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Reviews (15)

A wonderful tribute to the artist
This CD is perfect in my opinion. The recording is perfect, the pitch is perfect, the tempo is perfect, and the track selections are perfect. I think the album samples Beethoven's most remarkable pieces of work from his early years to his death. I have heard many recordings of the Ninth symphony that was just executed poorly; which is a shame because it is such a powerful piece. However, this album does it superbly. Sir Georg Solti and Murray Perahia did an amazing job with this album.
Very emotional and moving!!
I am a big fan of classical music. Beethoven, in my opinion, was one of thebest composers, Mozart 1st, Beethoven 2nd, etc. This album is very moving and filled with emotion. I am currently listening to Adagio Cantabile-from Piano Sonata No. 8-from the film album. This piece is so moving and emotional. Another piece was Moonlight Sonata which I especially liked. Beethoven loads this piece with love and emotion for his one true love. In my opinion, Beethoven was the best at writing emotional and moving music. Whenever I listen to his music, I am immersed in a world of emotion and feeling. His music is truly beautiful. Back to the album, Sir Georg Solti really captured Beethoven's genius and devotion to his music in this album. This album really accents the film. You cannot have one, you must have both the film and the soundtrack. This is a must have for classical music/Beethoven fanatics and people who want to get a great summary of Beethoven's genius. BUY THIS!!!!

good listen, but needs work
This is good background music, but can't be held up to the higher standards set by the Backstreet Boys or maybe New Kids On the Block. I really think this Beethoven guy has potential, but I'll wait for his next album release before holding my breath. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Bagatelle for Keyboard    2. Chamber    3. Choral    4. Classical    5. Classical Soundtrack/Score    6. Concerto    7. Keyboard    8. Mass    9. Piano Concerto    10. Romantic Sonata/Sonatina for Keyboard    11. Romantic Symphony    12. Soundtrack    13. Soundtracks    14. Soundtracks & Film Scores    15. Symphonic    16. Trio for Keyboard and Two String Instruments    17. Violin Concerto    18. Violin with Keyboard   

Editorial Review

Resplendent in voice and manner, José Carreras, Placido Domingo,and Luciano Pavarotti deliver 21 songs of traditional sacred music and secularnumbers in a remarkable 1999 live recording from the opulent Viennese concerthall (Konzerthaus), with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra and a renowned choir. The Three Tenors are practically as famous as the faces of Mount Rushmore and inspire perhaps even more awe and adulation around the world than the four presidents. The performances--whether alone, in tandem, or simply as the threesome that has made them collectively famous--are generally impeccable for their passion, nuance, and sheer tour de force vocal artistry. Reaching often into the classical realm for such works as the traditional German carol "Susani," Strauss's and Brahms's "Wiegenlied," plus traditional Polish and Spanish pieces, the trio also visits Pavarotti's "Ave Maria, dolce Maria" (cowritten with Vittoriano Benvenuti), and "Un nuevo siglo," written by Domingo's son. Only John Lennon and Yoko Ono's "Happy Christmas/War Is Over" doesn't quite work in this grand setting. Read more

Reviews (21)

Wonderfully Different & Addicting! And All Your Friends Will Be Calling HOO-HOO!
First, let me state I don't listen to opera singers that much; thus, don't expect a hypercritical review here. (Really, is there ANY field of music that has more hypercritics than opera?) I got this CD simply because Columbia House had it on sale for $2.99, and I wanted some new Christmas CDs.
Wonderful and funny compilation
The Three Tenors are, of course, wonderful to listen to.This is also a funny CD.When they sing the more modern songs (Happy Christmas by John Lennon and Yoko Ono, for example) they have trouble keeping up with the pace of the song.They almost sound like they're tripping over the syllables, because as opera singers they are more accustomed to long, drawn out vowels, not fast ones.This doesn't hurt the song at all, it makes it more interesting to listen to.It's a great CD.I would recommend this as an addition to any collection of Christmas music.

