Berlioz: Messe Solennelle [Import]

Track Listings

1. Introduction

2. Kyrie

3. Gloria

4. Gratias

5. Quoniam

6. Credo

7. Incarnatus

8. Crucifixus

9. Resurrexit (Original Version)

10. Motet Pour L'offertoire

11. Sanctus

12. O Salutaris

13. Agnus Dei

14. Domine, Salvum

15. Resurrexit (Revised Version)

Tracks:

Egli non riede ancora! - Non so le tetre immagini
Les Chemins de l'amour
E Susanna non vien! - Dove sono i bei momenti
Non! tu ne m'aimes pas!
Es gibt ein Reich
Thy Hand, Belinda - When I Am Laid In Earth
Auf dem See, D. 543
L'ile inconne
Von ewiger Liebe, Op. 43 No. 1
Oft denk' ich, sie sind nur ausgegangen
Fruhling
Love Is Here To Stay
Ave Marie
Sanctus

Customer Reviews:

Simply Wonderful.......2003-11-15

I have always loved Jessye Norman since the first time I heard her voice. That occasion occurred when I bought a completely unknown Verdi opera, Il Corsaro, and was delighted with the result. I knew who Caballe was (I had recordings of her singing, and enjoyed them), but Jessye Norman was a complete unknown to me. I was taken back by the rich vibrant spacious voice that I heard. What also interested me was the fact she could do coloratura work, and float a very beautiful high B flat. The voice then was not as fully developed as now, nor was her artistry as deep, but what I heard was simply breathtaking and I was hooked on her as an artist from that time forth.

This disk is simply a sampling of her singing, and it does show her singing a wide variety of things. She is not perfect in everything she sings (and even the Great Maria Callas was not successful in everything she sang, and I doubt any artist is; some works simply are better suited to their voices and their temperments than others), but one cannot fault her interpretations. The voice is always beautiful and well managed.

I perfer Norman in German opera, which is sampled here, and even though I think she sings a great Strauss (the Ariadne) I feel that composer really doesn't give her much. I have a recording of her doing Salome, which I love and she is superb, but Strauss is not the composer for her. Wagner is where she really sings and takes your breath away. Sadly, there is no real representation of his music here.

French opera is another place she really excels. However, nothing of any real worth is represented here.

American music, particularly spirituals, is another field in which she is sublime. Her Christmas Album is incredible. In this area all we have is the Gershwin, which is extremely well sung, but not really to my liking. To me, for some reason, Ethel Mermon should be singing that song.

As for the Baroque music; Norman is actually exceptional in it. Her voice is fabulous and breathes much warmth into music that is often sung in such a cold lifeless way it loses any power to communicate. I happen to love her Dido (I have the complete opera, and I have that opera with many other singers who are equally fine). I do agree with the one writer who stated that her voice is really "too much" for this music. It actually is. If one has heard Norman in real life, she has an incredibly powerful, full voice. It has nobility in it that is well suited to the grandest of the grand. She is an unforgetable Cassandre in Berlioz's opera. In many ways, it is like hearing Brunhilde sing Vivaldi with the voice large enough to wash over a Wagnerian orchestra being accompanied by 10 instruments. However, not matter how loud or strong her singing, the voice always remains warm, caressing, and enveloping (it is never sharp and penetrating like Nilsson cutting into the ear like a spear). Norman never violates the style of the music she sings. She just has a huge voice. Yes, she can sing the most melting pianissimos, and does so, but God gave her a treasure trove (not a simple chest) of virtues and abilities in her voice. Even though I love her voice, and her singing of Dido, the truth is she is too much of a good thing for that role. Now that isn't to say the music is lesser music, not at all for it is truly great music, it is simply the way it is written, the style of the period it comes from, and the emotional content and the way it should be expressed is simply not right for her lush and glorious sound.

