About this edition
Composed in 1807 for Prince Nikolaus Esterházy II, Beethoven's Mass in C major, Op. 86 stands as one of the most pivotal and underappreciated sacred works of the early nineteenth century. Written in the shadow of Haydn's six late masses for the same patron, Beethoven crafted a deeply personal setting that emphasizes lyrical warmth, intimate devotion, and humane expression over liturgical grandeur — qualities that would later flower fully in the Missa Solemnis. Its remarkable opening Kyrie, scored in a glowing C major rather than the conventional minor, immediately announces a new spiritual idiom: one of trust and tenderness rather than supplication.
This printing reproduces the score from Ludwig van Beethovens Werke, Serie 19, No. 204, published by Breitkopf und Härtel in Leipzig (n.d. [1864]), plate B.204. The Breitkopf complete edition — the first comprehensive critical collection of Beethoven's works — was prepared in the 1860s and 1870s by an editorial team that included Brahms, Joachim, Nottebohm, and other leading scholars of the day. For more than a century it served as the standard scholarly text of Beethoven's music, and it remains a primary reference source for conductors, performers, and researchers studying the composer's output.
About this edition:
- Full orchestral score for soloists, chorus, and orchestra
- Page size: 8.5 x 11 inches, printed for clarity and ease of study
- Faithfully reproduced from the Breitkopf und Härtel Gesamtausgabe (1864)
- Reproduced from a public domain historical source
- Published by Purple 4R Publishing
This volume makes a landmark historical edition of Beethoven's first great sacred work available in an affordable, study-friendly format. We're delighted to bring this classic score — long in the public domain — back into the hands of conductors, choral directors, orchestral musicians, students, and scholars who continue to find new meaning in Beethoven's music.
