Bach in excelsis: The Mass in B Minor

The Mass in B Minor rises from the musical landscape like a great cathedral. For Bach it was the culmination of a life’s journey. For those that come after it is a place of pilgrimage. Like so much else with Bach, the work had a very pragmatic beginning. It had started out as a project in 1733 to seemingly secure the Protestant composer a court title in Catholic Dresden; over the years he added further sections – each a self-contained triumph – although his ultimate intention for the work remains unclear. 

The Mass is one of the high peaks of human creativity. A compendium of sublime arias that takes relish in virtuoso solos from singers and instrumentalists with some of Bach’s most wondrously crafted choruses, Bach elevates the whole into a work of true heavenly dimensions.