Few musicians have proved as charismatic as Leonard Bernstein. He broke down the boundaries between ‘serious’ classical music and ‘entertaining’ popular music, and few others were able to connect with people of all generations in the way he did. His entire output promoted the philosophy of living together in love, rather than withantagonism and hatred. Many of these attributes are evident in his Mass, which was first performed in 1971. In order to understand this unusual work, it is crucial to view it not as a standard mass composition, but as “a theatrical piece with the title ‘Mass’”, as Bernstein described it. It is perhaps the most daring interpretation ever of the liturgical genre.