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SITE RATING:  3/10 SITE REVIEW:  Claudio Scimone's 1989 Messiah seems neither fish nor fowl, with singers who all appear to be over-emoting, tempos that are often far too brisk, and a frenetic feel that makes this one of the more unsettled Messiahs to be available.  Of the soloists, Scimone has chosen from the world of opera, with wide vibratos and powerful (even overpowering) projections.  I enjoyed tenor Bruce Ford most of all of them - he has a lovely tone and maintains the least amount of vibrato of all the soloists; the Ambrosian Chorus isn't as effective here as on other recordings they've appeared on, with occasional over-singing and disunity; and the I Solisti Veniti orchestra plays admirably, with the caveat that under Scimone's highly idiosyncratic direction, they sound much worse than may be their due.  Scimone's tempos are all over the map - he often departs from a set tempo entirely, which in the right hands, can be an effective dramatic touch, but here, it simply sounds like a Messiah with a severe personality disorder. Scimone races, and jumps, and changes course too often, and with too little motivation, creating an effect simply for the effect's sake, rather than for textual or musical reasons.  The overall effect is of a heightened nervous compulsion, making this one of the least appealing Messiahs to be on the market.

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