Harnoncourt's new take on the Missa Solemnis, and Herreweghe's.

Started by Mandryka, April 17, 2013, 07:57:21 AM

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Mandryka

> Harnoncourt has started to give recitals of the Missa Solemnis again.
> One he gave last April in Amsterdam with the Concertgebouw is
> available for downloading on Concertarchive, the yahoogroup. Singers
> include Marlis Petersen,  Elisabeth Kulman, Werner Güra and  Gerald
> Finley.
>
> Somehow Harnoncourt seens to imbue this music with a sense of unity
> and coherence. Once I start to listen I can't stop, the logic of the
> interpretation is so inevitable. In my opinion he strikes just the
> right vertical weight in all the sforzandi . Not too heavy, but still
> strong. Tempo choices are sometimes very unusual, slow and measured,
> but it's not a problem because there's  horizontal ductility. And as
> you would expect from Harnoncourt, the textures are transparent and
> there's often a sense of each musical line being individually formed.
> It 's not at all overwrought like Jochum's.
>
> I've been playing a few Missa Solemnis recordings recently, and this,
> along with Herreweghe's second recoding on PHI, has been a real
> discovery. Herreweghe is quite spiritual, and it's beautifully sung --
> Herreweghe  always gets good singers, and he often puts stress on
> beautiful, impeccable, polished performance.
>
> I think I prefer the new Harnoncourt to the new Herreweghe because of
> the unusually strong coherence and unity and logic, and the sense of
> total commitment from Harnoncourt's singers. Also Harnoncourt is very
> noble and dignified, and brooding. Sometimes Herreweghe's Beethoven
> sounds a bit too extrovert for my tastes.

In short I find Harnoncourt very very moving, and it's helped to open out what is, for me, a challenging work. .I hope he makes a second commercial record.
Wovon man nicht sprechen kann, darüber muss man schweigen

Geo Dude

Thank you.  I've tried Klemperer's and Herreweghe's first recording (Herreweghe is usually a favorite of mine) and found both to be a no go.  Something a bit more introverted is just what I'm looking for.

Mandryka

Quote from: Geo Dude on April 17, 2013, 08:01:43 AM
Thank you.  I've tried Klemperer's and Herreweghe's first recording (Herreweghe is usually a favorite of mine) and found both to be a no go.  Something a bit more introverted is just what I'm looking for.

Let me know if you have difficulty getting hold of the new Harnoncourt.
Wovon man nicht sprechen kann, darüber muss man schweigen

Geo Dude

Quote from: Mandryka on April 17, 2013, 08:17:00 AM
Let me know if you have difficulty getting hold of the new Harnoncourt.

I will say that my Google and Yahoo searching skills are not turning out to be up to par...

Opus106

Quote from: Geo Dude on April 17, 2013, 09:47:13 AM
I will say that my Google and Yahoo searching skills are not turning out to be up to par...

No, it's not you. It's simply that the group contents will not be displayed in search results publicly. :)


Speaking of the performance, I didn't pay as much attention to my listen yesterday as you (Mandryka) did, but this was the first time (for some reason) I did not feel that the work was unbearable. I have this thing with the screeching sopranos and tenors for extended periods of time. In the 9th symphony, it's okay... but not so with the MS. This performance was, I think, on the slightly slower side, but as long as it comfortably takes me from point A to B, guiding me along the way, then it's all right.
Regards,
Navneeth

Mandryka

Wovon man nicht sprechen kann, darüber muss man schweigen

Herman

I like the live Harnoncourt from Amsterdam a lot, too.

Gardiner's very recent one (24 December) with the BRSO is very interesting, too.

https://www.br-klassik.de/concert/ausstrahlung-2637542.html