Missa Sacra

Whoever attempted to compose a Latin mass in the middle of the 19th century had to compete with great models and traditional composition techniques. Bach's Mass in B minor and Beethoven's Missa solemnis, but even his earlier Mass in C major (performed by Schumann) are among the key works of a great mass tradition in the reception of High Romanticism. Whoever attempted to compose a Latin mass in the middle of the 19th century had to compete with great models and traditional composition techniques. Bach's Mass in B minor and Beethoven's Missa solemnis, but even his earlier Mass in C major (performed by Schumann) are among the key works of a great mass tradition in the reception of High Romanticism. Comme auparavant chez Schubert et plus tard chez Bruckner, la messe en ut mineur de Schumann est, elle aussi, liée à la tradition mais trouve une formulation toute personnelle de l'"Ordinarium Missae" dont les caractéristiques renvoient au style tardif du compositeur.