With all this said, this is a super recording. The sound is excellent. I would say, Norman did very well with her recording career having Philips be her label. They have served her voice well. One thing I must say, and this is rather general about recordings; Philips has really done well to capture the true quality of this amazing voice. Most companies simply can't capture large voices well, and often we hear their many problems before we can hear their many strengths. Decca for all its wonderful recording technique never captured the real Nilsson, nor the real Sutherland (and definitely not the real Tebaldi), simply because the miking system has the most terrible time capturing large voices without distorting them. EMI was the worst at capturing big sounding voices and keeping them sounding true.

Philips has managed to capture the sound of Norman's voice and to remain fairly true to it. One is not surprised to hear her in performance after hearing one of her recordings. You just feel more "part of it" in a live setting than on the recordings. Nilsson shocked me, for I was completely unprepared for the strength of her penetrating and exciting sound when I hear her live for the first time. It was like the records captured only a shadow of what and who she was.

The fact that the engineers at Philips have captured her sound so well really places this recording (and all the rest of Normon's recordings) on the top of my list for "authentic sound." I recommend this recording as a wonderful introduction to the art of Jessye Norman. She is a complete artist, and like all singers, she has areas where she is super and without rival, and other areas where she is not necessarily our first choice. Yet, no matter what she sings one can never claim she is uninvolved, detached, or careless in her work. She sings with conviction, and she puts her own stamp on everything she sings. She literally makes the music her own.

Jessye is the best!.......2001-08-09

This is an excellent sampling of some of Jessye's great works. She is so clear and vibrant. You will want to listen to this over and over again. I even bought some of the full length recordings of her music that was sampled here.

A monumental talent.......2000-08-06

Jessye Norman has a landmark voice. It has such warmth, variety of colour, strength and depth that few can surpass her interpretations. The tracks on this CD are a good mixture that show off the best qualities of her voice.

Of course few CDs are perfect and, I'm afraid this is not one of them. Although the Poulenc and Brahms songs are supurbly executed and the Strauss song and aria are similarly noteworthy I must take exception to two of the renditions. Jessye's Dido leaves something to be desired. For me, and those others I have discussed this with, her voice is too rich and uncharacteristic for a touching Baroque aria. I've had the good fortune to play continuo in a live performance of Dido and Aeneas and the Dido in that performance was much colder, though still emotional. For me too Jessye's vibrato is a little too much for the work. Likewise unsatisfactory for me was the Gerschwin. I thought it was a little too much like a vacuum cleaner at points (no offence intended).

However, given the overall stunning quality and effortlessly beautiful singing I felt compelled to give this a 5 star rating, after all there is still over one hour of sublime music and perhaps others will like her renditions of the two tracks I highlighted.

Berlioz: Messe Solennelle
Average customer rating:

Berlioz Manifestation

A unique glimpse into the Berlioz of the future.

Used CD Surprise

A Fascinating Glimpse into Berlioz's early history

Musical scrapbook

Berlioz: Messe Solennelle

Manufacturer: Polygram Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

All Works by Berlioz | Berlioz, Hector | ( B ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
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Orchestre Rivolutionnaire et Romantique | ( O ) | Featured Performers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
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Tracks:

Messe Solennelle: Introduction
Messe Solennelle: Kyrie
Messe Solennelle: Gloria
Messe Solennelle: Gratias
Messe Solennelle: Quoniam
Messe Solennelle: Credo
Messe Solennelle: Incarnatus
Messe Solennelle: Crucifixus
Messe Solennelle: Resurrexit (original version)
Messe Solennelle: Motet pour l'Offertoire
Messe Solennelle: Sanctus
Messe Solennelle: O salutaris
Messe Solennelle: Agnus Dei
Messe Solennelle: Domine, salvum
Messe Solennelle: Resurrexit (revised version)

Customer Reviews:

Berlioz Manifestation.......2006-02-06

The Hector Berlioz Messe Solennelle was discovered and premiered just more than a decade ago, and it surprises me that it hasn't seen more performances since then. It is a youthful work (Berlioz was 20) and it visibly has spawns of future famous works (Symphony Fantastique, Requiem, Te Deum, and operas). Scored for orchestra, chorus, and soprano, tenor, and bass soloists, Berlioz's mature qualities also exist in the score, great melodic writing, interesting orchestral colors and timbres, as well as creative and forward-looking harmonic treatments.