A historical meeting...
Although several labels already had Christmas albums of the three tenors in their catalogue, the three maestros never actually trioed on these releases. When Pl�cido Domingo and the "Christmas in Vienna" team started preparing the eighth concert in the series (six predecessors were captured by Sony, and one, titled "Celebration of Christmas" issued by Erato-Warner), they made a monumental decision: Re-uniting three of the greatest voices of the current music business.
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Subjects:  1. Christmas    2. Christmas / Chanukkah    3. Christmas Music    4. Classical    5. Classical Crossover    6. Miscellaneous    7. Miscellaneous Music    8. Miscellaneous Vocal Music    9. Opera    10. Romantic Music for Voice and Keyboard    11. Solo Voice(s) and Orchestra    12. Solo Voice(s) and Small Ensemble    13. Vocal    14. Vocal Music    15. Xmas Classical Vocal   

Editorial Review

This commemorative reissue of music from Read more

Features

• Original recording reissued
• Original recording remastered
• Soundtrack

Reviews (30)

whoa.
"Atmospheres" was enough to make me buy this album. just try to imagine what eternity might sound like. okay, now you know exactly what Atmospheres is. wow. who else could having captured the feelings that are in this score? this is above talented. this is above genius. this is above avand garde. this is too good to be labeled as anything at all.

Great Music for Halloween, very creepy
I bought this CD to use for a haunted house program, the music will creep you out.

Bleakest of Futures...
The atonal, unsettling atmosphere of much of the music of Ligeti is fitting to the bleak vision of a human future reigned by nothing but cold technology and of humans drained of emotions except for the deepest animalist fear originating from our inner reptilian brainparts which have not changed for over millions of years. The incongruity of Johann Strauss' lovely 'An der sch�nen blauen Donau' with the cold technicality of spacefaring as depicted here could not be more complete, but what a perfect find on Stanley Kubrick's part! It makes the uneasiness and confusion even greater. And then, to top it of, the complete and flabbergasting irony of using Richard Strauss' Fanfare for the 'rise of Man' in his 'Also Sprach Zarathustra': what a great destiny for 'Man' indeed, this bleakest of bleak visions of the future!
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Subjects:  1. 20th/21st Century Ballet    2. 20th/21st Century Orchestral Work with Descriptive Title    3. Ballet    4. Choral    5. Miscellaneous    6. Miscellaneous Music    7. Orchestral    8. Original Score    9. Pop    10. Requiem/Requiem Section    11. Romantic Tone Poem/Symphonic Poem for Orchestra    12. Solo Voice(s) and Small Ensemble    13. Soundtrack    14. Soundtracks & Film Scores    15. Vocal    16. Waltz for Orchestra   

Editorial Review

Beyond this recording's new age packaging and title is a splendid sampling of some of the world's finest choral music, sung by one of the world's outstanding choirs. This "anthology of sacred choral music" spans 400 years and includes such masterpieces as Allegri's Read more

Reviews (25)

Wow!
I'm a long-time listener of all things rock-'n-roll, from Classic rock, to Alternative, and even a little Metal.I first heard this CD while having dinner at a friends house a long time ago, and I loved it.I've always been enchanted with choir music, so I bought this CD.Well, after years of listening to it to help me to unwind in the evening, I somehow misplaced it.So I came to Amazon to order both I and II.Of the two CD's, the first one is still the best, and it still helps me to relax after a long day.The choir show tremendous range in their singing, the assorted instruments are well-played, and I can almost imagine myself sitting in a centuries-old cathedral, enjoying the music and how it rings throughout the cathedral.
Profound sublimity
This album offers music that is profoundly moving and sumbline. It takes the listener onto an inner journal of extraordinary emotional depths and heights

Beautiful music
The first song I've heard on this CD is "Miserere Mei..." and I loved it the first minute. I've heard it from a friend who likes classical, and I would've never bought this on my own.
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Subjects:  1. Anthem    2. Cantata    3. Choral    4. Choral Music    5. Classical    6. Classical Collections-Artist Desc.    7. Classical Music    8. Classical Vocals    9. Hymn    10. Mass Section    11. Motet    12. Orchestral    13. Psalm Setting    14. Renaissance Mass    15. Requiem/Requiem Section    16. Romantic Variations for Orchestra    17. Sacred Choral Music a cappella    18. Sacred Music for more than one Soloist & Chorus   

Editorial Review

Between 1961 and 1986, Herbert von Karajan made three recordings of the Mozart Read more

Reviews (17)

More Intense than Marriner
If, like me, you're trying to find a definitive version of Requiem, you'll soon come across this and Marriner's excellent recording.They both have their merits, and you can't easily go wrong with either.
I love Mozart!!
Much like another one of the reviewers of this, I am under the age of 30.This CD is a delight to listen to.Yet another one of Mozart's works of pure art.I also enjoy the 1st movement of his Concerto for Clarinet and orchestra.

