| RECORDINGS |
|
| LABEL: |
EXULTATE
MASTERWORKS
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| CATALOG
NUMBER: |
EX-116
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| UPC
NUMBER: |
659552116020
|
| NUMBER OF DISCS: |
3
|
| RUNNING TIME: |
UNKNOWN
|
| YEAR
RECORDED: |
2013?
|
| CD
RELEASE DATE: |
2015
|
| CONDUCTOR: |
THOMAS
D. ROSSIN
|
| ORCHESTRA: |
EXULTATE
ORCHESTRA
|
| CHOIR: |
EXULTATE
CHAMBER CHOIR
|
| SOPRANO: |
SARAH
ZIMMERMAN
|
| CONTRALTO: |
LEA
KIRDATT
|
| TENOR: |
ANDREW
BARRETT
|
| BASS: |
ROBERT
SUNDERLIN
|
|
|
| AUDIO SAMPLES |
HIGHLIGHTS |
OTHER
RELEASES |
AUDIO CLIPS AVAILABLE HERE.
(WILL OPEN IN NEW WINDOW)
|
NONE
|
NONE
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|
DISC ONE
Part One
01 – Overture
02 – Comfort Ye My People
03 – Ev’ry Valley Shall Be Exalted
04 – And the Glory of the Lord
05 – Thus Saith the Lord
06 – But Who May Abide the Day of His
Coming
07 – And He Shall Purify
08 – Behold, A Virgin Shall Conceive
09 – O Thou That Tellest Good Tidings to
Zion
10 – For Behold, Darkness Shall Cover
the Earth
11 – The People That Walked In Darkness
12 – For Unto Us a Child is Born
13 – Pastoral Symphony
14 – There Were Shepherds Abiding in the
Field
15 – And the Angel Said Unto Them
16 – And Suddenly There Was With the
Angel
17 – Glory to God
18 – Rejoice Greatly, O Daughter of Zion
19 – Then Shall the Eyes of the Blind Be
Opened
20 – He Shall Feed His Flock
21 – His Yoke is Easy, and His Burden is
Light
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DISC TWO
Part Two
22 – Behold he Lamb of God
23 – He Was Despised
24 – Surely He Hath Borne Our Griefs
25 – And With His Stripes We are Healed
26 – And We Like Sheep Have Gone Astray
27 – All They That See Him Laugh Him to
Scorn
28 – He Trusted in God
29 – Thy Rebuke Hath Broken His Heart
30 – Behold, and See if There Be Any
Sorrow
31 – He Was Cut Off Out of the Land of
the Living
32 – But Thou Didst Not Leave His Soul
in Hell
33 – Lift Up Your Heads, O Ye Gates
34 – Unto Which of the Angels Said He
35 – Let All the Angels of God Worship
Him
36 – Thou Art Gone Up on High
37 – The Lord Gave the Word
38 – How Beautiful are the Feet
39 – Their Sound is Gone Out
40 – Why Do the Nations So Furiously
Rage Together
41 – Let Us Break Their Bonds Asunder
42 – He That Dwelleth in Heaven
43 – Thou Shalt Break Them
44 – Hallelujah!
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DISC
THREE
Part Three
45 – I Know That My Redeemer Liveth
46 – Since By Man Came Death
47 – Behold, I Tell You a Mystery
48 – The Trumpet Shall Sound
49 – Then Shall Be Brought to Pass
50 – O Death, Where is Thy Sting
51 – Worthy is the Lamb That Was Slain
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SITE RATING: 4/10
SITE
REVIEW: The
Minneapolis-based Exultate Chamber Choir and
Orchestra, under the direction of Thomas D.
Rossin, have released this live recording,
ostensibly taken from 2013, (you can watch
video of this performance here
and here)
have released many recordings on their own
label, and which are available on their website.
While they reportedly have a stellar
reputation amongst their peers, this
recording showcases the weaknesses inherent
in both their organization and in live
recordings in general, with sluggish tempos,
suspect pitches, and muddy sound.
Soloists are generally good, although none
are world-class. In particular, bass
Robert Sunderlin and Soprano Sarah Zimmerman
transparently suffer on their respective
solos, with melismas that seem barely
contained, and pitches that veer notably off
center. Contralto Lea Kirdatt has a
pleasant, but light tone, rendering her
solos non-committal and bland. Tenor
Andrew Barrett is similarly nondescript,
lacking passion and mastery of baroque
stylings, and sounding positively tremulous
at times. As for the Exultate
Chamber Choir and Orchestra, they are
generallly good and well-blended, but again
struggle with unity and pitch on the more
difficult passages, at times threatening to
become completely unraveled during some of
the trickier melismas. Rossin's tempos
are generally easy to slack, lacking fire
and failing to give emotional punch to
dramatic moments - the exception being a
fiery "Hallelujah" which sets itself apart
entirely from the languorous nature of the
rest of the performance. The one
curiosity of this set is the dividing of the
three "parts" of Messiah onto three
individual CDs - one of the only sets I can
think of which makes the division of each
part distinct; otherwise, this is a mediocre
performance and recording - suitable for the
local audience, but not worthy of a wider.
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