With magnificent sacred music, la festa musicale concludes its five-part documentation of the works of Gregor Joseph Werner. The crowning finale of the series features two large-scale Masses filled with musical surprises that range from harmonic drama to radiant exuberance. They captivate with intricate fugues, finely shaped arias, and profound ensembles. Werner emerges as both a shrewd master of the Palestrina tradition and a visionary precursor of the Viennese Classical style to come.

The programme is complemented by the motet Iam hyems transiit, which was premiered as part of the eponymous Mass and is also scored for two trumpets and timpani, violins, and basso continuo. The fourth discovery on this album, comprising entirely first recordings, is a small, playful string sinfonia.

The vocal parts of the works are performed by a double quartet, led by internationally acclaimed soloists. Under the musical direction of Anne Marie Harer, the recording cheerfully demonstrates that Werner’s music – long silenced and overshadowed by Haydn – rightly deserves to be brought back to light and firmly established in the sacred music concert repertoire.