Wonderful music poorly done
I have loved Mozart's Requiem mass for years, but the more I listen to this recording the more I wince at the flaws.There are just SO MANY ragged and late entrances.I cringe every time the beginning of the "Dies Irae" comes on.The soloists are excellent, but there are parts of this recording that make me think they must have forgotten to tell the choir that they were supposed to LOOK at the conductor.Also, the sound quality leaves something to be desired.
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Subjects:  1. Choral    2. Classical    3. Classical Composers    4. Classical Music    5. Requiem/Requiem Section   

Reviews (1)

Best of the best
There's something for every Tchaikovsky lover on this disc. From Swan Lake to Onegin, many of Tchaikovsky's most-known melodies are on this disc. I'd have preferred more than an excerpt of the first movement of Piano Concerto No. 1, but this disc is a great introduction to Tchaikovsky's works. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Ballet    2. Chamber    3. Choral    4. Classical    5. Classical Composers    6. Classical Music    7. Coll. of Character/Single-Movement/Misc. Works for Keyb.    8. Concerto    9. Keyboard    10. March for Orchestra    11. Mass    12. Opera    13. Orchestral    14. Orchestral & Symphonic    15. Piano Concerto    16. Quartet for Four String Instruments    17. Romantic Ballet    18. Romantic Music for Voice and Keyboard    19. Romantic Orchestral Music    20. Romantic Overture for Orchestra   

Editorial Review

Robert Shaw learned from Arturo Toscanini, and in his stupendous 1987 recording for Telarc he managed to surpass the master on some points. He is unerring in his pacing and staging of climaxes, and draws phrasing and dynamics from the chorus that other conductors can only dream of. Points are made with exhilarating effect throughout the account: never has the bass drum in the Dies irae been as splendidly hammered as here, and the whooping brass in the Tuba mirum is breathtaking. The all-American solo quartet sounds a bit driven, especially the light-voiced Susan Dunn and Jerry Hadley, but their contribution is a strong one nonetheless. Read more

Reviews (7)

Superb
I don't have anything to add to the excellent reviews, I just want to chime in with my vote. This was rated as the top recording of this piece when I bought it on recomendation of a tenor friend back in 1990 or so and it is probably the best sustained operatic performace I have found thus far. The power and the majesty of this piece needs to be heard to be believed. So... Buy it, make sure the neighbors are out, turn the lights out, it in your best listening spot, turn up the volume and press play.
Brings back memories
How could I possibly top the splendid review by Dominic Grant below? And his later graceful apology for a mere typo? Well, I just cannot. But I'd like to share my own thoughts, anyway.
Apologies to Puccini.
Further to my review of the 18th of June below,it's just been brought to my attention by a kind reader that I have inadvertently ascribed the composition of the famous aria,"Nessun Dorma" from Turandot to Verdi himself.First of all,my sincere apologies to Puccini (probably still revolving in his grave !),and my apologies to you for grossly offending your musical sensibilities as you pass this way.That will teach me to spend a little longer editing my reviews before submitting them ! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Choral    2. Classical    3. Classical Composers    4. Classical Music    5. Italian Romantic Opera    6. Opera    7. Orchestral & Symphonic    8. Requiem/Requiem Section   

Editorial Review

Neville Marriner's 1976 account of the Covent Garden version of the score (1743), with the Academy and Chorus ofSt. Martin-in-the-Fields and soloists Elly Ameling, Anna Reynolds, Philip Langridge, and Gwynne Howell, is positively plush-sounding but nicely animated. I'd love to have this kind of string tone for, say, the Dvorák Read more

Reviews (15)

LONDON VERSION OF 1743 (Early score)
This is not your usual Messaih. It is the first London version of 1743.Therefore several numbers are markedly different from the more familiar versions usually performed today and almost incised upon our memories and minds.There are cuts, additions and scorings for different voices.The Bass air no. 6 lacks the alto section.The usual duet no. 20 for Alto and Soprano, ( He shall feed his flock) is here only as an Alto aria, etc.There are many other variations and cuts and additions with respect to the usual presently performed versions. For my tastes the Solti recording with the Chicago Orchestra and chorus with the exception of the slightly harsh voice of the Alto Gjevang is preferable for modern tastes.I would recommended this recording if you are interested in this early version.

