SITE RATING: 7/10
SITE REVIEW:
A bold, brash Messiah by
Valentin Radu and the forces of the Ama Deus Ensemble, and proclaiming
itself a performance of the 1749 London Covent Garden concert, this
recording has what sounds like a huge chip on its shoulder, with
violently aggressive soloists, tempos, and attacks that left me a
little bit breathless, and a little nonplussed, as well.
Radu's
interpretation of Messiah
will certainly be cause for discussion among Handellians, with his
idiosyncratic approach, which either takes the Baroque tradition to its
emotional extreme, or in another light, dismisses it entirely in favor
of an entirely new direction. Under Radu's direction, Messiah
is performed with a Beethovian fury; tenor David Price holds nothing
back in his sharp, biting entrance, and bass Kevin Deas seems ready to
meet him head-on with his aggressive, hard-bitten attack. The
Ama
Deus Choir takes the choruses and delivers sharp dynamics and odd
breaks in the line, which emphasizes certain words in ways that have
never been attempted before. After the opening salvo, it's a
small relief when Jennifer Lane begins the relatively quiet "But Who
May Abide" - but it's a short rest - Radu launches her into a
blistering second chorus. Everything is performed with a
clenched-teeth attitude that's fascinating to listen to, but ultimately
proves to be entirely the wrong approach to Messiah; Radu's
recording is more akin to Dante's Inferno
than the promise of salvation. I cannot fault the playing or
singing, although several times I believed David Price was merely
showing off his (impressive) vocal prowess rather than serving the
text. A defiantly stubborn, brutish take, which will
certainly
appeal to a certain segment of listeners.
|
