Although many volumes of books have been published about Beethoven's Missa Solemnis, at this point there appears that little has appeared on the Internet. This site is an attempt to change that by compiling information available in print and make it, along with the added dimension of multimedia, available to users of the World Wide Web. It is intended to be a part of a larger collection of classical music related documents currently being compilied by Professor Tom Neenan at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, California.

Note: These pages are under heavy construction. A in the upper lefthand corner indicates pages that are not yet complete. The scheduled completion date is May 29, 1996.


Available Resources

The following is essentially a table of contents to the information available on this web site.

Background
A brief biographical account of Beethoven's life prior to and during the composition of the Missa Solemnis along with some notes about Beethoven's compositional processes

Beethoven's Religous Views
Beethoven's religious feelings which served as a backdrop to the composition of the Missa Solemnis

General Information on the Missa Solemnis
Some important information about the mass, including the orchestration and the text of the mass (in latin side by side with its english translation) as used in the Missa Solemnis

Historical Circumstances
Historical circumstances preceding the Missa Solemnis

Compositional History of the Missa Solemnis
A brief summary of the compositional development of the Missa Solemnis

A Movement by Movement Analysis of the Missa Solemnis

I. Kyrie
II. Gloria
III. Credo
IV. Sanctus
V. Angus Dei

The Purpose
Beethoven's purpose in writing the Missa Solemnis

Comparison to Mass in C

Additional Related Web Resources
Some other sources of information about Beethoven and his music.

Bibliography

About the Authors


Last Updated: May 29, 1996