Probably the Finest Messiah Recording
First of all, what the other online reviewers here fail to realize is that this is Handel's 1743 Covent Garden premiere Messiah score , NOT the "final" version. So, those looking for the familiar choruses, solos, etc. will be very disappointed and should probably seek another recording.
Neville Marriner's first and best MESSIAH recording
Neville Marriner's first recording of MESSIAH, recorded in 1976, is without a doubt his best recording of the work.Marriner recorded Handel's most famous oratorio with his Academy of St. Martin in the Fields for Decca, and it is not to be confused with a later German language version from Munich for EMI, or a 1992 live concert (Philips) with soloists who were not on the level of the 1976 Decca recording.
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Subjects:  1. Choral    2. Christmas / Chanukkah    3. Christmas Music    4. Classical    5. Oratorio    6. Xmas Classical Vocal   

Editorial Review

The bad news is that this is Anonymous 4's final recording. The good news is that it's one of their best. Aside from a pair of brief 9th-century chants that flank the main program, the disc focuses on the music of Hildegard von Bingen, the 12th-century Benedictine nun whose liturgical works broke new ground in their visionary texts, rich imagery, and melodic range. The selections here relate to themes associated with the Holy Spirit--the fire of creation, wisdom, the life-giving spirit, and love. The imagery of Hildegard's visionary texts is replete with references to the basic elements--air, earth, fire, and water. The results are boldly original, at least within the restricted confines of chant, which offer compelling listening experiences as performed in the lustrous tones of Anonymous 4. The program includes a pair of Hildegard's most-rhapsodic extended visionary pieces, the consoling "O spirit of fire, bringer of comfort," and "I am the great and fiery power," whose soaring opening musical lines still can shock. Harmonia Mundi, as usual, captures the purity of Anonymous 4's singing in vivid sonics and provides deluxe production values, including a profusely illustrated booklet, with full texts and translations.Read more

Reviews (3)

My humble opinion.....
I gave this CD an above average rating. I did so because this is the 3rd CD that I have purchased from Anonymous 4 and to be quite honest they all sound the same to me. I personally feel that the style of Hildegard is heavy, crisp, intentional and complicated. It is unique compared to other styles of anicent choral music. Anonymous 4 has a very light, airy almost contemporary feel to whatever they sing. In the CD insert Anonymous 4 goes on to express how they prepared to sing the medeival music in latin with a German accent because that is where Hildegard was from, and that this is how she would have sung her music. But honestly I don't think one can tell. Like I said, this is my third CD from them and they all sound the same. Don't get me wrong ladies. You 4 have gorgeous voices but I have found that the albums by Sequentia that sing in Hildegard's von Bingen tradition to be more authentic. I recommend to those interested to try Chanticles of Extasy by Sequentia or any of Sequentia's albums. You'll understand what I mean after you compare them for yourselves.

Completely beautiful
This musical is relaxing uplifting, simple yet complicated.A total mental experience filled with beauty.

The Origins of Fire: Music and Visions of Hildegard von Bingen
If you enjoy the music of Anonymous 4, you'll be thouroughly impressed with this presentation of Hildegard's music to God. Excellent is not enough praise for this interpretation. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Antiphon    2. Choral    3. Choral Music    4. Classical    5. Classical Composers    6. Early Music / Chant    7. Hymn    8. Response    9. Sacred Choral Music    10. Western European Chant   

Reviews (12)

Disappointing
When you buy a CD like this, the one thing you expect of the artist is to nail the intro to Toccata and Fugue In D Minor, Bach's great masterwork and the lead piece on the CD.Unfortunately, the organist plays the intro robotically, truncating notes and overextending pauses.He rushes some passages so badly in the intro that one cannot distinguish the melodic line.Toccata and Fugue In D Minor is so musically advanced that it sounds modern even today, but you miss that with this recording.

This album belongs amongst the first four or five in every Bach collection.
What to say about these extraordinary works?
Never a dull moment in this Bach recording.....
Peter Hurford is perhaps one of the foremost organists of his time.He has not only studied music but law as well, giving a scholarly twist on his education.I have always been pleased by his interpretations of Bach. They are no-nonsense, with strict tempos, clean, accurate passages, and registrations which are very lush and vibrant.For the new fan of Bach, there is no better place to start, as this set contains all of the "big" organ pieces for which Bach became legendary, as well as a few well-known chorale preludes.For those who wish to explore Bach's organ contributions in more detail, buy Hurford's complete Bach recordings (Although I believe it is out of print or very hard to obtain, as I have not yet found one). If this is the case, buy Marie-Claire Alain's version on Erato.No two organists understand Bach better. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Chorale Prelude or Chorale Treatment for Keyboard    2. Classical    3. Classical Composers    4. Classical Music    5. Keyboard    6. Keyboard Work Entitled "Piece" or "Stück"    7. Music for Organ    8. Passacaglia/Passacaglia and Fugue for Keyboard   

