The appearance of the Messe Saint-Cécile caused a kind of shock. This simplicity, this grandeur, this serene light which rose before the musical world like a breaking dawn, troubled people enormously. . . . at first one was dazzled, then charmed, then conquered. So wrote Camille Saint-Saëns after he...

The appearance of the Messe Saint-Cécile caused a kind of shock. This simplicity, this grandeur, this serene light which rose before the musical world like a breaking dawn, troubled people enormously. . . . at first one was dazzled, then charmed, then conquered. So wrote Camille Saint-Saëns after hearing the premiere of Gounod's 'Messe solennelle en l'honneur de Sainte-Cécile' on St Cecilia's day, 22 November 1855. Classic Edition Peters Vocal Score edited by Roland Erben. Contains a piano reduction of the orchestral accompaniment.