Alfred Schnittke: Symphony No. 4 for Soloists, Choir & Chamber Orchestra / Requiem [Import]

Alfred Schnittke (Composer), Okko Kamu (Conductor), Stefan Parkman (Conductor), Stockholm Sinfonietta (Orchestra), Mikael Bellini (Performer), Lucia Negro (Performer), Uppsala Academic Chamber Choir (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Mikael Bellini, Lucia Negro, Uppsala Academic Chamber Choir
• Orchestra: Stockholm Sinfonietta
• Conductor: Okko Kamu, Stefan Parkman
• Composer: Alfred Schnittke
• Audio CD (June 23, 1993)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Bis
• ASIN: B0000016GT
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #253,965 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Symphony No. 4 for 2 soloists, piano, chamber chorus & chamber orchestra

2. Requiem, music to Schiller's drama 'Don Carlos', for soloists, mixed chorus & instrumental ensemble: Requiem

3. Requiem, music to Schiller's drama 'Don Carlos', for soloists, mixed chorus & instrumental ensemble: Kyrie

4. Requiem, music to Schiller's drama 'Don Carlos', for soloists, mixed chorus & instrumental ensemble: Dies Irae

5. Requiem, music to Schiller's drama 'Don Carlos', for soloists, mixed chorus & instrumental ensemble: Tuba Mirum

6. Requiem, music to Schiller's drama 'Don Carlos', for soloists, mixed chorus & instrumental ensemble: Rex Tremendae

7. Requiem, music to Schiller's drama 'Don Carlos', for soloists, mixed chorus & instrumental ensemble: Recordare

8. Requiem, music to Schiller's drama 'Don Carlos', for soloists, mixed chorus & instrumental ensemble: Lacrimosa

9. Requiem, music to Schiller's drama 'Don Carlos', for soloists, mixed chorus & instrumental ensemble: Domine Jesu

10. Requiem, music to Schiller's drama 'Don Carlos', for soloists, mixed chorus & instrumental ensemble: Hostias

11. Requiem, music to Schiller's drama 'Don Carlos', for soloists, mixed chorus & instrumental ensemble: Sanctus

12. Requiem, music to Schiller's drama 'Don Carlos', for soloists, mixed chorus & instrumental ensemble: Benedictus

13. Requiem, music to Schiller's drama 'Don Carlos', for soloists, mixed chorus & instrumental ensemble: Agnus Dei

14. Requiem, music to Schiller's drama 'Don Carlos', for soloists, mixed chorus & instrumental ensemble: Credo

15. Requiem, music to Schiller's drama 'Don Carlos', for soloists, mixed chorus & instrumental ensemble: Requiem

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An early polystylistic piece paired with Schnittke's most mystical symphony, August 24, 2008

By 

Christopher Culver - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Alfred Schnittke: Symphony No. 4 for Soloists, Choir & Chamber Orchestra / Requiem (Audio CD)

This BIS disc contains two of Alfred Schnittke's works for choir and orchestra. The Stockholm Sinfonietta and Uppsala Akademiska Kammarkor perform, conducted by Stefan Parkman in the first piece and Okko Kamu in the second.

Schnittke's "Requiem" (1974-75) is one of the early works of his polystylism era, when he liberally embraced the hallmarks of the baroque, classical and early Romantic eras, letting a whole mix sound together through a work. Here traditional Requiem stylings reminiscent of Mozart and Dvorak are supplemented by allusions to Russian Orthodox chant. This traditionalism, however, is slowly stretched into directions earlier composers would have never gone towards. The "Tuba Mirum", delivered by male voices as the female singers maintain a chant of "tu-ba mi-rum, tu-ba mi-rum", is rooted in common practice tonality, but utterly modern in its effect. The climax of the piece comes with the "Credo", not a movement generally found in a requiem, but which is proudly belted out as a rock drum kit joins the traditional orchestral sounds. The ending of the piece unusually reprises "requiem aeternam" instead of the customary "lux aeterna". While I feel that Schnittke was still to further refine his "polystylistic" approach and that the works of the early 1980s show greater maturity, this is still a fine piece.

The "Symphony No. 4" for 2 soloists, piano, chamber chorus & chamber orchestra (1984) is a harder nut to crack. Written at a time when the Jewish born composer had embraced Roman Catholicism, it is a mystic work with four strands, three being the distinct musical developments of the Roman Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant churches, and the fourth a semitone-based line meant to suggest the synagogue tradition. Each of these strands is linked to a different keyboard instrument, which maintain a continuo at certain points through the work. The climax of this symphony is the choir singing a sublime "Ave Maria". While the soundworld of this symphony is instantly intriguing and one realizes that there is massive significance encoded into the work, initial listenings of the symphony are probably going to evoke bafflement. I think it's pretty clear why the Fourth especially is rarely programmed in concert. Still, if you are a Schnittke fan who is ready to commit yourself to this arcane yet fulfilling revery.

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good quality overall; relatively slow tempo in many places, October 17, 2003

By 

S. J. Snyder "De gustibus non disputandum" (Various, United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Alfred Schnittke: Symphony No. 4 for Soloists, Choir & Chamber Orchestra / Requiem (Audio CD)

The tempos in the Requiem are what I am referring to. Compare especially the Tuba Mirum to some other recordings.
In general, I prefer uptempo interpretations of most classical pieces when offered multiple versions. However, the noticeably slower tempo works well here -- it acheives a stateliness without dragging.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Symphony No. 4 / Requiem, January 4, 2010

By 

410 - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Alfred Schnittke: Symphony No. 4 for Soloists, Choir & Chamber Orchestra / Requiem (Audio CD)

Two large scale Schnittke works featuring choir.

The Symphony No. 4 is brittle, frequently dissonant and abstract, but not wholly inaccessible; not a piece to immediately grab at a listener. While demanding, the work has sections of alien beauty, such as before and after the entrance of "Ave Maria". Unfortunately the entire piece is relegated to a single track on the CD.

The Requiem is more immediately approachable. Eerie and gothic, I'm surprised that it hasn't shown up in a soundtrack. The rock drumming near the end seems a little shocking but is surprisingly effective without seeming a pandering fusion piece.