Opera Tickets Italy

The renowned American conductor and pianist Dennis Russell Davies takes charge of the La Fenice Orchestra and Choir in Venice for a performance of Ludwig van Beethoven's enduringly popular Missa solemnis in D major, Op. 123. This performance at Venice's Gran Teatro La Fenice provides an ideal opportunity to witness an outstanding orchestra and choir performing under the baton of a guest conductor who has enjoyed a stellar international career. Born in 1944 in Toledo, Ohio, in the United States, Davies has held principal positions with orchestras, opera houses and festivals for most of the last five decades, notably the Beethovenhalle Orchestra in Bonn, where he served from 1987 to 1995.

Missa solemnis was Beethoven's second musical setting for the Catholic Mass. His previous setting, first performed on 13 September 1807 in Eisenstadt, Austria, was composed in C major. That mass setting, Op. 86, was commissioned by Prince Nikolaus Esterházy II and resulted in the composer leaving the premiere in annoyance, it is said, because he was affronted by the reaction to it from the court chapel master. Whatever the veracity of that story, it is known that Beethoven began working on a new version in 1819. The Missa solemnis, as the work would come to be known, was more solemn in character and the great German took his time to complete it, only finishing the setting in 1823. Certainly, Beethoven thought this new version of the Mass was a superior musical setting, writing in a letter sometime in 1822 that he considered it to be his greatest work to date.

First performed on 7 April 1824 in Saint Petersburg, in a concert of the Philharmonic Society, Beethoven’s Missa solemnis is arranged in five movements. The opening movement, the Kyrie, has a traditional ABA structure with a grand opening section. The second, the Gloria, shifts into waltz time in sections and changes key several times. The remaining three movements are the Credo, split into several distinct sections, the Sanctus and the Agnus Dei. The last of these opens with a simple request for mercy sung by a bass soloist, followed by other male voices only, in B-minor, before the movement changes pace and key several times, introducing female voices along the way, to bring the Missa solemnis to its beautifully written musical conclusion.

Dennis Russell Davies' presence on the Venetian stage conducting Beethoven's sacred Missa solemnis will, no doubt, linger long in the memory of all who attend this remarkable concert at Venice's Teatro La Fenice.