Gabriel Faure: Requiem; Pavane; Bach: Magnificat

Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (Performer), Thomas Hemsley (Performer), Gabriel Faure (Composer), Johann Sebastian Bach (Composer), Arthur Oldham (Conductor), Daniel Barenboim (Conductor), Janet Baker (Performer), Edinburgh Festival Chorus (Orchestra), Paris Orchestra (Orchestra), New Philharmonia Chorus (Orchestra), New Philharmonia Orchestra (Orchestra), Henriette Puig-Roget (Performer), Sheila Armstrong (Performer), Anne Pashley (Performer), Lucia Popp (Performer), Robert Tear (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Thomas Hemsley, Janet Baker, Henriette Puig-Roget, Sheila Armstrong, et al.
• Orchestra: Edinburgh Festival Chorus, Paris Orchestra, New Philharmonia Chorus, New Philharmonia Orchestra
• Conductor: Arthur Oldham, Daniel Barenboim
• Composer: Gabriel Faure, Johann Sebastian Bach
• Audio CD (March 16, 1993)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: EMI Classics
• ASIN: B000002S4P
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #319,349 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #89 in Music > Classical > Ballets & Dances > Pavanes

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Faure's Requiem?????????????????????????????!, November 15, 2010

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Scriabinmahler (UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gabriel Faure: Requiem; Pavane; Bach: Magnificat (Audio CD)

Can great conductors get it all wrong and ruin great music? The answer is, Yes. Bernstein's Enigma Variations and Symphony Pathetique, Celibidache's Symphony Pathetique, Maazel's Mahler 3rd, to name a few, but this performance of Faure's Requiem is by far the worst I've come across.

The introduction and Kyrie starts off promisingly with lots of weight and solemn atmosphere, but you soon realise the tempo is too sluggish and by the time you reach 8th minute of the track, you may fall asleep. But, those who could manage to keep awake must endure 9'59" of Offertoire, which just drags on and on, Fischer-Dieskau's solo singing is superb though. Edingburgh Festival Chorus sings 'Sanctus' most beautifully and the music is presented in magnificent grandeur. Sheila Armstrong's opera diva rendition of 'Pie Jesu' completely spoils the sublime serenity of the music. 'Agnus Dei' is paced very slowly and sung in deeply reverent atmosphere, but just like the opening, it's too weighty and it is more like a choral scene from a Wagner opera, followed by full-blown Wagnerian rendition of 'Libera me' by Fischer-Dieskau. The chorus, on the other hand, sings as if in one of Verdi's operas, with too much passion and verve. The only saving grace in the entire performance is the sublime rendition of 'In Paradisum' where you can at last breathe a sigh of relief, realising the end is nigh.

Nobody doubts today that Barenboim is one of the great conductors - in fact he is the last living conductor of the great German tradition starting from Furtwangler, but in this particular performance, he misjudges everything and makes too much of the solemn ceremony and Wagnerian drama out of the music, completely misunderstanding the composer's vision. Faure intended this requiem to reflect death as a consummation of life, a peaceful resting place, not the anguish and the gravity of the traditional requiem. If you encounter the music for the first time and come to believe this is a great recording, it would be a great tragedy. This performance can cause the composer come out of his grave!

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lovely music, July 25, 2006

By 

September_Goldenrod (Indiana, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gabriel Faure: Requiem; Pavane; Bach: Magnificat (Audio CD)

I chose this CD because I sang the two main pieces in choir in the last year. I like the music and I like the combination. One word of caution--the dynamic range of the Requiem is so great that you probably need a good speaker system to fully appreciate it. On my little boombox, the quiet parts tended to get lost, unless I cranked it up a lot, and then I was afraid the loud parts would damage my speakers. My other "complaint" is that the piece sandwiched between these two sacred pieces seems to be a secular work; I would rather have had another sacred piece, although I find the music hauntingly beautiful and apt to get stuck in my head!

4.0 out of 5 stars Faure and Bach, April 22, 2011

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L. Burger - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Gabriel Faure: Requiem; Pavane; Bach: Magnificat (Audio CD)

I was very pleased to find this recording, as my choral group was performing both of the pieces featured together on this CD. It arrived in a few days and in perfect condition.