What's the consensus on this piece ( Beethoven's in case anyone else has written a Missa Solemnis that I'm unaware of ) ? I listened to it again this morning ( John Eliot Gardner's recording ) and still struggle to warm to it. Was it something that Beethoven very much thought that he ought to write rather than something he felt compelled to ? The booklet notes mention it being generally respected rather than loved, although they then try to make the case for that not to be so.

...I note that Joseph Kerman's booklet note for the Gardiner recording mentions Haydn precisely zero times. An odd omission if you ask me (although of course you didn't ).

Beethoven promoted the piece as his greatest work and I wouldn't argue with that. Which means by default it would be a good contestant for the greatest ever work by anybody. I have Gardiner's CD too, which on the whole is very good but I understand your point. Actually the CD I play the most is by the Hanover band, which though not technically as perfect, has some of the 'warmth' missing in Gardiner's, especially in the Kyrie. I have a track from Gardiner's rendition of Beethoven's Mass in C at my site if anyone's interested. Agree Haydn is tiresome.

Hi Rod, thanks for your post.

Is the Hanover Band the one recording on Nimbus Records? With Roy Goodman? I'll have to check that out.

And do you find Haydn tiresome, or just Haydn Masses? The former I would accept, but would find very hard to believe, let alone agree with. The latter seems more likely and easier to support.

Yes it is the Nimbus recording, the conductor is Terje Kvam, as Bryn says. I find Haydn in general rather dry, though I have heard the odd thing here and there that pleased the ear. He just lacks the 'personal touch' for me. Beethoven and Handel are my favourites.

I'm convinced that when Beethoven wrote, "From the heart - may it go to the heart" he meant exactly that. But the unremitting emotional intensity of the piece (apart fron the Kyrie) and the challenge to performers mean that this can never be an everyday piece. As Kerman says, a sense of strain is part of the conception, just as it is in other late Beethoven pieces (Grosse Fuge, 'Hammerklavier' Sonata).

I very much admire the Gardiner recording, though such a masterpiece will certainly admit more than one approach.

Thank you, I'll look out for it.

As for Haydn, may I recommend the Paris Symphonies (Nos. 82-87) -?- dry, yes, but a dry humor! I think they're a riot.

Harnoncourt (OS) or Kuijken (CD) are the local favorites, but I'm always on the lookout for new interpretations.

Edit: oops: I didn't mean Hogwood.

When Klemeperer recorded the Missa Solemnis, EMI hired the Wigmore Hall (I think it was at least) to promote the recording by playing excerpts and having the producer and engineer talk about it - Decca did much the same with a series of their spectacular recordings in the 60's (Faust, Mahler 2 with Solti - first dolby processed master tape - and Gotterdammerung for example).
The Klemeperer recording was treated as a major musical event and so it proved.  It left a great impression on me, in particular, the Gloria has a power unequalled by any other performance I have heard, aided to a tremendous extent by the utterly extraordinary Philharmonia Chorus who were prepared for the recording by Wilhelm Pitz.  There are several other stunning performance on record from this choir at this period, truly a golden age for their work. 
Of course there are other fine recorded performances of the Mass but for me nothing equals the Klemperer.  I wonder if anyone else feels the same?