RECORDINGS

LABEL: K-TEL
CATALOG NUMBER: ECD 3751
UPC NUMBER: 5020959375528
NUMBER OF DISCS: 1
RUNNING TIME: 65:39
YEAR RECORDED: 2001
CD RELEASE DATE: JANUARY 1, 2002
CONDUCTOR: KENNETH ABBOTT
ORCHESTRA: ANN-MARSDEN-THOMAS (ORGAN)
CHOIR: THE LUTON CHORAL SOCIETY, THE ATHENIAN SINGERS, THE BERKHAMPSTEAD SCHOOL FOR GIRLS
SOPRANO: PENELOPE BEAVAN
CONTRALTO: PHILLIDA BANNISTER
TENOR: MICHAEL POWELL
BASS: BRUCE STEWART-KERSHAW
AUDIO SAMPLES HIGHLIGHTS OTHER RELEASES
 
DISC ONE

1. Recitative (Tenor) : Comfort Ye My People    4:29
2. Air (Tenor) : Every Valley Shall Be Exalted    4:57
3. Chorus : And The Glory Of The Lord    3:22
4. Recitative (Contralto) : Behold, A Virgin Shall Conceive    0:35
5. Air & Chorus : O Thou That Tellest Good Tidings    7:55
6. Unto Us a Child Is Born    5:26
7. Recitative (Soprano) : And The Angel Said : And Suddenly    1:10   
8. Chorus : Glory To God    2:47
9. Air (Soprano) : Rejoice Greatly    5:52
10. Recitative (Tenor) : He That Dwelleth In Heaven Air : Thou Shalt Break Them    3:17
11. Chorus : Hallelujah    4:47
12. Air (Soprano) : I Know That My Redeemer Liveth    7:02
13. Recitative (Bass) : Behold, I Tell You A Mystery    0:32
14. Air (Bass) : The Trumpet Shall Sound    7:16
15. Chorus : Worthy Is The Lamb : Amen    8:52
SITE RATING:  1/10
SITE REVIEW:  If you really want to hear an amateur performance of Messiah, I'm sure there must be one nearby - either at Easter or Christmastime - do you really need to spend your hard-earned money to own an echoey, poorly-performed recording of it?  This 2001 performance, conducted by Dr. Kenneth Abbott and released by K-Tel Records (Company motto: "We want to contribute to the burgeoning waste filling America's Landfills") is simply too poor, both in performance, sound, and, well, everything, to bother about.  K-Tel didn't even spring for a full orchestra to accompany the performers, with an organ (played competently by Ann Marsden-Thomas) and a couple of lonely trumpets the meager accompaniment.  The soloists are uniformly over-heated, singing with wide-ranging vibratos and much more interested in the sound of their own voices than in the text they are singing; the choir are drowning in a vast, muddy echo, and everything is taken at tempos which must be described as "tar-like".   K-Tel should be ashamed of presenting Handel's masterpiece adorned in such threadbare garments to the general public.

The Compleat Messiah All Content Copyright © 2015 Bret D. Wheadon
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