The mass itself is divided into many sections, some I was familiar with, others, not so much: Introduction, Kyrie, Gloria (Gloria, Gratias, and Quoniam), Credo (Credo, Incarnatus, Crucifixus, and Resurrexit), Offertory Motet, Sanctus, O Salutaris, Agnus Dei, and Domine Salvum. The brief introduction's purpose is to set the "D" pitch center that Berlioz will play with throughout, and leads into the opening murky Kyrie fugue; the grimness is aided by offbeat orchestra strikes. As the text moves to Christe, the minor turns to major, but the Kyrie fugue returns; an acceleration to the end however, leads to a triumphant close. The three sections of the Gloria are greatly contrasted: The highly melodic Gloria uses the voices as instrumental accompaniment; the result is an almost witty setting, nearly sounding like Poulenc; Berlioz was certainly ahead of his time. The peaceful Gratias is very pastoral with a gentle lilt; written for SSA to begin, a stirring and emotional orchestration occurs at the bass's entrance near the end. The vivacious Quoniam is a treacherous fugue at whirlwind speeds; a great showstopper. The four-part Credo is also very dramatic: The opening Credo for bass soloist includes some chirpings of birds and a moderate march with chorus. The Incarnatus is a very simple sounding, peaceful duet for soprano and bass soloists leading into the Crucifixus. Odd intervals and orchestrations move the action toward the resurrection, a boisterous finale complete with brass fanfares, patter-song speeds for chorus, and a quirky, yet catchy, melody which culminates into a cataclysmic close. The Offertory Motet for chorus and bass soloist is in a pompous three, at first, reminding me of G. F. Handel. The brusque Sanctus is fanfare-like in voice and orchestra, unlike the stolid settings by Haydn, while the O Salutaris is a peaceful, simple section for chorus; the harps enter and the heavenly peace musically descends. The tenor soloist enters for the first time in the Agnus Dei with other-worldly female chanting; and the whole work concludes with agitated tenor/bass soloists and chorus in Domine Salvum; but all ends triumphantly with full ensemble. In some cases, like in the larger sections, the music moves dramtically, almost plot-based like and opera, creating some really interesting visual depictions of the mass.

The music is highly inventive for 1824; the voice writing is virtuosic in parts, the contraltos are REAL contraltos in a very low tessitura. The orchestrations are wild; at times they sound completely removed from the Classical Era and occasionally modern; other times sounding unusually antique, with occasional hints of Handel and Mozart. Berlioz, however, is unusually good at writing melody and varied textures, where this work shines. The world premier recording with John Eliot Gardiner and the Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique, a period instrument ensemble, sizzle with energy on this Philips recording. All voices speak well and is excellently played; the Monteverdi Choir is good as usual, and the soloists are dynamite. Recorded at Westminster Cathedral, the reverberant atmosphere works OK; the chorus bears most of the brunt, occasionally sounding swimmy, and while I enjoy period orchestras, the acoustics amplify some of the tinny-qualities. While I hope there will soon be a modern orchestra recording to add to this recording, this is full of live-performance passion, and a great way to explore further into Berlioz's catalogue.

A unique glimpse into the Berlioz of the future........2003-12-12

Two hundred years ago today, Louis-Hector Berlioz was born. This is a day for me to comment on a few of my favorite performances of his works, some of them "favorites by acclamation" and others simply those in which I find special merit, enough so that they are frequently in my CD players.

Never mind that Hector Berlioz destroyed this student work. It is our good fortune that a copy of the manuscript survived these efforts, and moreover ended up in the hands of John Eliot Gardiner, who directs his Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique and the Montiverdi Choir plus soloists in this premiere recording. (The story of the discovery of the manuscript, believed - or at least hoped - by Berlioz to have been destroyed, is very well set out in the comprehensive booklet notes, as are Gardiner's comments on the work and "getting it to work.")

