On the occasion of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, the theologian Christian Meißner wrote the libretto for the oratorio Wir sind Bettler ("We are Beggars"). The Italian-Argentine composer Daniel Pacitti gives the core messages of the Reformation a musical guise. Concerned about touching the heart and mind alike, Pacitti focused mainly on listener-friendliness, in deliberate contrast to other contemporary works. The result is a perfectly balanced mixture of different musical styles – from medieval chorales and traditional songs from the Reformation to the late Romanticism of Italian opera culture: a multi-layered and gripping drama with a happy ending. The present release is a valuable document of the world premiere and thus the world's first recording ever of Wir sind Bettler. With Roman Trekel in the role of Martin Luther and the Brandenburg State Orchestra Frankfurt under the baton of the composer himself, Daniel Pacitti, a high-quality reference recording of the work has been achieved.