Great Mass in C minor K. 427 by Mozart, Från (2015/2015), Dirigent Giovanni Antonini, NFM (Narodowe Forum Muzyki), Breslau, Polen

Mozart's Mass in C minor is as brilliant and mysterious as the famous Requiem. We don't know why Mozart never finished his work. It is certain that he created them - not to order, like many other works - but only from the heart. It is also out of pure passion that the members of Il Giardino Armonico have been discovering a new face of early music for exactly thirty years. Young Wolfgang fell head over heels in love with the singer Konstancja Weber. Love was not hindered neither by the lack of approval from his father, nor by the awkwardness resulting from the fact that the composer had previously adored Miss Weber's sister. It was only the illness of the fiancée that put the planned marriage in question. Then Mozart made a vow: if his beloved marries him, he will compose a great mass cycle. Konstancja recovered and the young people got married, and the votive mass for the health of her beloved was so excellent that fragments of it were resounded in public even before the work was completed. Konstancja performed in the premiere – it was with her in mind that Mozart composed the soprano part, placing in it virtuoso arias straight from opera, not sacred music. The touchingly beautiful aria Et incarnatus est (fragment of Credoabout the conception of Jesus) was associated with the joy of the birth of Mozart's first child. Why, despite the advancement of work on the Mass in C minor, did the composer abandon the work and never return to it? The reason could have been the death of the Mozarts' son, more urgent - commissioned - compositions could also have been of importance, and it is possible that religious reasons were also involved: after all, Mozart did not undertake to compose a mass cycle until the Requiem, written on his deathbed. “Early music requires a huge emotional input. The most important thing is for the artist to live the music he performs,” says Luca Pianca, lutenist and co-founder of Il Giardino Armonico. Wratislavia Cantans celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, and the first Italian orchestra of historical instruments celebrates its 30th anniversary. The half-century history of the festival shows the revolution that has taken place in thinking about early music. Italy came on the scene quite late when two young Milanese founded Il Giardino Armonico in 1985. Then it turned out that the music of the distant past resembles a quick film montage: emotion and madness, extreme tempos and changes in dynamics, whispers and screams. Exaggeration? And how else to play the Mass in C minor written by Mozart, torn by extreme emotions?