Große Messe K 427 = Mass in C Minor = Messe en Ut Mineur

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart composed his Mass in C Minor, K 427, in Vienna during 1782 and 1783. It remains one of his most complex sacred works, characterized by its symphonic scale and the influence of J.S. Bach, which Mozart had recently begun to study. The work was premiered in Salzburg, though it famously remained incomplete, leaving scholars and conductors to rely on various editorial reconstructions to perform the massive score.

This specific 1991 Decca release features Sir Georg Solti leading the Wiener Philharmoniker and the Konzertvereinigung Wiener Staatsopernchor, recorded live at the Salzburg Festival. As part of Decca’s high-fidelity classical catalog, the production reflects Solti’s rigorous approach to orchestral clarity and balance. The release was well-received by critics for its dramatic intensity and the strength of the vocal soloists, including Anne Sofie von Otter and René Pape, capturing a definitive moment in the late-20th-century performance practice of Mozart’s choral music.