Handel - Athalia

George Frideric Handel (Composer), Peter Neumann (Conductor), Collegium Cartusianum (Orchestra), Simone Kermes (Performer), Olga Pasichnyk (Performer), Thomas Cooley (Performer), Martin Oro (Performer), Trine Wilberg Lund (Performer), Wolf Matthias Friedrich (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Simone Kermes, Olga Pasichnyk, Thomas Cooley, Martin Oro, Trine Wilberg Lund, et al.
• Orchestra: Collegium Cartusianum
• Conductor: Peter Neumann
• Composer: George Frideric Handel
• Audio CD (January 25, 2005)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: MD&G Records
• ASIN: B0006643RO
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #297,805 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. 1.Allegro/2.Grave/3.Allegro

2. Blooming Virgins

3. The Rising World Jehovah Crown'd

4. Tyrants Would In Impious Throngs

5. When He Is In His Wrath Reveal'd

6. 1. When Storms The Proud To Terrors Doom/2. Oh Judah, Boast His Matchless Law

7. Your Sacred Songs

8. Oh Judah, Judah! Chosen Seed!

9. 1. Oh Lord, Whom We Adore/2. Hear From Thy Mercy

10. What Scenes Of Horror

See all 24 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. The Mighty Pow'r, In Whom We Trust

2. Through The Land So Lovely Blooming

3. Ah! Were This Land

4. Ah, Can'st Thou But Prove Me!

5. Thou Dost The Ardour

6. Confusion To My Thoughts!

7. Will God, Whose Mercies Ever Flow

8. Tis My Intention

9. My Vengeance Awakes Me

10. My Spirits Fail

See all 34 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Strong Performance of Handel's 1st Great English Oratorio, May 21, 2005

By 

Nicholas A. Deutsch (Tarrytown, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Handel - Athalia (Audio CD)

Please note: I believe the previous reviewer's comments concerning sound quality don't refer to this recording at all, but to the performance (under Joachim Carlos Martini) on Naxos 8.554364-65. This version, under Peter Neumann, has warm, well-focused acoustics, perhaps a bit more reverberant and 'churchy' than one would ideally like, but flattering to both voices & orchestra.

This is in fact the first serious challenge to Christopher Hogwood's landmark 1st recording; Naxos has its attractions, not least the low price, but overall this is in a different league. 'Athalia' is Handel's 3rd English oratorio, arguably the 1st completely successful one both as music & drama. Like 'Esther,' it's based on a play by Jean Racine which sought to emulate the ancient Greek tragedy, thus providing composers with ready-made choral interludes. (In additional to the original Moreau score, both Mendelssohn and the 20th century Swiss composer Frank Martin set Racine's verses for productions of the play.) The libretto for 'Athalia' presents a sort of Reader's Digest version of the play; Handel's audience would have filled in the back story and plot details from their knowledge of the Bible. While later Handel works such as 'Samson,''Saul,''Belshazzar,''Theodora' & 'Jeptha' delve deeper, the characters here are firmly & vividly drawn, not least the guilt-ridden 'apostate Queen' herself, whose downfall forms the central action of the piece.

Conducting, choral & orchestral work are all 1st rate, & the cast of soloists is generally strong. The standouts are soprano Simone Kermes (Athalia), who delivers a strongly dramatic reading, & bass Wolf Matthias Friedrich (Abner). Another supporting singer, tenor Thomas Cooley (Mathan) is also excellent, & the only native English-speaker. In the central soprano role of Josabeth, Olga Pasichnyk sounds consistently lovely, but doesn't always summon the requisite fire for the character's feistier moments, such as the indignant 'Soothing tyrant.' Countertenor Martin Oro is not especially distinguished as Joad (one of the few leading Handel roles actually originated by a countertenor) & Trine Wilsberg Lund, a woman in a boy soprano role (Joas) is fine, although one misses the contrasting timbre of a treble's voice, especially in the key Act II scene with all 3 sopranos. The English is accurate, if occasionally accented, & not always ideally clear. Overall, however, under Neumann's acute direction, it's an exciting & deeply felt performance.

Hogwood's strongly cast version still deserves consideration, however. He may not be as dramatically inclined a conductor, but he has all-English-speaking forces, which many may consider a plus. Another factor is that the 3 soprano roles are cast with far more contrasted voices: there's a boy soprano (Aled Jones) & 2 mightily different women, Emma Kirkby (Josabeth) & Joan Sutherland (Athalia). The latter may be audibly past her prime in spots, with occluded or unsteady tone, but she brings both great musical & dramatic authority to the part, & as was invariably the case when she worked under conductors other than her husband, her diction is far clearer than one might expect.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is the recording of Athalia to own!, February 2, 2006

By 

David (North Carolina, USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Handel - Athalia (Audio CD)

I have three recordings of this outstanding work, and this one is by far the best. Ignore the review regarding the sound quality--he must be listening on faulty speakers, for my recording is superb.

1 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Try another recording., February 27, 2005

By 

Lifetime Classical Music Listener (New Mexico, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Handel - Athalia (Audio CD)

Gorgeous Handelian score, but the acoustics of this performance are just awful. Two of us listened for 10 minutes before we could understand a single word! That word was "Silence!", and it seemed appropriate to stop listening at that point.