Autumn Music Days - Church Concert

Joseph Haydn, Missa in angustiis (Latin for "Mass in Distress"), also known as the Nelson Mass, Hob XXII:11 in D minor Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Requiem, D minor, KV 626 BachWerkVokal conducted by Gordon Safari Experience two of the most moving sacred compositions in a unique concert. Mozart's Requiem, a work full of drama and beauty, meets Haydn's festive Nelson Mass. Both works captivate with their powerful sound and deeply felt spirituality. Yet they could hardly be more different – both in their sound and in their historical context. Mozart's Requiem is a work of almost mystical aura. It was begun in the last months of his life and remained unfinished – shrouded in legends about the mysterious commissioning patron and Mozart's own premonition of his death. Haydn's Missa in Angustiis, on the other hand, was created during a time of political unrest, the time of distress: as the title suggests, it refers to Napoleon's advance. The mass radiates a combative confidence and ends in triumphant D major as a sign of victory and hope. The two works stand in contrast to each other like two cathedrals: one permeated by the twilight of eternity, the other filled with the morning light of faith.