Handel - Messiah / Röschmann, Gritton, Fink , C. Daniels, N. Davies; McCreesh

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
You would think that everyone in the world owned a copy of Messiah by now, and that there would certainly be no need to record new ones very year. Wrong! Here's DG's 1997 entry, and it's a fine one too. The only reservation is the recorded sound, which seems to be somewhat congested at the climaxes, as though the chorus and orchestra were recorded in differing acoustic spaces. Otherwise, this is as fine an "authentic" performance as we're likely to get. --David Hurwitz

Handel - Messiah / Röschmann, Gritton, Fink , C. Daniels, N. Davies; McCreesh, Music, George Frideric Handel, Paul McCreesh, Dorothea Röschmann, Susan Gritton, Gabrieli Consort & Players, Bernarda Fink, Charles Daniels, Neal Davies, Christmas / Chanukkah, Classical, Classical Music

Average customer rating:

Two and a half stars

Not the Grand Oratorio that Haendel would Want it to be.

Maybe the best of the top-name period Messiahs

Not equal to Pinnock, Hogwood - Updated

Stunningly different

Handel - Messiah / Röschmann, Gritton, Fink , C. Daniels, N. Davies; McCreesh
George Frideric Handel , Paul McCreesh , Dorothea Röschmann , Susan Gritton , Gabrieli Consort & Players , Bernarda Fink , Charles Daniels , and Neal Davies
Manufacturer: Polygram Int'l
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Handel - Giulio Cesare / Jacobs

Handel - Messiah / Augér, von Otter, Chance, Crook, Tomlinson, English Concert, Pinnock

The Penguin Guide to Compact Discs and DVDs 2005/06 Edition: The Key Classical Recordings on CD, DVD and SACD, 30th Anniversary Edition (Penguin Guide to Compact Discs and Dvds)

ASIN: B000001GYW
Release Date: 1997-08-01

Tracks:

Messiah: Part the First (I) - Sinfony (Grave - Allegro moderato)
Messiah: Part the First (I) - Recitative, Accompanied (Tenor): Comfort Ye, Comfort Ye My People
Messiah: Part the First (I) - Song (Tenor): Ev'ry Valley Shall Be Exalted
Messiah: Part the First (I) - Chorus: And The Glory Of The Lord Shall Be Revealed
Messiah: Part the First (II) - Recitative, Accompanied (Bass): Thus Saith The Lord Of Hosts
Messiah: Part the First (II) - Song (Soprano II.): But Who May Abide The Day Of His Coming?
Messiah: Part the First (II) - Chorus: And He Shall Purify The Sons Of Levi
Messiah: Part the First (III) - Recitative (Contralto): Behold, A Virgin Shall Conceive
Messiah: Part the First (III) - Song (Contralto) & Chorus: O Thou That Tellest Good Tidings To Zion
Messiah: Part the First (III) - Recitative, Accompanied (Bass): For Behold, Darkness Shall Cover The Earth
Messiah: Part the First (III) - Song (Bass): The People That Walked In Darkness
Messiah: Part the First (III) - Chorus: For Unto Us A Child Is Born
Messiah: Part the First (IV) - Pifa (Pastoral Symphony)
Messiah: see Ext. Info
Messiah: Glory to God in the Highest
Messiah: Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Sion
Messiah: Then shall the Eyes of the Blind be open'd
Messiah: He shall feed his Flock
Messiah: His Yoke is easy, his Burthen is light
Messiah: Behold the Lamb of God
Messiah: He was despised
Messiah: Surely he hath borne our Griefs
Messiah: And with His Stripes we are healed
Messiah: All we, like Sheep, have gone astray
Messiah: All they that see him laugh him to scorn
Messiah: He trusted in God
Messiah: hy Rebuke hath broken his Heart
Messiah: Behold, and see, if there be any Sorrow
Messiah: He was cut off out of the Land
Messiah: But Thou didst not leave his Soul in Hell

Tracks:

Messiah: Chorus: Lift Up Your Heads, O Ye Gates
Messiah: Recitative (Tenor): Unto Which Of The Angels Said He At Any Time
Messiah: Chorus: Let All The Angels Of God Worship Him
Messiah: Song (Soprano I.): Thou Art Gone Up On High
Messiah: Chorus: The Lord Gave The Word
Messiah: Song (Soprano II.): How Beautiful Are The Feet
Messiah: Chorus: Their Sound Is Gone Out Into All Lands
Messiah: Song (Bass): Why Do The Nations So Furiously Rage Together
Messiah: Chorus: Let Us Break Their Bonds Asunder
Messiah: Recitative (Tenor): He That Dwelleth In Heaven - Song (Tenor): Thou Shalt Break Them With A Rod Of Iron
Messiah: Chorus: Hallelujah!
Messiah: Song (Soprano II.): I Know That My Redeemer Liveth
Messiah: Chorus: Since By Man Came Death
Messiah: Recitative, Accompanied (Bass): Behold, I Tell You A Mystery
Messiah: Song (Bass): The Trumpet Shall Sound
Messiah: Recitative (Contralto): Then Shall Be Brought To Pass
Messiah: Duet (Contralto & Tenor): O Death, Where Is Thy Sting?
Messiah: Chorus: But Thanks Be To God
Messiah: Song (Soprano I.): If God Is For Us
Messiah: Chours: Worthy Is The Lamb That Was Slain - Amen

Amazon.com

You would think that everyone in the world owned a copy of Messiah by now, and that there would certainly be no need to record new ones very year. Wrong! Here's DG's 1997 entry, and it's a fine one too. The only reservation is the recorded sound, which seems to be somewhat congested at the climaxes, as though the chorus and orchestra were recorded in differing acoustic spaces. Otherwise, this is as fine an "authentic" performance as we're likely to get. --David Hurwitz

Customer Reviews:

Two and a half stars.......2007-03-11

I bought this recording full of hope and excitement. I was almost certain that it was going to be the Messiah recordng of the decade. It should have been THE Messiah to have.

