Prelude to Mastery

The Missa Sanctissimae Trinitatis was probably composed within a few weeks in the late fall of 1736, an occasion for the composition is not recorded. With this mass, the first in a series of five late masses, Jan Dismas Zelenka entered upon the phase of his masterful late works. Its spacious conception abundant in numbers, stylistic and compositional wealth, as well as its vehement, musical expressive power clearly differentiate this work from Zelenka’s previous masses.

This new edition is based on the corresponding volume of the series “Das Erbe deutscher Musik,” from which the preface and critical report also derive.

"Zelenka's artistic personality, his biography and his compositional style are utterly distinctive. His style is highly experimental. Was Zelenka really one of the greatest composers of the 18th century, or only one of the most interesting? I think that he still has several surprises for us."

(Schweizerische Musikzeitung)

"Zelenka's Masses - fine specimens of Baroque choral literature, some parts of which are set even more colorfully than in the corresponding compositions by Bach."

(Die Welt)

Urtext edited by Thomas Kohlhase

Duration: 60'