RECORDINGS

LABEL: MUSIK-ART
CATALOG NUMBER: 00754
UPC NUMBER: 4012831190931
NUMBER OF DISCS: 2
RUNNING TIME: 75:36; 66:17
DATE RECORDED: DECEMBER 8, 2002
CD RELEASE DATE: 2003
CONDUCTOR: INGO SCHULZ
ORCHESTRA: BAROCKTROMPETEN ENSEMBLE BERLIN, INSTRUMENTALENSEMBLE AUF HISTORISCHEN INSTRUMENTEN
CHOIR: ÖLBERG-CHOR
SOPRANO: INÉS VILLANUEVA
COUNTER-TENOR: UWE CZYBORRA
TENOR: CHRISTIAN MÜCKE
BASS: MATTHIAS JAHRMÄRKER


This item
may be
purchased
through
the
emmaus.de
website
via e-mail.
AUDIO SAMPLES HIGHLIGHTS OTHER RELEASES

NONE
NONE
NONE
DISC ONE

1. Sinfonia
2. Comfort ye, my people
3. Every valley shall be exalted
4. And the glory of the Lord
5. Thus saith the Lord of hosts
6. But who may abide the day of His coming?
7. And He shall purify/Behold a virgin shall conceive
8. O thou that tellest
9. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth
10. The people that walked in darkness
11. For unto us a Child is born
12. Pifa
13. And lo, the angel of the Lord/And the angel said unto them
14. And suddenly there was with the angel
15. Glory to God
16. Rejoice greatly/Then shall the eyes of the blind be opened
17. He shall feed His flock/Come unto Him
18. His yoke is easy
19. Behold the Lamb of God
20. He was despised
21. Surely He hath borne our griefs
22. And with His stripes we are healed
23. All we like sheep have gone astray

 DISC TWO

1. All they that see Him laugh Him to scorn
2. He trusted in God
3. Thy rebuke hath broken His heart
4. Behold and see
5. He was cut off out of the land of the living
6. But Thou didst not leave His soul in hell
7. Lift up your heads/Unto which of the angels
8. Let all the angels of God
9. Thou art gone up on high
10. The Lord gave the word
11. How beautiful are the feet
12. Why do the nations so furiously rage together?
13. Let us break their bonds/He that dwelleth in heaven
14. Thou shalt break them
15. Hallelujah
16. I know that my redeemer liveth
17. Since by man came death
18. Behold I tell you a mystery
19. The trumpet shall sound/Then shall be brought to pass
20. O death, where is thy sting?
21. But thanks be to God
22. If God be for us, who can be against us?
23. Worthy is the Lamb/Amen
SITE RATING:  4/10
SITE REVIEW:  This English-sung live performance from 2002 features the German Ölberg Chor under the direction of Ingo Schulz, and an unaffiliated orchestra and brass choir accompanying.  First impressions were that the "historical instrument" orchestra was a notably out of tune, with some teeth-grinding moments showing up in the "Sinfonia", and throughout the performance.  Tenor Christian Mücke gives a lovely, is somewhat tremulous salvo on "Comfort Ye" but shows a tendency to a nervous, fluttery vibrato when he pushes the tone, which happens with more frequency during "Every Valley" and also embellishes the melismas to a distracting degree (he yelps up at one point, making me think someone has stuck him with a pin!).  His performance becomes less and less effective.  The Ölberg Chor has a very "young" sound, by which I mean unsupported; the upper voices sound whispy and breathless, and the choir is ineffectively mic'ed, with the basses nearly unheard during the choruses.  Also, there are omnipresent pitch and unity issues present, lending a "lazy" sound to the choir.  Bass Matathias Jaharmärker gives a strong showing, with a clear, clean tone and proficient melismas.  Counter-tenor Uwe Czyborra is similarly good - with a mellow tone and easy delivery.  Soprano Inés Villaneuva sounds a bit chesty in her tone, but gives a warm, involved performance.  Ingo Schulz's direction is generally lackluster, brightening during certain moments ("Glory To God") and occasionally lifting the performance above the mediocre, but overall, this is a recording filled with pitch and performance flaws that detract from the overall experience.
The Compleat Messiah All Content Copyright © 2011 Bret D. Wheadon
All Rights Reserved.