Hell is a real possibility for all of us. It's not a happy thought, but it's an appropriate introduction to today's Music Monday selection, our last musical offering before Ash Wednesday. It's not really sacred music, but it is very relevant indeed to the Lenten themes of sin, repentance (or not), and damnation. This is the finale* of Mozart's opera Don Giovanni (a.k.a. Don Juan), one of the most powerful scenes in the history of musical drama.
Kyrie from Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis
When we think of Beethoven, Sacred Music might not be the first thing that comes to mind . . . but what he did compose was, as we might expect, moving, powerful, and simply beautiful.
Mozart Mass in C: Gloria
Please take a few minutes to listen to this beautiful sacred music, the "Gloria" from Mozart's Mass in C. I particularly recommend the "Laudamus Te" (starting at 2:40): it absolutely soars. Mozart himself was a sincere, if imperfect, Catholic who composed c. 60 pieces of sacred music over his short lifetime. We'll be hearing from him again on this … Continue reading Mozart Mass in C: Gloria