This first recording, from 1979, has a matchless team of soloists, and is in Muti’s most fiery manner. RCA has re-packaged (again) this Grammy-winning 1977 recording of Verdi's Requiem by Sir Georg Solti and the Chicago Symphony & Chorus.Under Solti it is as dramatic and stirring as any of Verdi's operas. As exciting as it is, Solti and the soloists still present a respect and understanding of the text as well, never quite overdoing the theatrics. Sure. It's hard not to relish Verdi's uniquely terrifying and theatrical take on the Requiem Mass; here are our thoughts on the finest recordings available. Several were recorded and, not surprisingly, they have an unusual intensity. One soon screens out the residual hiss and a surprising amount of detail emerges, even though the chorus in particular can seem distant and there is a bit of blare at climaxes. Tenor Roberto Alagna manages to find the right, but different, tones for his two wonderful solos, ‘Ingemisco’ and ‘Hostias’, and bass Julian Konstantinov, sounds menacing but avoids melodrama. 1,000,000th Hit: January 4, 2008. Wolfgang Mozart: Requiem in D Minor, K. 626 (1791) In all of sacred music, there are few works that rival the writing of Mozart’s immortal, incomplete Requiem: the mystery of the Introit, the fire of the Dies Irae, the brilliance of the Confutatis, and the majesty of the Rex Tremendae.Mozart’s work simply operates on a higher plane than any other examples in this genre. Yuri Temirkanov (conductor)C Major 728602. It significant that Verdi was able to rework music for the King in Act 5 of Don Carlo discarded from the original Paris première and include it in the Lacrimosa of the Requiem; the idiom is the same, full of yearning and regret. All episodes since 2010, listed alphabetically by composer surname. Verdi's Requiem Gramophone Thursday, April 24, 2014 Recommended recordings of Verdi's Messa da Requiem - his only masterpiece not intended for the stage. As exciting as it is, Solti and the soloists still present a respect and understanding of the text as well, never quite overdoing the theatrics. The latter may be my desert island choice despite the dim sound and operatic style. Click here to subscribe to BBC Music Magazine, reviews of the latest Verdi recordings here, 9 of the best contemporary female composers, Six of the best… classical works about Scotland. Serafin's 1939 recording with Gigli,Caniglia, Stignani and Pinza is a must-have, But you won't like these recordings either so that's all the classic performances ruled out. Only a genius could have written such a work’. The mezzo Daniela Barcellona, who has the lion’s share of the Dies irae, is on sumptuous form, with the Lacrymosa perfectly rounding off the complex emotions of the vast sequence. Best recording of Verdi's Messa da Requiem for headphones? Its first performance was in the inconspicuous church of San Marco in Milan. s) Buy from Amazon. Soprano Angela Gheorghiu sings the extremely difficult Libera me exquisitely, and murmurs the last words of the Requiem with appropriate terror. This competition is now closed. Verdi’s Requiem – The best recordings…. Arturo Toscanini (conductor)Music and Arts MACD1269. It makes soprano Renata Scotto’s final desperate plea to be delivered from eternal death all the more moving, and concludes what may not be the most comprehensive account, but possibly the most thrilling. As compiled by W. G. Busse's Verdi's Disco website, through January 2005 there have been 135 recordings of the Verdi Requiem.In sorting through them, a key gauge is that of timing. He is … There is, appropriately, a huge silence, a hush, when the music ends, and then of course the usual bowings and smilings: turn it off before they begin. Available on both DVD/Bluray and CD, it depends on whether you want to see it as well as listening to it. Price is simply magnificent but Karajan colludes with Cossotto (in a lovely black empire-line number) in letting her steal the show, as the two of them warm every line with intimate little touches: the ‘Recordare’ and ‘Lux aeterna’ are rapt highlights. The Dies Irae sounds particularly lethargic -- it's like God forgot about the apocalypse and took quaaludes beforehand. This isn't even close to the best recording, but the story of Rafael Schecter putting on performances of Verdi's Requiem while interned at Terezin during WW2 is just heart wrenching, and adds a different level of meaning for me. Register now to continue reading Thank you for visiting Gramophone and making use of our archive of more than 50,000 expert reviews, features, awards and blog articles. Gramophone is brought to you by Mark Allen Group Verdi Requiem discography. “I [reviewed] Temirkanov’s live 2009 recording [of the Verdi Requiem] and considered it good, if not first-class, but this latest live recording surpasses it by a considerable margin. His are readings that combine a positive view and interpretative integrity from start to finish, something possible only in the context of the... — Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010 More… Bülow soon handsomely repented. Of Georg Solti’s two recordings of the Verdi Requiem, I slightly prefer this later one, though I realize that this isn’t received wisdom. Such a debate is futile because there is no reason why a theatrical work shouldn’t also be religious, or vice-versa: JS Bach’s Passions are religious works with a strong, even violentdramatic/theatrical element and force. Riccardo Muti (conductor)Warner Classics 098 0202. What impresses most is the end of the work, where – with no authorisation from the score – he slows up for the final desperate shrieks of the chorus and soprano, giving the impression that we are hurtling down a vast tube to destruction. My recording is one of the few times I've disagreed with Karajan's view of a piece. About Mark Allen Group One might say, in a hopeless attempt to bring the dispute about Verdi’s Requiem to a close, that it is the converse of Bach’s masterpieces: a theatrical work which is also religious. 