VIDEO
Masterclass
LABEL: THE MASTERCLASS MEDIA FOUNDATION
CATALOG NUMBER: MMF 2-035
UPC NUMBER: N/A
NUMBER OF DISCS: 1
RUNNING TIME: 133 MIN.
YEAR RECORDED: 2010
RELEASE DATE: 2010
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9 ANAMORPHIC
AUDIO: STEREO
REGION: NTSC REGION 0
CONDUCTORS: SIMON CARRINGTON
GREG BATSLEER
FELIX YEUNG
MATTHEW HAMILTON
TOM HAMMOND-DAVIES
PIANO: KEVIN KWAN
CHOIR: MUSICA BEATA


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SITE RATING:  10/10
SITE REVIEW:  The high rating I'm giving this video is conditional: I think the appeal of this DVD will be fairly limited, with choral directors (especially new ones) finding some excellent material which would be useful not only in their preparations of Messiah, but in other time-worn choral works as well.  Simon Carrington takes four young directors through a 25-minute-each course in how to finesse a single chorus from Messiah.  That's right - only four choruses are tackled here: "Glory to God in the highest", "All we like sheep have gone astray", "Surely He hath borne our griefs" and "Since by man came death."  a chamber choir (the excellent Musica Beata) is the sole choir present, with a similarly fine Keven Kwan accompanying on the piano.  Simon first listens to the conductors do their "take" on the representative chorus, and then steps in to deconstruct each piece, occasionally trying a completely different approach, or in some instances, merely fine-tuning what he considers to be a good interpretation.  I was impressed with his direction - Mr. Carrington emphasizes throughout the master class that the meaning of the text should be ascendant over the technical aspects of the music or style taken - the words need to be understood, and emphasized for the audience - and - he is particularly emphatic on this point - that the whole approach should be one of presenting the piece to the one in the audience who has never heard it before.  A difficult approach to be certain for those who have heard countless interpretations and variations on Messiah.  But his passion of the piece is evident throughout the class - he keenly feels the personal aspects of the text, and gently chides the conductors who seem to have placed style over context.  The price of this DVD (evidently aimed at university music collections) is somewhat prohibitive, but the ideas found therein are excellent, and the talent and loving care given to the preparation of Messiah I think would be highly illuminating to both novice and experienced conductors looking to make Messiah fresh.

The Compleat Messiah All Content Copyright © 2011 Bret D. Wheadon
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