Editorial Review

In this beautifully chosen program of mostly a cappella arrangements, Robert Shaw and the Robert ShawChamber Singers deliver the Christmas story in tones of gentle andmoving splendor. The carols and sacred settings recorded here are allof an intimate sort, and the rapturous, gently expressive realizationsShaw and his singers give them prove unfailingly appealing.Particularly moving is the newest work on the disc, a setting of "O magnum mysterium" by the American composer Morten Lauridsen. Franz Biebl's"Ave Maria" is another gem, as is the arrangement by Healy Willan ofthe French carol "What Is This Lovely Fragrance?" The offering includesa pair of chorales from Bach's Read more

Reviews (13)

a perfect Ceremony of Carols!
This is the finest recording of Britten's A Ceremony of Carols I've ever come across, and there are plenty of versions to choose from. The King's College Choir rendition suffers from overstuffed acoustics, a constant with that choir, and their recording of Ceremony of Carols falls short in the requisite rhythmic clarity and intensity. The Christ Church, Oxford version is plodding, and lacks sparkle. Harry Christopher's The Sixteen come close, with marvelous sonics and ecstatic diction, but fall apart in the exacting 'This Little Babe' round with uneven cohesion, and strange stressed notes that ruin the waterfall effect so felicitously construed by Britten. I've not heard Britten's own conducted version, but he scrupulously insisted on boy trebles, and it's difficult if not impossible to conjure a more perfect rendering than the one given here by Shaw and his Chamber Singers. 'This Little Babe' is incomparable in each and all of its rapid fire contours, which is no mean feat. Mezzo-soprano Nanette Soles deserves special mention for incandescent singing on 'That Younge Child". The luminous pacing of 'There is no rose of such virtue' is notable, and to his credit Shaw employs the ecclesiastical pronunciation of the various Latin passages, unlike The Sixteen (and most other English choir recordings of this piece) who insist on an idiomatic British pronunciation of Latin, which offers nothing but distraction. Some will prefer boy treble singers, an attractive option, but for high musical values and the art they inevitably enshrine, it's impossible to be disappointed with this profoundly wrought version of Ceremony of Carols. Bach's 'Break Forth, O beauteous heavenly light' is just right, and I'd not heard 'Heavenly Light' by Aleksandr Kopylov; both are favorable additions to an excellent recording. Recommended.

Brilliant compilation
This is an absolutely outstanding collection of carols - some of them well-known, some of them obscure. As a choral singer, I've had the pleasure of singing many of these pieces, and I was delighted when I found them all in one place, and done by an ensemble so accomplished as the Robert Shaw Chamber Singers! It just isn't Christmas for me without this recording.

Didn't care for it that much
I prefer to hear the voices and the words of the carols, and this one has too much other sound (maybe even the use of massed voices); I have a hard time hearing what they are singing. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Arranger    2. Choral    3. Choral Music    4. Christmas    5. Christmas / Chanukkah    6. Christmas Music    7. Classical    8. Conductor    9. Easy Pop    10. Hymn    11. Lullaby    12. Mass Section    13. Miscellaneous    14. Miscellaneous Music    15. Oratorio    16. Part Song/Glee/Music for Unaccompanied Voices    17. Sacred Choral Music    18. Vocal    19. Vocal Music    20. Xmas Classical Vocal   

Reviews (7)

The heavens are telling
This is a very great chorus, and one of Haydn's best as far as i am concerned. The pace, grandness and spirit of the piece all conjure in one's imagination the majesty of heaven, and God's throne. I cannot help but be moved to praise the God of the heavens and the earth.
Uncle Abe rattles the house with this thing
I came home from work one day when my uncle was visiting my wife and myself.He was recently retired from the ministry.He had heard a lot of choral music in his life.My aunt said he had the stereo ( power end of my stereo at the time was an Adcomm 555 amp. conservatively rated at 200 watts RMS per channel)up so loud it was rattling the whole house.I too have come to love this music.I mostly listen to rock and roll; butthe way my uncle, and now I, play this thing, it is rock and roll from another era!!!

