Ponchielli: Messa

The first performance of the Mass was an enormous success, particularly with the critics who wrote enthusiastic reviews in the local papers and music magazines of the time. The Mass was repeated during the Easter festivities in 1886, but it seems that, apart from one or two other performances, it was not presented again. This CD is the first modern performance of a work that is undoubtedly one of the masterpieces of 19th century italian sacred music. It is also an opportunity to rediscover similar works by Ponchielli, whose disappearance from repertoires was most probably due to his untimely death.