I've owned this recording since it was issued now, in the late '90s and I rarely listen to it now. I have several other recordings and I only listen to this one when I am comparing different versions.

What bothers me about this recording? A few things. I don't mind the sopranos and the men. The chorus is average. The orchestra is in good form and plays well. I don't mind the tempi and the overall approach. However, some things bug me a lot. The wobbly voice of Bernarda Fink is a major problem. The vibrato she uses is so constant and so patently un-Early Music, I am at a loss to think of a logical reason why a conductor like Paul McCreesh would have used this singer. Bernarda Fink has since dropped all pretence of being an "Early Music singer" and now sings 19th century Lieder with a full anachronistic vibrato with modern steinways. (Good luck to her! I doubt that her path and mine with cross again)
Her approach is decidedly "go back" - and I am not talking about the 17th century, but the mid TwenCen. If only Maestro McCreesh had employed Robin Blaze or Andreas Scholl for the alto arias, this Messiah might have been rescued somewhat.

There are better Messiah recordings out there. On the ARCHIV label itself is the worthy Trevor Pinnock recording. I still listen to the Pinnock recording with pleasure and joy. Hogwood's and Gardiner's are also good.

I paid top dollar for the Gabrieli Consort recording. I was not happy about that!

Not the Grand Oratorio that Haendel would Want it to be........2007-02-01

I bought this CD in 1998, almost 10 years ago. I have never enjoyed it from beginning to finish. It lacks severely in the ability to pull you right through: the tempi are wayward, varies uncomfortably, and leaves you wondering why an oratorio called Messiah should have rhythms so wayward and diverse without any emotional link.
I wouldn't comment on individual pieces: they also vary in standard of performances.
As a whole, it fails sadly to convince listeners that it IS the Messiah that Haendel would want it to be.

Maybe the best of the top-name period Messiahs.......2006-12-17

I lament the fact that The Messiah got into the hands of period geeks, who parse every edition and quibble over whether the chorus should contain 24 singers or two. But given the trend, McCreesh has several distinct advantages. Coming along in 1997, he missed the crest of the period craze caughty by Pinnock and Gardiner, the pioneer being Hogwood with his 1980 recording. On the other hand, the period movement was more mature, with better musicianship all aorund. McCreesh's palyers don't sound anemic and out of tune the way Gardiner's do, and all his soloists have mastered various stylistic elements of 'authentic' Handel singing. Whether it's actually authentic we will never know until a cache of hidden recordings form 1760 surfaces.

But at least this is a sincere stab at having a Messiah that Handel would recognize, and McCreesh is more dramatic than any of his precdecessors, who to be frank, are fairly tepid conductors. Incisive attacks and brisk tempos are what you'll get here, and solo singing that raanks with the best. I am giving this quality recording five stars because it stands out in the genre. In an ideal world, however, the Messiah would be done with more religious feeling and deeper musical insight.

Not equal to Pinnock, Hogwood - Updated.......2005-07-28

This is the most touted Messiah for a while, and certainly looks very stunning in its silver box. Sort of a flash back to the old Archiv Bach series that was avail in Europe for a short time. However, this does not match Hogwood or Pinnock, nor even Karl Richter.

Distracting was the unsteady performance of the contralto. In Hogwood's, Watkinson (though a bit unsteady) was superior IMHO. The soprano cannot match Kirkby in any event.

Orchestral forces seem to be a little hesitant for my liking. No, if you want a fresh recording, Hogwood's is far superior. Pinnock leads a close 2nd, only becuase the forces are more responsive in Hogwood. These recordings, though a bit older, are more exciting to me.

Universal's packaging was a saving grace, but certainly not worth the cost of full-priced CD's. The hype was almost as disappointing (once the finished product is in hand) as Glenn Gould's Well-Tempered set, or Schneiderhan/Richter's Bach Violin/Harpsichord Sonatas on DG. There are better Messiah bargains elsewhere, and even "modern" forces are preferable. The old saying applies here, a mediocre period performance cannot match a solid modern one.

Whatever Handel's Messiah means to you, this one is coming off my shelf, and I cannot recommend it with enthusiasm. I'm thinking ebay...

Someone mentioned I should qualify my statements about Pinnock & Hogwood. I am very biased in this respect I must admit, as my own continuo and general harpsichord-playing styles are very similar. These two gentlemen also formed the basis of my preoccupation with "authentic-instrument" and indeed, were the original inspiration for my learning the harpsichord.

I admire their choices for the vocal leads in the Messiah recordings, and I still think Hogwood's treatment is my favourite in terms of texture, voicing, phrasing, and momentum. Yet, he accomodates the performers in such a way that they are free to express themselves within the context of the period performance without sounding stodgy or rehearsed. IMHO still a spontaneous, entertaining, nearly-live performance without actually being such.

Stunningly different.......2005-06-08

I have listened to various recordings of Handel's Messiah all my life and enjoyed them all in different ways. This recording is head and shoulders above anything I have heard before. The orchestra is crisp and incisive, the soloists have wonderful voices AND good taste, and the tempos are fresh and exciting. So many other performances are marred by bad strings, mushy choral ensemble work, romantic soloists or dull, uninspired, feeble tempos.

I guess you can always debate about interpretation of one or another of the movements but for me, this recording is the new standard by which all others will be judged.

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