RECORDINGS

LABEL: DEUTSCHE HARMONIA MUNDI
CATALOG NUMBER: 72039
UPC NUMBER: 828767203928
NUMBER OF DISCS: 2
RUNNING TIME: 140:55
YEAR RECORDED: 2004
CD RELEASE DATE: NOVEMBER 1, 2005
CONDUCTOR: NIKOLAUS HARNONCOURT
ORCHESTRA: CONCENTUS MUSICUS WIEN
CHOIR: CONCENTUS MUSICUS WIEN
SOPRANO: CHRISTINE SCHÄFER
CONTRALTO: ANNA LARSSON
TENOR: MICHAEL SCHADE
BASS: GERALD FINLEY
AUDIO SAMPLES HIGHLIGHTS OTHER RELEASES
DISC ONE

1. Sinfonia: Grave - Allegro moderato
2. Comfort ye my people (Accompagnato)
3. Ev'ry valley shall be exalted (Air)
4. And the glory of the Lord (Chorus)
5. Thus sayth the Lord (Accompagnato)
6. But who may abide ( Air)
7. And He shall purify (Chorus)
8. O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion (Air)
9. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth (Accompagnato)
10. The people that walked in darkness (Air)
11. For unto us a child is born (Chorus)
12. Pifa
13. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them (Accompagnato)
14. And suddenly there was with the angel (Accompagnato)
15. Glory to God (Chorus)
16. Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion (Air)
17. He shall feed His flock (Duet)
18. His yoke is easy (Chorus)
19. Behold the Lamb of God (Chorus)
20. He was despised (Air)
DISC TWO

21. Surely He hath borne our griefs (Chorus)
22. And with His stripes we are healed (Chorus)
23. All we like sheep have gone astray (Chorus)
24. All they that see Him laugh Him to scorn (Accompagnato)
25. He trusted in God (Chorus)
26. Thy rebuke hath broken His heart (Accompagnato)
27. Behold, and see if there be any sorrow (Arioso)
28. He was cut off out of the land of the living (Accompagnato)
29. But Thou didst not leave His soul in hell (Air)
30. Lift up your heads, O ye gates (Chorus)
31. Let all the angels of God worship Him (Chorus)
32. Thou art gone up high (Air)
33. The Lord gave the word (Chorus)
34. How beautiful are the feet (Air)
35. Their sound is gone out (Chorus)
36. Why do the nations so furiously rage together? (Bass)
37. Let us break their bonds (Chorus)
38. Thou shalt break them (Air)
39. Hallelujah (Chorus)
40. I know that my Redeemer liveth (Air)
41. Since by man came death (Chorus)
42. Behold, I tell you a mystery (Accompagnato)
43. The trumpet shall sound (Air)
44. Then shall be brought to pass. O death where is thy sting (Recitative & Duet)
45. But thanks be to God (Chorus)    
46. If God be for us (Air)    
47. Worthy is the Lamb (Chorus)
SITE RATING:  7/10
SITE REVIEW:  I'm going to label this recording the "Ritalin Messiah" since Harnoncourt & Co. sound like they need nothing more than a good dose of medication to tone down this odd, ADHD-infected performance.  After listening to this, I can easily imagine all of the participants having chugged down a Red Bull energy drink before they hit the record button.  Everyone sounds wayyyyyy too happy and bouncy throughout, and Harnoncourt leads the oratorio with all of the enthusiasm of a sixteen-year-old being give the keys to his first car.  It's interesting to listen to, but a little unnerving as well.  I cannot fault any of the performers - they sing and play expertly, and the recorded sound is similarly excellent, with this recording having dual releases in standard CD and SACD formats.  It simply sounds as if everyone is bouncing off the walls - with chipper, fey readings of each movement.  The soloists are very good, Christine Schafer and Gerald Finley in particular giving lovely-toned performances which I found enchanting, except for the somewhat manic, wide-eyed approach which Harnoncourt demands of them.  Harnoncourt is well-known for his brilliant, idiosyncratic performances which he brings out, and here it's in full flower; you'll either love it or hate it, as for me, I'll give it a qualified recommendation - it certainly stands out from the crowd, even if it does so by jumping up and down trying to get our attention.
The Compleat Messiah All Content Copyright © 2009 Bret D. Wheadon
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