November 10, 2010
Rare Performance of Beethoven Masterpiece, "Missa Solemnis"
La Jolla, Calif. (November 10, 2010) — The La Jolla Symphony " Chorus (LJS"C) under the baton of Steven Schick, performs Ludwig van Beethoven’s rarely-heard masterpiece Missa Solemnis on December 4th and 5th in Mandeville Auditorium, UCSD. The second concert in a season themed Face the Music: Experiences for the Ears and the Eyes, the weekend performances present audiences with one of the great spectacles of the early 19th century and the first San Diego performance of this masterpiece in more than 20 years. Joining the orchestra and chorus will be guest soloists soprano Natalie Mann, mezzo-soprano Ava Baker Liss, tenor Tom Oberjat, and bass-baritone Tom Corbeil.
Missa Solemnis was composed for the installation of Beethoven’s pupil and friend Archduke Rudolph as an archbishop. Written between 1819 and 1823, the Missa Solemnis cost Beethoven more time and work than any other composition, with the exception of Fidelio. The finished piece was presented to Rudolph in1823, three years after his installation, and its first performance was in 1824 in St. Petersburg. Though rarely performed, in part because of its complexity and sheer scale, it is considered one of Beethoven’s major life achievements and one of the most significant mass settings. Beethoven himself was confident of what he had created; he described the Missa Solemnis as “the greatest work which I have composed so far.”
The fact that Missa Solemnis and Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony are virtual contemporaries is instructive. In the Ninth Beethoven reverted to his Heroic style and wrote a dramatic symphony that achieves the same transcendence and triumph as the Eroica and Fifth Symphony. Performances of the Ninth Symphony invariably bring audiences to their feet, swept up in Beethoven’s grand proclamation of the brotherhood of all men. Not so with the Missa Solemnis. With its emphasis on lyricism, inwardness, and contrapuntal writing, the Missa is firmly in Beethoven’s late style, one that strives toward the expression of an inner truth rather than public celebration. The music and the issues it confronts take us deep inside Beethoven’s soul–and inside our own.
The performances take place October 30–31, 2010 in Mandeville Auditorium at UCSD. Concert times are 8:00 p.m. on Saturday and 3:00 p.m. on Sunday. Individual tickets are $29 general, $26 senior, and $15 student. Group discounts are available. Parking is free. A pre-concert lecture is offered one hour prior to concert times. To purchase tickets or for more information, call the LJS&C office at (858) 534-4637.
The La Jolla Symphony & Chorus, San Diego’s oldest and largest community orchestra and chorus, is a non-profit musical performing group dedicated to inspiring San Diego with the joy of music. Its 110-person orchestra and 130-person chorus perform groundbreaking orchestral and choral music along with traditional favorites from the classical repertoire. During the 55th season, maestro Steven Schick shares the podium with Choral Director David Chase.
