1st April 2025, Mannheimer Morgen
“When, after the noise of war with drums and trumpets, the final plea for peace, “dona pace,” has faded away in the Musensaal, it is time to return to the present. For Ludwig van Beethoven’s “Missa Solemnis,” which he himself described as his greatest work, seems not entirely of this world. It at least reaches the limits of what is comprehensible and what is possible…
A striking highlight, Francis interprets [Beethoven’s Missa Solemis] calmly yet with transparent lucidity. The orchestra thanks him with finely crafted solo passages in the woodwind and brass.”
