Haydn: Nelsonmesse; Theresienmesse

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
John Eliot Gardiner continues his survey of Haydn's later Masses with this pairing of the much celebrated Nelson Mass--more properly known as Missa in angustiis--and the Theresienmesse. Written in 1798, as the Latin title has it, during straitened times, the Nelson Mass has long been associated with a performance given two years later at the Esterhazy palace when the victor of the Nile, along with Lady and Sir William Hamilton, paid a visit there. Its prominent timpani and trumpets ring forth with a series of resplendent fanfares that have firmly established the work as one of Haydn's most enduringly popular. The Theresienmesse, composed a year later, is a more intimate piece, with clarinets to soften the scoring and extended roles for the soloists. The brief Te Deum, in the brightly lit key of C major, makes an appropriate companion to Nelson on the first disc.

Eliot Gardiner brings his usual refreshingly astringent approach to these works, driving the music hard and pushing his singers to clarify every nuance. The result will sound a little acerbic for some ears, especially those not yet accustomed to period performance, but there's no doubting the conductor's commitment to seeking out the very heart of this repertoire. Those staccato trumpet fanfares in the "Benedictus" of the Missa in angustiis have never sounded quite so nakedly aggressive, and the buildup to them never so spine-tingling (thanks also to the pristine sound recording, stripped bare of woolly reverberation). The band, choir, and soloists are impeccable, of course. Even those who remain faithful to Trevor Pinnock's benchmark account of the Nelson will find that Eliot Gardiner, as ever, has something new to add. --Mark Walker

Tracks:

Kyrie: Gloria
Gloria In Excelsis Deo
Gratias Agimus Tibi
Quoniam Tu Solus Sanctus
Credo In Unum Deum
Et Incarnatus Est
Et Resurrexit
Et Vitam Venturi Saeculi
Sanctus
Benedictus
Agnus Dei
Dona Nobis Pacem
Kyrie - Carolyn Watkinson
Gloria In Excelsis Deo - Carolyn Watkinson
Qui Tollis - Carolyn Watkinson
Quoniam Tu Solus Sanctus - Carolyn Watkinson
Credo In Unum Deum - Carolyn Watkinson
Et Incarnatus Est - Carolyn Watkinson
Et Resurrexit - Carolyn Watkinson
Sanctus - Carolyn Watkinson
Benedictus - Carolyn Watkinson
Osanna - Carolyn Watkinson
Agnus Dei - Carolyn Watkinson
Dona Nobis Pacem - Carolyn Watkinson

Tracks:

Kyrie - Barbara Hendricks
Gloria - Barbara Hendricks
Credo - Barbara Hendricks
Sanctus - Barbara Hendricks
Benedictus - Barbara Hendricks
Agnus Dei - Barbara Hendricks
Kyrie
Gloria In Excelsis Deo
Gratias Agimus Tibi
Quoniam Tu Solus Sanctus
Credo In Unum Deum
Et Incarnatus Est
Et Resurrexit
Sanctus
Benedictus
Agnus Dei
Dona Nobis Pacem

Customer Reviews:

Haydn's MASS Appeal.......2006-03-09

The great Franz Joseph Haydn remains unquestionably one of the greatest composers in the history of Western music, having laid down the template for the forms of the string quartet, and perfecting the symphonic form a hundred and four times over. But "Papa" Haydn also was prolific in the area of sacred music, composing two great oratorios ("The Seasons"; "The Creation"), and a staggering fourteen settings of the Latin Mass.

Four of those settings of the Mass are to be found on this 2-CD compilation of recordings made back in the 1980s by Sir Neville Marriner and the Dresden State Orchestra (Staatskapelle Dresden), along with a cadre of vocal soloists, organist Hansjurgen Schloze, and the Leipzig Radio Chorus. The "Little Organ" (no. 7), "Heiligmesse" (no. 10), "Lord Nelson" (no. 11), and "Theresiemesse" (no. 12), are all given impassioned and towering performances, especially given the fact the size of the orchestra is not much larger than that of the composer's symphonies (no trombones; mostly strings, timpani, and trumpets), other than the obvious addition of the organ.

Barbara Hendricks is the vocal soloist in no. 7, while Carol Vaness (soprano), Doris Soffel (contralto), Keith Lewis (tenor), and Petteri Salomaa (bass) are the soloists for nos. 10 and 12, and Margaret Marshall (soprano), Carolyn Watkinson (contralto), and Robert Holl (bass) join Lewis on no. 12. Marriner, the great founder of the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields and the first music director of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, leads the Dresdeners, their Leipzig colleagues, and this assembly of great vocalists through some of the greatest sacred music ever written. This 2-CD set is strongly recommended for any classical fan, especially if choral and/or sacred music is their favorite classical genre.

Average customer rating:

Haydn: Nelsonmesse; Theresienmesse

Manufacturer: Philips
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Sacred & Religious | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Masses | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Te Deum | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
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Peter Lieberson: Neruda Songs

ASIN: B00005YQ26
Release Date: 2003-01-14

Tracks:

Kyrie
Gloria In Excelsis Deo
Qui Tollis Peccata Mundi
Quoniam Tu Solus Sanctus
Credo In Unum Deum
Et Incarnatus Est
Et Resurrexit
Sanctus
Benedictus
Agnus Dei
Dona Nobis Pacem
Te Deum, Hob. XXIIIc:2

Tracks:

Kyrie
Gloria In Excelsis Deo
Gratias Agimus Tibi
Quoniam Tu Solus Sanctus
Credo In Unum Deum
Et Incarnatus Est
Et Resurrexit
Sanctus
Benedictus
Agnus Dei
Dona Nobis Pacem

Amazon.com

John Eliot Gardiner continues his survey of Haydn's later Masses with this pairing of the much celebrated Nelson Mass--more properly known as Missa in angustiis--and the Theresienmesse. Written in 1798, as the Latin title has it, during straitened times, the Nelson Mass has long been associated with a performance given two years later at the Esterhazy palace when the victor of the Nile, along with Lady and Sir William Hamilton, paid a visit there. Its prominent timpani and trumpets ring forth with a series of resplendent fanfares that have firmly established the work as one of Haydn's most enduringly popular. The Theresienmesse, composed a year later, is a more intimate piece, with clarinets to soften the scoring and extended roles for the soloists. The brief Te Deum, in the brightly lit key of C major, makes an appropriate companion to Nelson on the first disc.

Eliot Gardiner brings his usual refreshingly astringent approach to these works, driving the music hard and pushing his singers to clarify every nuance. The result will sound a little acerbic for some ears, especially those not yet accustomed to period performance, but there's no doubting the conductor's commitment to seeking out the very heart of this repertoire. Those staccato trumpet fanfares in the "Benedictus" of the Missa in angustiis have never sounded quite so nakedly aggressive, and the buildup to them never so spine-tingling (thanks also to the pristine sound recording, stripped bare of woolly reverberation). The band, choir, and soloists are impeccable, of course. Even those who remain faithful to Trevor Pinnock's benchmark account of the Nelson will find that Eliot Gardiner, as ever, has something new to add. --Mark Walker

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