From the fervour of the Mass in C minor to the brilliance of the “Jupiter” Symphony, Mozart reveals the full breadth of his genius, where the legacy of the Baroque meets lyrical sweep and symphonic grandeur.

With his Great Mass in C minor, Mozart conceived a work of extraordinary scope, in which the sheer breadth of the writing and the intensity of its musical expression stretch the boundaries of liturgical music. Begun in 1782 and left unfinished, this monumental score reveals an unusually ambitious artistic vision: to set the depth and discipline of the contrapuntal tradition against the expressive freedom of opera, allowing the two to enter into a rich and unexpected dialogue.

The influence of Bach and Handel runs through this imposing musical architecture, yet never obscures Mozart’s unmistakable individuality. Majestic choruses, richly wrought fugues and virtuosic arias unfold as a vast musical fresco, where compositional craft meets a distinctly theatrical mode of expression. The solo voices are afforded an almost operatic freedom, turning the work into a meeting place for fervour, virtuosity and human emotion. In its formal daring and lyrical sweep, the Mass in C minor points towards new possibilities for sacred music and, in some of its most powerful passages, anticipates the great choral works of the century to come.

Set against this expansive meditation, the Overture to The Marriage of Figaro and Symphony No. 41, “Jupiter”, offer very different glimpses of Mozart’s genius. The former captures, in just a few minutes, the energy and exhilaration of the theatre; the latter brings the symphonic form to a remarkable point of balance, invention and contrapuntal mastery. Taken together, these three works reveal a composer whose musical imagination, from the stage to the liturgy, embraces the full breadth of human expression.

I am interested in the program

Example cast:

Julien Chauvin conductor
Ensemble la Sportelle, 20 or 24 singers
Le Concert de la Loge, 27 musicians

Melissa Petit soprano solo
Eva Zaïcik mezzo-soprano solo
Antonin Rondepierre tenor solo
Nahuel Di Pierro bass solo

Nordsee-Zeitung, Gerd Klingeberg, September 5, 2025
“Ensemble La Sportelle shines with precision […] it captivated with its fresh and powerful voices, flawless intonation, and precise articulation […] acclaimed with a thunder of applause.”

Bachtrack, Jean-Pierre Rousseau, August 28, 2025
“One admires the cohesion and clarity of La Sportelle’s fourteen singers, especially in the double-choir passages where they discreetly move around the orchestra.”