Christmas Concert, Missa Concertata - CMI Bach

Description

The Missa brevis in F, with its pastoral spirit and rich orchestration featuring horns and oboes, perfectly evokes the atmosphere of Christmas. In the 18th century, Advent inspired the writing of festive choral works.

In Leipzig, Bach composed cantatas and oratorios for this highlight of the liturgical calendar. This may also be the case for his four short masses, whose exact destination remains unknown.

The Missa brevis in F, with its pastoral spirit and rich orchestration featuring horns and oboes, perfectly evokes the atmosphere of Christmas.

Pergolesi's Missa Concertata adopts a similar orchestration and tonality. A virtuoso concertante work for double choir and double orchestra, it is said to have been composed shortly after the Naples earthquake of 1732, to celebrate the return to more peaceful times.

A rare work to discover, based on a previously unpublished manuscript held by the Bibliothèque Municipale de Lyon. A world first!