Puccini: Messa di gloria & Orchestral Works

Featuring

Charles Castronovo
Gustavo Gimeno
Ludovic Tézier
Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg
Giacomo Puccini

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Recording & Production

This recording was produced by the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg and recorded on May 14 and June 29, 2022, at the Grand Auditorium, Philharmonie Luxembourg.

Compositional Technique

Puccini reused themes from his early works in his famous operas; for example, the main theme of the Capriccio sinfonico appears at the beginning of La Bohème, and Crisantemi was used in Manon Lescaut.

Historical Context

In 19th-century Italy, sacred music was rarely published and had only local distribution, unlike the widespread opera tradition or choral music festivals in Northern Europe.

Compositional Technique

The title 'Messa di Gloria' for Puccini's Mass is misleading, as a traditional 'Messa di Gloria' only includes the Kyrie and Gloria movements, while Puccini's work contains all five parts of the Mass ordinary.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Puccini's early instrumental and sacred works, such as the Capriccio sinfonico and Crisantemi, served as a laboratory for innovative writing and new themes that would later appear in his operas.

Composition History

Puccini's Mass, originally titled 'Messa a quattro voci con orchestra', was his graduation piece for the Istituto Musicale of Lucca and premiered on July 12, 1880.

Composer Biography

Giacomo Puccini was the fifth generation in a family of musicians who served as chapel masters at the Lucca Cathedral since 1739.

De Profundis

Puccini : Messa di Gloria etc

Puccini: Messa di Gloria, Preludio sinfonico & Crisantemi

Fratres: Best of Arvo Pärt

Ruth Crawford Seeger: Music for Small Orchestra; Study in Mixed Accents; Three Songs; Three Chants; String Quartet; Two Ricercari; Andante for String Orchestra; Rissolty Rossolty; Suite for Wind Quintet / Charles Seeger: John Hardy