Sir Robert with ASO and Chorus at their Best!
After Mr Shaw spent many years in NYC and Cleveland with RCA Red Label,he came into Atlanta for a big change! Soon he switched to TELARC DIGITAL! I still Joyfully remember our Recording of the Christmas Nativity in Dec of 1975! Sir Robert, conducting with earphones encasing his head shouted: "Stop the taping, there is some Darn Sizzling noise in those Lights!" We may have not heard the word "Damn" lights, that he employed at times! Read more

Subjects:  1. Choral    2. Classical    3. Classical Artists    4. Classical Music    5. Mass    6. Motet    7. Oratorio    8. Orchestral & Symphonic    9. Passion    10. Requiem/Requiem Section    11. Sacred Music for more than one Soloist & Chorus   

Editorial Review

Samuel Barber's Read more

Reviews (41)

An American Icon of Classical Music
If you only listen to one classical song in your life hark Adagio for Strings.

I'll have a number 4 when you bury me, please!
LOVE this music. It moves me. Plucks strings I did not know ran through my soul. Makes me feel the sadness of loss but keeps alive the hope of new doors to be opened, more life to experience.
The BEST
This is the very same "song" done about ten diffent ways, and every one of them is fantastic.If you like ANYTHING about classical music, you should buy this CD. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Chamber Music & Recitals    2. Choral    3. Classical    4. Classical Composers    5. Classical Music    6. Mass Section    7. Orchestral    8. Transcription for Orchestra   

Subjects:  1. Chamber Music & Recitals    2. Classical    3. Classical Artists   

Reviews (2)

THE BEST recording of the BEST oratorio ever...
Okay, I'm gonna admit I'm biased- I first sung in the chorus of Elijah when I was 14 and it made a BIG impression on me!
Too bad there are so few recordings of Elijah
This is a good recording of an oratorio that deserves more attention. The chorus and soloists are very good--I just wish Fischer-Diskau wouldn't slide around so much in singing the title part! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Choral    2. Classical    3. Classical Composers    4. Oratorio    5. Orchestral & Symphonic   

Reviews (6)

Why mess with the words?
Robert Shaw certainly is the choral master and this powerful story is well "acted" by soloists and chorus.That said, I don't understand why Shaw changed the words in so many places.He wasn't updating King James English (i.e., the verbs still end in "eth"); there's a bit of generic "they" instead of "men" but that isn't consistent."Baal, we cry to thee" becomes "Ba-al, answer us.""Draw near" becomes "O come."In some places it just loses the poetry and becomes flat prose - for no obvious reason.Or he substitutes another verse of Scripture!The cd notes include nothing from Shaw himself so it's a mystery.I sang along with my old score and, frankly, some of his changes don't flow nearly as well as the older versions -- or maybe I'm just being picky! Very excellent, especially the choral work
Having sung in this oratorio many times (both the contralto, and the soprano solo parts) I was very familiar with the work. What hit me first in this recording was the WORDS were not the same as those I had sung so many times. It was sort of a jolt. Instantly, that made me wonder what was going on, after all, didn't Mendelssohn write this oratorio in English. Well, he did, but it was an English translation of the German libretto which came from the German translation of the Bible. We were all used to those words, and they have taken on special meaning. There have even been recordings of the past that gave the scriptural cross references to those lines. Well, what has happened here is the conductor and others have actually gone back to those scriptural references and made sure the words sung are those found in our King James Version of the Bible. Good choral technique, weak on prophetic message
If you like choral technique, then buy this one. Robert Shaw is the unquestioned master in that regard. If you want something to capture the essence of the biblical story, you would do well to find another. Shaw himself once said that Mendelssohn had maybe become "too Christian" with the obvious messianic implications at the end. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Choral    2. Classical    3. Classical Composers    4. Classical Music    5. Oratorio   

Reviews (6)

MENDELSSOHN'S 48
Bach's 48 preludes and fugues seem to me to be to some extent a diary of the composer's feelings, and I get much the same impression from Mendelssohn's Songs Without Words, which are also 48 in number. To me, they are beautiful and touching minor masterpieces and when I hear them I am not disturbed, or even visited, by the thought that they are not masterpieces to rank with Bach's. However I am not as exacting in evaluating a performance of them as I would be with Bach either, and when I willingly award this set 5 stars I know that I'm setting the bar lower. There are limits to what any interpreter, even the greatest, of the Songs Without Words can find in them, but for all that some interpreters are greater than others, and I happen to know even better accounts of some of these pieces than you will find on these two discs from Barenboim.
Portraits at exhibition!
In contrast to many other musicians, Mendelssohn had an evident, fruitful and fortunate association with the visual arts. Keeping in mind his education was conceived as part of the Renascence