This is truly "Hector in the raw," the work of a 20-year-old Paris Conservatory student barely trained in the essentials (a burden he would carry around, on and off, throughout his life, thanks to his critics, not to mention his own proclivities toward writing music having few if any harmonic or rhythmic antecedents and which others couldn't fathom). The work clearly has its weaknesses: structural, harmonic, melodic, rhythmic and melodic immaturities simply flood the work, and it is little wonder that, after only two performances, Berlioz designated the work for the scrapheap.

But either he kept good notebooks or he had total recall. So much of this work showed up later (suitably transmogrified, of course, but far from totally disguised) in several of his mature masterpieces: the Symphonie fantastique, the Requiem, the Te Deum, and even his mid-period opera Benvenuto Cellini. Anyone familiar with these works will have little trouble identifying precursor sources throughout the Messe Solennelle. And even the "bad bits" that never did get recycled into later works have their own share of visceral excitement and primitive charm, despite all the weaknesses noted.

The performance, by Gardiner and his troupe, could hardly be more authentic short of partaking of time travel and actually being at the true premiere. The Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique is a true period-instrument ensemble (and sounds it), not only for its insistence on the reproduction of "standard" instruments of the time (low-tension stringed instruments, valveless trumpets and horns, etc.) but also for its incorporation of instruments (which Berlioz in the main plucked out of the brass bands of the time) that have now been obsolete for nearly as long as the work has been around: bass brass instruments that include the ophicleide, the buccin and the serpent. And what a joyful noyse this ensemble makes!

The vocal soloists are uniformly fine. Gilles Cachemaille, the bass, is an old hand at singing Berlioz, and Donna Brown (soprano) and Jean-Luc Viala, while not known to me before this recording also acquit themselves very well.

Recorded now a decade ago, in Westminster Cathedral (to best simulate its initial premiere venue, Saint-Roch in Paris), the sound is certainly among the best for such a type of venue: a great sense of acoustical space, but not buried in excessive reverberation. Very nicely done!

Not long after this recording came out, Bernard Holland, writing in the New York Times, said, "Mr. Gardiner seems to have the early franchise on the 'Messe Solennelle'." As far as I know, this is still the case a decade later. And perhaps that is as it should be; the last thing we need is to have another conductor come along, take a close look at the score, and try to "improve" it. Best that we hear this "Hector in the raw" as it was meant to be heard, and not all "prettified up."

Bon anniversaire, M. Berlioz!

Bob Zeidler

Used CD Surprise.......2002-01-18

I found this lonely CD wallowing in a used CD bin. I have given it a new home and have been amazed by how it shines. The Kyrie flows as gently and caressingly as a loving whisper which culminates in a suitable outburst of pure joy. There is a terrific cushion of melody that Berlioz employs in the Gloria & Gratias. Both versions of the Resurrexit included on this disc are stellar and recall my favorite passages from the Requiem. This may be pedestrian Berlioz, but it is truly a lovely mass setting and not the least bit disappointing.

A Fascinating Glimpse into Berlioz's early history.......2001-09-05

Although it does sound at times a bit pedestrian, Berlioz's earliest surviving choral work does have its moments where it sounds as grand as Verdi's or Brahms' requiems. Gardiner and his forces make a compelling case for it as a potentially important part of Berlioz's oeuvre. However, most fascinating to me is hearing fragments of themes which Berlioz later reshaped for his Symphonie Fantastique and Roman Carnival overture. Admittedly, this is one score of interest more to those who are admirers of Berlioz or students of his music.

Musical scrapbook.......2000-04-07

It had long been thought that Berlioz destroyed all copies of his early Messe solennelle but the recent discovery of a surviving copy allowed this world premiere recording to be made. Recorded live, it draws a pretty tepid audience applause after the final clunky Domine, salvum. The work is admittedly pretty weak at times; Berlioz was probably justified in destroying the score as a whole but he was also right in salvaging the better parts, such as those that he later worked into his Roman Carnival Overture and Symphonie Fantastique, among other pieces. It's a fascinating listen, no matter what its shortcomings, for one can hear the genesis of many of his most popular themes. Gardiner and company do a great job in bringing it to life, in spite of the very reverberant acoustic.

Average customer rating:

A gateway drug, nothing more, nothing less.
Decent Selection, But...
A must-have classical music set!

