In the Name of Love: Taipei Philharmonic Chamber Choir to Perform Mozart's Great Mass in C Minor
The Taipei Philharmonic Chamber Choir, led by renowned conductor Gary Graden, will perform Mozart's 'Great Mass in C minor'—a masterpiece composed as a vow of love—at the National Concert Hall on April 27.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 22, 2026 at 20:41
- 🔍 Collected: April 22, 2026 at 21:02 (20 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 23, 2026 at 10:28 (13h 26m after Collected)
Central News Agency
(CNA Reporter Zhao Jing-yu, Taipei, 22nd) Mozart's "Great Mass in C minor" is not only a sacred vow of love but is also regarded as one of Mozart's most important vocal works from his late period. The Taipei Philharmonic Chamber Choir will perform this piece at a concert in late April, showcasing profound human and religious emotion.
Conductor Gary Graden stated at a press conference today that in this mass, the choral movements look back to Baroque music, carrying traces of Bach and Handel's "fugues"; while the solo movements display a gorgeous operatic style. "It's like walking into a cathedral, spending some time in a small chapel under an archway, and then walking into the next room; each space has a different characteristic."
Graden mentioned that the aria Mozart composed for his wife, Constanze Weber, in this mass is in itself the best testament to her singing talent: "She must have been a great singer."
Graden currently serves as the Director of Music at the Stockholm Cathedral and St. Jacob's Church, and is one of the most representative conductors in the Nordic choral community. He founded the Stockholm Musikgymnasium Chamber Choir and led the St. Jacob's Chamber Choir to win the European Grand Prix for Choral Singing, wielding profound international influence.
According to research by musicologist Che Yan-jiang, in August 1782, Mozart married female singer Constanze in Vienna without seeking prior consent from his father, Leopold Mozart. To please his devout Catholic father, Mozart emphasized in a family letter that he was writing a mass "entirely of his own free will." This very piece meant writing a mass was equivalent to witnessing the marriage before God, which was of extraordinary significance.
In January 1783, Mozart told his father that the previously mentioned mass was half finished. By October, when the Mozart couple returned to Salzburg, the mass was still only partially complete, lacking the latter half of the "Credo" text, and the "Agnus Dei" was unwritten. The reasons for its incompletion included massive performance costs, and possibly the premature death of Mozart's son, who was born just over two months prior, which prevented him from finishing it.
The Taipei Philharmonic Chamber Choir's "Mozart's Wedding Gift - Great Mass in C minor" concert will be performed on April 27 at the National Concert Hall in Taipei. The singers include vocalists Lai Chueh-yu, Cheng Hai-yun, Gong Tian-ping, Li Zeng-ming, and they will co-perform with the Taipei Philharmonic Youth Orchestra. (Editor: Zhang Ya-jing) 1150422
Choose to stand with facts. Every sponsorship of yours is a power to protect press freedom.
Download the CNA "First-hand News" APP to grasp the latest news instantly.
The text, images, and audio/video on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, or publicly transmitted and used without authorization.
(CNA Reporter Zhao Jing-yu, Taipei, 22nd) Mozart's "Great Mass in C minor" is not only a sacred vow of love but is also regarded as one of Mozart's most important vocal works from his late period. The Taipei Philharmonic Chamber Choir will perform this piece at a concert in late April, showcasing profound human and religious emotion.
Conductor Gary Graden stated at a press conference today that in this mass, the choral movements look back to Baroque music, carrying traces of Bach and Handel's "fugues"; while the solo movements display a gorgeous operatic style. "It's like walking into a cathedral, spending some time in a small chapel under an archway, and then walking into the next room; each space has a different characteristic."
Graden mentioned that the aria Mozart composed for his wife, Constanze Weber, in this mass is in itself the best testament to her singing talent: "She must have been a great singer."
Graden currently serves as the Director of Music at the Stockholm Cathedral and St. Jacob's Church, and is one of the most representative conductors in the Nordic choral community. He founded the Stockholm Musikgymnasium Chamber Choir and led the St. Jacob's Chamber Choir to win the European Grand Prix for Choral Singing, wielding profound international influence.
According to research by musicologist Che Yan-jiang, in August 1782, Mozart married female singer Constanze in Vienna without seeking prior consent from his father, Leopold Mozart. To please his devout Catholic father, Mozart emphasized in a family letter that he was writing a mass "entirely of his own free will." This very piece meant writing a mass was equivalent to witnessing the marriage before God, which was of extraordinary significance.
In January 1783, Mozart told his father that the previously mentioned mass was half finished. By October, when the Mozart couple returned to Salzburg, the mass was still only partially complete, lacking the latter half of the "Credo" text, and the "Agnus Dei" was unwritten. The reasons for its incompletion included massive performance costs, and possibly the premature death of Mozart's son, who was born just over two months prior, which prevented him from finishing it.
The Taipei Philharmonic Chamber Choir's "Mozart's Wedding Gift - Great Mass in C minor" concert will be performed on April 27 at the National Concert Hall in Taipei. The singers include vocalists Lai Chueh-yu, Cheng Hai-yun, Gong Tian-ping, Li Zeng-ming, and they will co-perform with the Taipei Philharmonic Youth Orchestra. (Editor: Zhang Ya-jing) 1150422
Choose to stand with facts. Every sponsorship of yours is a power to protect press freedom.
Download the CNA "First-hand News" APP to grasp the latest news instantly.
The text, images, and audio/video on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, or publicly transmitted and used without authorization.