Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Mass in C minor KV 427

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Mass in C minor KV 427 – VEB Deutscher Verlag für Musik – Mus.ms.autogr. Mozart, W. A. 427; 417a – Staatsbibliothek Preussischer Kulturbesitz (Berlin, Germany)

Wien (Austria) — 1783

Surpassed all previous liturgical compositions by the musical genius: Mozart's unfinished yet incomparably monumental Mass in C minor as a pinnacle of his complete oeuvre

  1. With this mass scoring, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) created a monumental work, which he, however, never completed

  2. The Mass in C minor belongs to the Missa solemnis type and accordingly comprises a particularly festive and extensive scoring of the liturgy

  3. The work incorporates numerous artistic influences and is particularly notable for its stylistic diversity and complexity

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Mass in C minor KV 427

Mus.ms.autogr. Mozart, W. A. 427; 417a Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin (Berlin, Germany)
  1. Description
  2. Facsimile Editions (1)
Description
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Mass in C minor KV 427

Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) composed a total of 18 masses during his short life, of which the so-called Great Mass in C minor from 1782 is undoubtedly one of the most impressive. This monumental work surpasses all of Mozart's previous mass compositions in terms of artistry. Although the Missa solemnis remained unfinished, it is one of the most outstanding liturgical scorings in European music history. In it, the exceptional talent incorporated various impressions from works by George Frideric Handel (1685–1759) and Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750), which he was studying in depth at the time. Part of the fragmentary mass was premiered in Salzburg in October 1783. In 1840, the work was first printed and published by Johann Anton André in Offenbach. After that, there were repeated attempts to complete the composition for the purpose of performing it in its entirety, but these rarely met with approval. The original autograph of this unfinished yet monumental creation is now kept in the Berlin State Library.

Codicology

Alternative Titles
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Messe C-Moll
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Messe C-Moll KV 427
Origin
Austria
Date
1783
Genre
Content
Autograph of the unfinished Great Mass in C minor with handwritten annotations and the signature of Mozart
Artist / School

Available facsimile editions:
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Mass in C minor KV 427 – VEB Deutscher Verlag für Musik – Mus.ms.autogr. Mozart, W. A. 427; 417a – Staatsbibliothek Preussischer Kulturbesitz (Berlin, Germany)
VEB Deutscher Verlag für Musik – Leipzig, 1982
Facsimile Editions

#1 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Messe C-Moll

Publisher: VEB Deutscher Verlag für Musik – Leipzig, 1982
Binding: Facsimile and commentary volume in paperback; both come in a linen slipcase
Commentary: 1 volume (13 pp.)
Language: German
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