Showcasing works from the preeminent composers of Western classical music, such as Schubert, Vivaldi and Bach, this recording is a compilation drawn from Robert Shaw's vast canon. Mr. Shaw, who recently died, was one of the most famous and recognized choral directors of modern day, and his association with the Atlanta Symphony and Chorus was a prolific one. These accompanied selections, on sacred and religious themes, are grand, dramatic and ornate. One of the most affecting is Beethoven's 'Missa Solemnis: Gloria,' which captures the intense emotion that heralded the beginning of the Romantic era.