Run Time: Approx. 9 minutes

Missa Brevis was written in 1988 to commemorate the retirement of long-time Atlanta Symphony Music Director Robert Shaw. Shaw had founded the Atlanta Symphony Chorus in 1970 and by the time of his retirement, it had grown into a nationally acclaimed ensemble

True to its name, Missa Brevis is indeed brief, with some of its movements clocking in at under one minute. The mass follows the full liturgical Ordinary text, with the exception of the “Credo,” which Bernstein chose to omit.

Much of the music was repurposed from Bernstein’s incidental score for Lillian Hellman’s play The Lark, a retelling of Joan of Arc. Because of its subject matter, the music carries distinct medieval and renaissance-era influences. It is sometimes told that Robert Shaw, upon hearing the score, suggested to Bernstein that it might make a good short mass, but this story remains unsubstantiated.

Missa Brevis features a unique orchestration – for boy alto soloists, 6-part chorus, timpani and percussion. The influence of medieval plainchant is evident in the way the soloists interact with the rest of the chorus, yet the lively, sometimes punchy, off-kilter rhythms bear an obvious jazz influence, giving the work an energy that’s might fit into a Broadway musical as comfortably as it does the concert stage.