SITE RATING: 7/10
SITE REVIEW:
Direct
Source, the label which continually repackages this release under
various guises, has managed to slip out a very good choral highlights
disc of Messiah; one which gathers most, if not all of the choruses,
and with a fine, exuberant choir as well. There are no notes
as to specifics, so while the package lists The Tallin Choir and
Festival Chamber Orchestra as the players, no other information is
given as to the conductor, recording dates, places, or any of the
various soloists who pop up from time to time during the performance.
I shall suffer their anonymity, but wish I could give credit
where credit is due. This is a uniformly strong performance,
although sonically, its not as cleanly defined as I might wish -
there's a bit of a wash to the sound which keeps fine details from
being heard. But tempos are energetic, the players and singers
are well up to the task of being unified under their anonymous
director, and I enjoyed the performance far more than I expected.
I purchased this particular CD as part of a CD/DVD set which
marries the Messiah CD with
an 85-minute long DVD biography on the life of Pope John Paul II, which
might interest some; also included, for the Catholic audience, were a
set of "prayer cards" and bonus footage on the DVD of a Mass conducted
in Latin (?). For those who wish to hear this performance without
the Catholic accouterments, either of the other two releases features
the exact same track line-up, without the additional materials.
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