2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Blech!, November 10, 2010
This review is from: Janacek: Glagolitic Mass & Poulenc: Gloria (Audio CD)
It's only because Nicolai Gedda is so terrific in this performance that I'm not rating it 1 star overall. I think Bernstein's performance, as a whole, tries to stretch too much out of the music, in the wrong areas. Tempos go from blindingly fast to glacial instantaneously! Slow passages become grueling and muddy, while quicker passages go by barely noticed. I like how the brighter percussion instruments were recorded, but I think the choruses sound odd and almost ominous as a result of microphone placement. The organist is a little too well-behaved for my taste, also he seems a little bit uncomfortable and not very adventurous, but at least he actually tries to get some dynamic range and contrast out of the music (not to mention the Organ), rather than just playing everything as loud and fast as possible, which seems to be what happens most often. A few words that come to mind to describe this interpretation as a whole: "Chirpy," "Soggy," "Punchy" and "Schmaltzy." Honestly, even the Robert Shaw recording is much better... As for the Poulenc Gloria, which I adore as a composition, it's alright, but not great.
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