Missa Solemnis - Beethoven.

Chicago Symphony Chorus and Orchestra. Conductor Daniel Barenboim.

Warner Elatus 256461172-2

Ludwig von Beethoven was born into a musical family in Bonn. At the age of eight he made his first public performance, and by the age of 12 he had published his first composition.

As a young man he went to Vienna to pursue his musical career, and there, he met several famous musicians, among them Haydn, Salieri and Mozart.

He returned to Bonn, briefly, as his mother was dying, but went back to Vienna where he remained until his death.

The Missa Solemnis was written for one of his benefactors, the Archduke Rudolph, who was created a cardinal.

The piece took so long to write that it was not played at the installation of the cardinal, and was finished several years after the event.

Beethoven was not present for the first performance of the mass in St Petersburg, Russia, in April 1824, but agreed to conduct part of it for a concert in Vienna a month later.

The night is not famous for the performance, rather for the sight of Beethoven, then profoundly deaf, with his back to the audience completely unaware of the success of the work and the riotous applause of the audience.

Beethoven was a tragic figure, deaf, disturbed and estranged from his family, but he left a legacy of music rich beyond compare.