Brahms - Ein Deutsches Requiem (A German Requiem) / Auger, Stilwell, Atlanta SO, Robert Shaw

Johannes Brahms (Artist), Robert Shaw (Artist), Arleen Auger (Artist), Richard Stilwell (Artist), Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Chorus (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Telarc
• ASIN: B000003CT6
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,647 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #7 in Music > Classical > Historical Periods > Early Music > Forms & Genres > Requiems
  • #10 in Music > Classical > Historical Periods > Early Music > Sacred & Religious
  • #10 in Music > Classical > Forms & Genres > Requiems, Elegies & Tombeau > Requiems

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

63 of 69 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A steadfast. well-prepared performance., September 4, 2005

By 

RENS (Dover, NH USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brahms - Ein Deutsches Requiem (A German Requiem) / Auger, Stilwell, Atlanta SO, Robert Shaw (Audio CD)

There are many recordings of the German Requiem of Brahms, and I have seven of them in my library. Robert Shaw's recording on Telarc is no longer one of them. Amazon states up front that this is the recording people "ultimately" buy. Maybe so, but I wouldn't click on "Buy Now" until I had heard samplings of some other recordings. Yes, Shaw and his musicians are amazing in their dedication to the work. It is a great performance. I have always found it necessary to boost the treble and perhaps reduce the bass to get a clear sound with this recording.

Other recordings I rank at a slightly higher level than this one and recommend with greater enthusiasm:

1. Herreweghe and the Orchestre des Champs Elysees on Harmonia Mundi. This recordng ranks among the finest and is unique in the clarity of voices, whether solo, choral, or orchestral. The woodwinds and brass are never covered by the strings, yet the string sections sound full and play with precision. The soloists are not over-miked and their voices seem to come from the midst of the greater ensemble. Especially impressive and touching is the singing of Gerald Finley (although his command of German has greatly improved since this recording).

2. James Levine and the Chicago Symphony and Chorus with Battle and Hagegard on RCA/BMG, a 1983 studio recording recently re-released on Universal at a low budget price. Levine and the Chicago deliver a big, heart-on-sleeve sound yet pay loving attention to details and the soloists sing exquisitely.

3. Rafael Kubelik with the Bavarian Radio Symphony and Chorus with Edith Mathis and Wolfgang Brendel on Audite. Recorded in concert (with no audience sounds) in 1978 and issued recently in glorious sound by Audite, this performance is generous in every way: fine musicianship, deep emotion, and rich sound.


4. Rudolph Kempe with the Berlin Philharmonic and the Choir of St. Hedwig's with Elizabeth Gruemmer and the young (therefore not yet fussy and mannered) Fischer-Dieskau. This is a very fine mono recording from 1956 still found on EMI. There are days when I think this is the best of the best in every respect. The playing and singing is exemplary in very way.

5. John Eliot Gardiner's interpretation, with his Orchestre Revolutionanaire et Romantique, the Monteverdi Choir, Charlotte Margiono, and Rodney Gilfry on Philips, is fleet and somewhat light-weight. It is a studio recording from 1990. Gardiner's tempi are the quickest by far yet never seem rushed. I've always liked this performance, but in light of those mentioned below it is relatively cerebral.

As for the other available versions, many are very fine indeed; yet I think none of them quite reaches the heights of the five I've listed above.

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An understated Brahms, May 23, 2003

By 

John Prothero "jakethejeep" (Garden Grove, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Brahms - Ein Deutsches Requiem (A German Requiem) / Auger, Stilwell, Atlanta SO, Robert Shaw (Audio CD)

Most of the recordings or the performances of the German Requiem are orchestral performances with a chorus attached. They lack the passion of the text that is inherint in the Brahms score. In addition, they are recordings or performances of the Requiem that are taken on because it is a seminal orchestral/choral work. Shaw did not allow this to happen. The German Requiem was an intensly personal work for him, one that he used to teach workshops with at Carnegie Hall. And it shows on this recording. Shaw UNDERSTOOD Brahms (which I feel is very difficult to do!) And this recording is a CHORAL recording with the orchestra supporting it. You hear every subtle nuance of text and harmony in here, and the German diction (despite one reviewer's opinion) is quite good. But more than anything this recording brings the very essence of Brahms out: the tension that exists in all of Brahms' music; the beauty that can change with a simple line leading to ugliness; and the ability of Shaw and his formidable forces mastering the emotional waves that are in the score. This was a CD made to highlight the masterwork itself, with the performers doing that - performing. And his soloists serve that end as well. Arleen Auger's clean lyrical soprano, and the rich voice of Mr. Stillwell. If I had to get rid of ALL my CD's save one, it would be this one. Cannot be without it!

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Very good, July 29, 2005

By 

Emery Rudolph (Owings Mills, MD United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Brahms - Ein Deutsches Requiem (A German Requiem) / Auger, Stilwell, Atlanta SO, Robert Shaw (Audio CD)

I have owned this recording since it's release and find it a wonderful piece. Robert Shaw has sought to convey a deeper understanding of Brahms thoughts and emotions brought to life in music. There are precious few conductors who take on this work because they know this work is more than a symphony, it requires the study and emersion of the conductor into the mind of Brahms and the trajedy that spawned this work. I am very grateful that Shaw took on the challenge and delivered an excellent interpretation.

With that said, I must say that although I do love this recording, there is one that I think is even better and is in my opinion the absolute best recording of this piece - Chicago Symphony, James Levine, Kathleen Battle, Hakan Hagegard.

For comparison -

Recording clarity - Hands down the Chicago recording is much clearer and much richer in the full spectrum of sounds from the crispness of the high woodwinds to the powerful bass of the bass viola's.

Interpretation - While Shaws recording is deliberate and steady, Levines is slower, more emotional and closer to the passion that Brahms intended to convey.

Choral - Without a doubt Kathleen Battle's voice in this piece is bordering on angelic. Nothing I have ever heard can compare to the perfection she displays in this piece. Hands down, she draws you totally into the work with a mesmorizing performance.

With technology progressing at such a fast pace, I eagerly await the arrival of a newer performance of this work, but am skeptical that anything can top what Levine has done.

Emery Rudolph