In 2022, Panhandle PBS partnered with the Missa Solemnis Alliance to produce and broadcast “Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis in the Texas Panhandle”. The station also produced “From the Heart: The Making of Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis in the Texas Panhandle,” the documentary that explores the journey form 2018, though the interruption of the pandemic, to the 2022 performance. Now, DVD and Blu-ray copies of the performance and the documentary produced by Panhandle PBS are available through donations of $35 to the station.
Beethoven referred to the “Missa Solemnis” as “the greatest music I have ever written.” It was first performed in Saint Petersburg, Russia, in 1824. A total of 173 musicians are needed to perform the work, which is why it is typically only performed in large metroplexes today. The Missa Solemnis Alliance, made up of musicians from organizations from across the Texas Panhandle including Chamber Music Amarillo, the Amarillo Symphony, Amarillo Master Chorale, West Texas A&M University, Wayland Baptist University, Amarillo College and First Baptist Church, was formed to bring this complex work to Amarillo.
The Missa Solemnis Alliance attracted the largest number of performers assembled on the stage of the Globe News Center. “From the Heart: The Making of Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis in the Texas Panhandle” details conversations with influencers and musicians recalling the lead up to the performance. The program goes behind the scenes as an alliance of arts organizations join voices for this monumental undertaking – five years in the making.
“I am so pleased that the Missa Solemnis production is captured not only because of its artistic quality but for historic record,” says Kevin Ball, CEO of Panhandle PBS. "This massive production may never be produced again in the Panhandle in a generation but our 2022 concert will be available forever. Panhandle PBS is very proud to have been a part of the alliance that serves our entire community.”
For more information about “Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis in the Texas Panhandle,” “From the Heart: The Making of Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis in the Texas Panhandle,” or to obtain your own copy, call (806)371-5479.
