Mozarts Coronation Mass in C major was composed in 1779. One of his most popular choral works, it is known to have been performed at the Coronation of Francis I in Prague in 1792, a year after Mozart’s death. Although composed in the grand style, with parts for woodwind, trumpets and timpani, it is still compact in structural terms.The music is celebratory in nature and the soloists are continually employed either as a quartet, in pairs or in solo lines that contrast with the full choir. The beautiful soprano solo in the Agnus Dei foreshadows the Countess’s aria Dove Sono from The Marriage of Figaro in melody and style. Combined with Schubert’s beautiful solo Ave Maria, the repertoire chosen for this Festival Service provides a fitting celebration of the power of music to uplift and inspire the soul.
