SITE RATING:
7/10
SITE
REVIEW:
The Bethel College Choir and
chamber orchestra, under the
direction of Robert Berglund, recorded this
impressively smooth Messiah sometime in the
early
1980s, and it's a telling document of the
times. This was the
same year which Christopher Hogwood recorded
his ground-breaking nouveau baroque Messiah,
and, in the sleeve notes
to this recording, Robert Berglund notes the
sea change that is taking
place in baroque performances of the time,
particularly among chamber
orchestras, who, with their lighter, smaller
forces, were injecting
swift new tempos into previously stately
interpretations. Berglund
himself, who directed the Bethel College
forces and taught there since
the late 1950s, was an advocate and
practitioner of these slower tempi
for many years, but at the time of this
recording, found himself caught
up in the "new-wave" of faster, lighter
baroque enthusiasts. His Messiah
races, the tempos bounding
along. The choir and orchestra are
certainly up to the task of
following their conductor; among amateur
forces, these are among the
tightest, smoothest-sounding performers I've
ever heard; with crisp,
clean melismas, and admirable unity in tone.
The soloists are
nearly up to their level, with only tenor Paul
Neslund sounding
spread-vowelled and strident, but the rest,
especially baritone Gerard
Sundberg and alto Beth Ekberg giving
electrifying performances.
But there's a telling problem with this
performance, and it's
directly tied to the "new" baroque movement -
the tempos don't serve
the music; in many instances, the choruses and
arias are fast, simply
for the sake of being fast - and the tempos
draw constant attention to
themselves, when the attention should be on
the power of the music and
the text. I often felt while listening
that many colorful dynamic
opportunities were being lost, sacrificed on
the altar of swiftness;
which made this recording interesting as a
touchstone of the era, but
also a caution against following a trend for
its own sake.
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