RECORDINGS

LABEL: CARLTON CLASSICS
CATALOG NUMBER: 30366 00887
UPC NUMBER: 5030366008872
NUMBER OF DISCS: 2
RUNNING TIME: 72:46, 74:41
YEAR RECORDED: 1992
CD RELEASE DATE: FEBRUARY 23, 1999
CONDUCTOR: MARK BROWN
ORCHESTRA: GIOIA DELLA MUSICA PRAHA
CHOIR: BRENSKY AKADEMICKY SBOR
SOPRANO: RUTH HOLTON
MEZZO-SOPRANO: VANESSA WILLIAMSON
TENOR: JAMES GRIFFETT
BASS-BARITONE: LAWRENCE ALBERT
AUDIO SAMPLES HIGHLIGHTS OTHER RELEASES

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DISC ONE

1. Overture     01:45
2. "Comfort Ye My People"     01:45
3. "Every Valley Shall Be Exaulted"     03:55
4. "And The Glory Of The Lord"     00:39
5. "Thus Saith The Lord"     02:41
6. "But Who May Abide The Day Of His Coming?"     01:47
7. "And He Shall Purify"     01:26
8. "Behold, A Virgin Shall Conceive"     00:
9. "O Thou That Tellest"     03:18
10. "For Behold, Darkness"     01:54
11. "The People That Walked In Darkness"     03:18
12. "For Unto Us A Child Is Born"     01:15
13. Pastoral Symphony/ "There Were Shepherds"     02:20
14. "And Suddenly There Was With The Angel/ Glory To God     01:08
15. "Rejoice Greatly, O Daughter Of Zion!"     02:48
16. "Then Shall The Eyes Of The Blind"     00:
17. "He Shall Feed His Flock"     02:35
18. "His Yoke Is Easy, And His Burthen Is Light"     03:51
19. "Behold The Lamb Of God"     06:17
20. "He Was Despised And Rejected"     02:09
 DISC TWO

1. "Surely He Hath Borne Our Griefs"     01:45
2. "And With His Stripes We Are Healed"     01:45
3. "All We Like Sheep Have Gone Astray"     03:55
4. "All They That See Him"     00:39
5. "He Trusted In God"     02:41
6. "Thy Rebuke Hath Broken His Heart"     01:47
7. "Behold, And See If There Be Any Sorrow"     01:26
8. "He Was Cut Off Out Of The Land/ But Thou Didst Not Leave His Soul"     02:40
9. "Lift Up Your Heads, O Ye Gates"     03:18
10. "Unto Which Of The Angels/ Let All The Angels"     01:54
11. "Thou Art Gone Up On High"     03:18
12. "The Lord Gave The Word"     01:15
13. "How Beautiful Are The Feet"     02:20
14. "Their Sound Is Gone Out"     01:08
15. "Why Do The Nations?"     02:48
16. "Let Us Break Their Bonds Asunder"     01:56
17. "He That Dwelleth In Heaven/ Thou Shalt Break Them"     02:35
18. "Hallelujah"     03:51
19. "I Know That My Redeemer Liveth"     06:17
20. "Since By Man Came Death"     02:09
21. "Behold, I Tell You A Mystery"     00:34
22. "The Trumpet Shall Sound"     08:57
23. "Then Shall Be Brought To Pass/ O Death, Where Is Thy Sting?"     03:57
24. "If God Be For Us"     04:48
25. "Worthy Is The Lamb That Was Slain"     03:22
26. "Amen"     03:23
SITE RATING:  7/10
SITE REVIEW:  Early-music singer Mark Brown put together this internationally flavored 1992 Messiah with generally good results, although it fails to stand out among the crowd of releases, and is, at this writing, out of print.  Utilizing a Czech orchestra and chorus, and soloists taken from the English Pro Cantione Antiqua vocal ensemble, this Messiah is certainly competent, but strangely uninvolving; Brown's tempos lack spark and shape, leaving the generally impressive Gioia della Musica Praha ensemble sailing without a rudder.  Among the soloists, soprano Ruth Holton gives an amazing performance, with a sheer white sound to her tone that's pure and treble-like in it's effect.  Bass Lawrence Albert has one of the most impressive ranges I've heard, powerful and rumbling on his bottom notes, but his overall tone left me cool.  Mezzo-soprano Vanessa Williamson has a richer tone, quite apart from Holton's, and tenor James Griffitt gives the least impressive performance here, sounding a bit under-rehearsed and thin in his upper register.  The Brensky Academy Choir sounds clean and gives an impressively clear-sounding English performance, hampered only by the tame, reigned-in baton of Mark Brown.   This album has enough strong points to warrant a recommendation, but is difficult to find, and given its overall flavorless direction, can be overlooked in favor of other recordings.
The Compleat Messiah All Content Copyright © 2010 Bret D. Wheadon
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