Mass in E flat
Kyrie eleison; Gloria in excelsis Deo; Credo; Sanctus; Benedictus; Agnus Dei
BBC Chorus, BBC Orchestra, conducted by Leslie Woodgate
The sacred works of Schubert are strangely neglected, although they contain some of his most beautiful music. This Mass was composed in 1828-the last year of the composer's life-and like so many of Schubert's works was neither commissioned nor written for any special performance. That the Mass appealed to Schubert very deeply is obvious from the expressive power of his setting in E flat, which has been described by a German critic as ' a mighty hymn to the Divinity.' Schubert once said that the reason for his success in setting sacred words was because ' I never force myself into devotion, or compose hymns or prayers unless I am really overpowered by the feeling: that alone is real. true devotion.' —Ralph Hill