Verdi - Requiem / Claudio Abbado, London Symphony

Rating:
Summary: Mors Stupebit
Review: An excellent performance and recording taped before an audience at Usher Hall in Edinburgh in 1982. The solists are in top form, and they are properly miked so that they don't sound too distant or too immediate. A choice of six- or two-channel audio tracks is provided. The visuals are solely of the performance, but even they manage not be tedious since the camera focuses mostly on the singers and avoids the deadpan instrumentalists. One flaw of the DVD is in not providing subtitles in Latin or English nor a booklet containing the text. The producers must think everybody who's going to watch this has the Latin mass memorized.

Rating:
Summary: Good chorus, fine playing, glorious ladies, limited sound
Review: As often with Abbado, this performance is distinguished more by lyricism than by passion. It's unfortunate that the limited dynamic range of the reproduction emphasizes restraint; I suspect that it was balanced better if you were in the hall. I did not find the recording bad, but it does attenuate very soft passages and loud climaxes. The chorus is good, the orchestra plays very well, and the soloists are outstanding. The men are very fine, though Raimondi isn't the most involved singer I've ever heard, and Carreras sings sharp some of the time (the bugaboo of 'Italian' tenors - so did Corelli and the young Domingo). The ladies are superb, fully involved in the meaning of the work. These were two of the most beautiful voices of the time, or probably of any time, but I was not prepared for how well they blend. Both Norman, who didn't sing much Verdi, and (Margaret) Price, who did, really understand 'Verdi arches' and shape their lines with loving care. The high mezzo part suits Norman perfectly, and I'd readily place Price alongside Tebaldi or Caballe as a consummate Verdi soprano. I also appreciate gaining a deeper understanding of how conductors communicate, from being able to see Abbado's gestures and expressions. If the sound were better, this would be a classic.

Rating:
Summary: Worthwhile for the soloists
Review: This is not by far the best Verdi Requiem I have seen and/or heard. The negatives leap at you: compressed sound, lack of eloquence, bite and power in the choir, and a somewhat tepid, let's-keep-Apocalypse-tidy Abbado. In short, this is not the Verdi Requiem I'd choose were I to have only one..... But one should not limit oneself to only one, pocketbook permitting, where great masterpieces of music are concerned.

The soloists are superb. In 1982 they were all in their prime. It is a rare privilege indeed to hear Jessye Norman perform a part which lies almost exclusively in the richest and most powerful range of her voice, middle-to-low. I love it. We don't have too many samples of that. It is also a joy to hear Margaret Price, the great Welsh soprano, and arguably the greatest soprano voice to have come out of the UK so far, in top form. She soars with crystal-bright, perfect intonation and minimal vibrato.... Again, she's under-represented on DVD. Her voice contrasts well with Jessye's (though not as stunning a pairing as Caballé/Cossotto under Barbirolli on EMI CD). Carreras sounded even and full in all registers, fresh, and golden throughout. The voice was at its peak before he started abusing it and, of course, before leukemia. Raimondi, even if not a dark base, is, as always, a pillar of strength, musicianship and a moving, noble artist. If one loves singers, that is one good reason to purchase this DVD.

There was around that time a live PBS broadcast of the Requiem with the NY Philharmonic under Mehta with Caballé, Domingo and others. I saw it. I remember Caballé's performance being legendary. A commercial recording of the performance was issued by CBS which edited a slip Domingo made in the Ingemisco (if I recall, he came in early which resulted in a repetition of the "inter oves" phrase....everything handled most professionally and with total aplomb....if you were not familiar with the score you probably wouldn't have noticed it). We are all aware of Domingo's greatness... I hope this does not inhibit the issuance of this live performance on DVD.

I understand Abbado's new performance for EMI is superb but I haven't seen it.

Rating:
Summary: Fall of the Hall of Usher
Review: This performance was beautiful; I never have heard Carreras sound better. But I have to dispute those who acclaim the acoustics of Usher Hall. Either that, or the technology of 1982 just falls flat. I listened to the DVD on 5.1 surround sound; there was no reverberation at all, from neither soloists/chorus nor orchestra. The notes just stopped, dead -- CLUNK! From the audience's response, the performance may have sounded better in the hall; on DVD, it's dead.

Rating:
Summary: Fall of the Hall of Usher
Review: This performance was beautiful; I never have heard Carreras sound better. But I have to dispute those who acclaim the acoustics of Usher Hall. Either that, or the technology of 1982 just falls flat. I listened to the DVD on 5.1 surround sound; there was no reverberation at all, from neither soloists/chorus nor orchestra. The notes just stopped, dead -- CLUNK! From the audience's response, the performance may have sounded better in the hall; on DVD, it's dead.