethoven completely missed the deadline. Over the course of four years, the composer poured his heart and soul into the Missa Solemnis, and the result was grand, glorious, and inspiring. Beethoven later called the mass ‘my best work’. A recording of this performance is also available on CD.