2) But the Telarc is by Robert Shaw who conducted my favorite recording of Verdi's Requiem. Trawling through them all, Richard Lawrence finds at least three very special Otellos, and some electric conducting. The Verdi Requiem – II. I'm looking for a good recording of Verdi's Requiem. Riccardo Muti may have conducted the Requiem more often than anyone, with widely varying results. Discover more music, concerts, videos, and pictures with the largest catalogue online at Last.fm. In his vision of this work, Henri-Georges Clouzot sees ranks of choristers – from heaven or hell – with Price and Cossotto framed by the sopranos’ hands and grey silk wraps beneath like angels’ wings, double basses angled heavenwards, Karajan’s quiff with a life of its own, his profile at home among all those Roman (and Milanese) noses. This is perhaps the fastest good performance on record at just under 73 minutes. Verdi Requiem have a great recording from Philips conducted by John Elliot Gardiner Cheers Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk RCA has re-packaged (again) this Grammy-winning 1977 recording of Verdi's Requiem by Sir Georg Solti and the Chicago Symphony & Chorus.Under Solti it is as dramatic and stirring as any of Verdi's operas. It would be absurd to give a list of great performances of the Requiem without including its greatest exponent. Yuri Temirkanov conducts a broad but tense account, and the soloists contrive to sing as part of the collaborative effort, rather than as stars, though two of them – mezzo Sonia Ganassi and tenor Francesco Meli – are certainly that. There's a miraculous clarity on this recording from 1971, and Karl Böhm's direction is first-rate. I have a number of Verdi Requiem recordings, but this one rates tied at … By entering your details, you are agreeing to Classical Music terms and conditions and privacy policy. Verdi’s reputation has undergone many rises and falls since the 1870s, but the Requiem has never been out of favour, and continues to be one of the most popular of religious works. Verdi was deeply by the death of the novelist Alessandro Manzoni in 1873. "ingemisco" performed by Luchetti is a stunning hi-lite, and I'm a bass-baritone! I have had this recording on 33-1/3 format for many years, but it has worn with use and years. Was it a period or modern performance? That is, he takes it way---tooo---s--ll---oooo---ww--l-yyyyyyyy (if you catch my drift). Already have an account with us? Perhaps the most powerful of all were the two performances given in Berlin’s Philharmonie under conductor Claudio Abbado, with the sombre grandeur of the Berlin Philharmonic (which we named one of the world’s best orchestras) at his disposal, three crack choirs, and soloists who, though famous, were not so familiar with the work as to impose their own ideas on it. Mono Recordings MusicWeb International p3 June 2018 steal. Save when you subscribe today and get your magazine + CD delivered direct to your door from the UK! Angela Gheorghiu (soprano), Daniela Barcellona (mezzo), Roberto Alagna (tenor) & Julian Konstantinov (bass) Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra & Swedish Radio Chorus, Claudio Abbado Even Toscanini might have given grudging approval. It's hard not to relish Verdi's uniquely terrifying and theatrical take on the Requiem Mass; here are our thoughts on the finest recordings available. This film of the Verdi Requiem was made under studio conditions, in an empty La Scala before a concert in 1967 in memory of Toscanini’s death a decade earlier. Much is made of how quickly or slowly certain conductors take the Requiem, but Böhm's is perhaps one of the most even-handed. He retained the Libera me from his first effort, though with considerable alterations, and Verdi finished his Requiem in April 1874. Read our reviews of the latest Verdi recordings here. Verdi:Requiem Leontyne Price (soprano), Rosalind Elias (mezzo-soprano), Jussi Björling (tenor), Giorgio Tozzi (bass) Wiener Philharmoniker, Singverein der Gesellscaft der Musikfreunde, Wien, Fritz Reiner on Decca and very close second: Verdi: Requiem Renata Scotto, Agnes Baltsa, Veriano Luchetti and Evgeny Nesterenko If you are a library, university or other organisation that would be interested in an institutional subscription to Gramophone please click here for further information. Caballe is in, still, good form (it all went downhill after that) and Domingo is also in great form. The quartet is a wonder to hear. The best recording of Fauré’s Requiem. Many may know De Sabata from his Tosca and Verdi Requiem recordings. There are quite a few recordings of Toscanini conducting the work, all live, but the finest is from New York’s Carnegie Hall in 1940. The Decca recording, after all, features Sutherland, Horne, Pavarotti, and Talvela as soloists, and while Sutherland arguably is not the right voice for the part, everyone else is … Toscanini ensures a performance that is always incandescent, and – importantly – he has Jussi Björling as the sublime tenor soloist. In no other performance that I have seen or heard has the comparison with Michelangelo’s Last Judgment in the Sistine Chapel seemed more appropriate, both in the quality and the quantity of fear and awe that it evokes. In this modest interpretation, faithful to the 1893 edition, Matthew Best commands an immaculate performance from the Corydon Singers. I discovered Verdi's Requiem through this recording, in vinyl, back in the eighties. I might want to get it along with one of the other two. Flora Willson recommends a recorded version of Verdi's Requiem. 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