Beethoven Missa Solemnis
Crouch End Festival Chorus performs one of Beethoven's greatest choral works with The Hanover Band in the beautifully refurbished theatre at Alexandra Palace.
Beethoven Missa Solemnis
Sarah Tynan soprano
Judy Louie Brown mezzo-soprano
Benjamin Hulett tenor
Neal Davies baritone
The Hanover Band
Crouch End Festival Chorus
David Temple Conductor
About the programme
It was in the latter part of Beethoven’s life, when his deafness was profound, that he composed his monumental Missa Solemnis.
The choral writing, with extremes of dynamics and speed, is amongst the most virtuosic in the entire choral repertoire, and it is only choirs of great power, flexibility and musicianship that can deliver it. With this Mass he achieved a new musical, dramatic and liturgical synthesis – an apotheosis comparable to that of his Ninth Symphony. It is an enigmatic work, with an underlying programmatic structure that suggests ‘hovering guardian angels’ and contemporary invasions and battles – and it is for the performers to reveal this imagery and architecture.
With Crouch End Festival Chorus, The Hanover Band, four world-class soloists and David Temple, the stage is set for a brilliant illumination of this iconic work.