Customer Reviews

Haendel: Messiah

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

To respond to Mr. Bush's comment that the piece is in the wrong key -- Mr. Christie and his ensemble are actually performing the piece in the correct, lower baroque tuning. Standard "A" has gone up over the past few hundred years from somewhere around 410 - 415 to 440 Hz. Christie is simply reproducing the Baroque tuning.

This is the most beautiful, most elegant and uplifting Messiah ever. William Christie conducts with his usual care for detail and deep understanding of what he is doing. His soloists are marvelous, sopranos Barbara Schlick and Sandrine Piau are pure and warm. Andreas Scholl is quite simply the best countertenor around, and bass Nathan Berg is sonorous and agile. The chorus and orchestra of Les Arts Florissants are superb. In general this is a fresher, more musical reading than Hogwood's, Gardiner's or McCreesh's. Hogwood was good in his time, but now sounds too prim and proper. Gardiner is let down by his unidiomatic Wotan baritone and feeble countertenor. From McCreesh far more was expected but not delivered. William Christie is the finest. By the way, I have no idea what kind of person would prefer a Messiah with such a Baroque specialist like Eugene Ormandy over William Christie...

I've been hunting for a Messiah for years, but never found one I was happy with. My brother pointed this one out, saying it was a Gramophone first choice.

Particular highlight is Nathan Berg (bass). Many recordings have a bass who sounds like a tenor, but Nathan Berg sings the arias with a rich, deep and flexible bass voice. Pity they gave "But Who May Abide" to the alto, but sadly that seems par for the course these days.

The direction and orchestral sound are excellent, as you'd expect with Christie and LAF, and the choral singing bright. This together with outstanding soloists and a budget price tag - what more do you want?

Oh, and a note to the previous reviewer who criticized the "flights of fancy" and "improvisation": That's what a 'da capo' aria is all about! After you sing the second section you repeat the first section with your own embellishment. I assure you, Handel expected it!

Of the several recordings of Messiah I own, this is by far my favourite. This is not a "chaste" Messiah in the boring Hogwood fashion. Handel used opera singers for this oratorio, and it should be played accordingly. William Christie's soloists are excellent, and his orchestra and chorus peerless. Disregard the opinions of those who think Messiah should be boring...it should not!

This is, without question one of the best recordings of this work out there. It's a period instrument perfomance, and even those listeners who aren't into the period instrument thing should listen.

The soloists are wonderful - they sing with both artistic beauty and technical effectiveness. The chorus is incredible - very lively.

Basically, if you're looking for a recording of Messiah, buy this. If you already have a favorite, buy it anyway. You won't be disappointed.

This recording has surpassed Christopher Hogwood's as my first choice. The soloists are stunning and the choir impressive in accuracy and musicality. Of special note, Andreas Scholl is brilliant and brings a richness to the alto line that I have never heard in any other performance. A wonderful recording that belongs in every Messiah enthusiast's library, not to mention a great choice for anyone looking for a first (or only) purchase.

I'm a big fan of William Christie's, so choosing one out of many Messiahs out there was a no-brainer for me. As always, I was impressed. As always, Christie's line up of soloists is stunning. The only person who doesn't quite belong here is Andreas Scholl (I know, most people will beg to differ...) Scholl's voice sounds almost like female's, but I like more masculine altos. But that's not even the point. There's something about the voice placement Christie usually achieves with his performers - that authentic "period" sound that Christie's so famous for. Scholl is more of a Rene Jacobs' man. His singing technique is somehow different, although it really mattered only in a tenor/alto duet where Scholl's and Padmore's voices didn't mix. But Padmore deserves the wildest praise for his performance. Particularly stunning is his recitative/aria "Comfort ye, my people..." Incidentally, let me recommend Cavalli's Vespro della Beata Vergine, where Padmore turns in performances as both tenor and alto. I think Padmore's alto beats Scholl's by a wide margin, because Padmore doesn't sound as fake as other male altos.

Here's what Nicholas Anderson of Gramophone had to say about this Messiah when asked to choose 50 best baroque recordings ever made (I quote from the special BBC Music issue on Baroque): "Although I grew up with the legendary performances of Beecham and Sargent I feel little affection for either. ... Period instruments, smaller choral forces and an altogether more lissome approach have all but obliterated childhood impressions. So it is Christie's disc with Les Arts Florissants that has stirred my deepest feelings. It is an affecting performance and one which both conveys the humanity and faithfully mirrors the comtemplative spirit that suffuses it."

This is a warm and beautiful recording. After hearing "And He shall feed his flock..." and "Come unto Him..." I was won over. Christie has achieved the just-right balance of baroque artistry and Handelian drama in this Messiah. Those of us who have grown up with this music have been subjected to many versions, and for my money this is the jewel in the lot. There might be quibbles about approaches here and there, but the strength of this recording is in the stellar soloists. Followers of authenic performance bands will be familiar with most of these singers, and they live up to their reputations on these discs. Especially noteworthy is the bass Nathan Berg.

If you want a great 'old school' Messiah I would suggest Colin Davis' pioneering recording from the late '60s. And if you want an informed, 'modern' version, Christie's is the one. It grows on you.

The reason this recording was picked by Harmonia Mundi as their promotional piece was a relatively recent pronouncement by one of the Gramophone editors (specifically Nicholas Anderson) that this is their top choice for Messiah. When the composition is as popular and much-recorded as is Handel's Messiah, people are bound to differ in their preferences. So not all reviews are as glowing as Anderson's. But everybody agrees that this is an exceptional performance, whether or not it is an unequivocal #1. This is, of course, a period performance, which is not surprising, considering both that it's coming from Les Arts Florissants and that authenticity is now a common ingredient in the performance of baroque works generally. The soloists are exceptional. The choral nuances are well-captured. The tempi are appropriate, adding contemplative spirit to the sense of jubilation that suffuses the work. And all this for so little money? Don't miss it!