San Francisco Symphony Podcasts

Ottorino Respighi was a master of orchestral color, and his Roman Festivals contains all the colors of the musical rainbow, and then some.

Beethoven's opera Fidelio is a story about the triumph of truth and justice. But it's also a story about the triumph of love.

To set about composing his Missa Solemnis, Beethoven looked to the past. He obtained a copy of the score to J.S. Bach’s B Minor Mass, at that time still unpublished, and also studied the sacred music of C.P.E. Bach. After countless sketches and spiritual preparation, Beethoven composed this work for large orchestra and chorus, dedicating more time to it than to any other work he composed. Written simultaneously with the Symphony No. 9, the Missa Solemnis is considered one of the most significant mass settings in classical music.