Best Classics 100

Manufacturer: Capitol
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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The Most Relaxing Classical Music in the Universe

ASIN: B0001M65HE
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Tracks:

Handel: The Arrival Of The Queen Of Sheba
Vivaldi: Spring (The Four Seasons)
J.S. Bach: Toccata in D Minor
Mozart: Horn Concerto No. 4 in E Flat
Beethoven: Symphony No. 5
Tchaikovsky: '1812' Overture
Beethoven: Ode To Joy (Symphony #9)
Grieg: Piano Concerto in A Minor
Sibelius: Alla Marcia (Karelia Suite)
Holst: Jupiter, The Bringer Of Jollity
Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No.1
Sibelius: Finlandia
Verdi: Gloria All'egitto (Aida)
Prokofiev: Montagues And Capulets (Romeo & Juliet)
J. Strauss I: Radetzky March
Elgar: Pomp And Circumstance March No.1
Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 3
Saint-Saens: Symphony No. 3 'Organ'

Tracks:

J. S. Bach: Air 'On The G String'
Gluck: Dance Of The Blessed Spirits
Pachelbel: Canon
Mozart: Clarinet Concerto in A
J.S. Bach: Goldberg Variations
Albinoni: Adagio
Beethoven: Piano Sonata 'Moonlight'
Mozart: Flute & Harp Concerto in C
Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E Minor
Mozart: Piano Concerto 'Elivira Madigan'
Dvorak: Symphony No. 9
Bruch: Violin Concerto No. 1
Elgar: Nimrod
Rodrigo: Concierto De Aranjuez
Vaughan Williams: The Lark Ascending
Mahler: Symphony No. 5
Rachmaninov: Rhapsody On A Theme of Paganini

Tracks:

Bizet: Au fond du temple saint (Les Pjcheurs de perles)
Dvorak: Song to the Moon (Rusalka)
Delibes: Dtme Epais (Lakmi)
Bizet: La Fleur Que Tu M'avais Jetie (Carmen)
Gluck: Che Farr Senza Euridice? (Orfeo & Euridice)
Bellini: Casta Diva (Norma)
Puccini: Che Gelida Manina (La Bohhme)
Puccini: O Mio Babbino Caro (Gianno Schicchi)
Trad: Baolhro
Puccini: Vogliatemi Bene (Madama Butterfly)
Verdi: Va, Pensiero (Nabucco)
Lehar: Es Lebt' Eine Vilja (Die Lustige Witwe)
Handel: Ombra Mai Fy (Serse)
Schubert: Ave Maria
Adam: Minuit, Chritiens (O Holy Night)
Puccini: Nessun Dorma (Turandot)

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Mozart: The Marriage of Figaro
J.S. Bach: Jesus bleibet meine Freud
Beethoven: Piano Concerto 'Emperor'
Clarke: Trumpet Voluntary
Gounod: Judex
Rossini: La scala di Seta
Handel: Sarabande
Tchaikovsky: Waltz of the Flowers
Prokofiev: Troika
Williams: Fantasia on 'Greensleeves'
Debussy: Clair de lune
Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake
Myers: Cavatina
Chopin: Piano Concerto No.1
Horner: My Heart Will Go On
Quarantotto: Time to Say Goodbye
J. Strauss II: The Blue Danube

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Mascagni: Intermezzo
Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No.2
Grieg: Morning (Peer Gynt)
Shostakovich: Romance
Barber: Adagio For Strings
Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade
Massenet: Miditation
Borodin: Polovtsian Dances
Khachaturian: Adagio Of Spartacus And Phrygia
Tchaikovsky: Romeo And Juliet Overture
Beethoven: Symphony No.7
J. S. Bach: Double Violin Concerto
Williams: Schindler's List Theme
Tchaikovsky: Dance Of The Reed Flutes
Beethoven: Symphony No. 6 'Pastoral'

Tracks:

Handel: Zadok The Priest
J. S. Bach: Zion Hvrt Die Wdchter
Allegri: Miserere Mei, Deus
Schubert: German Mass
Franck: Panis Angelicus
Berlioz: L'adieu Des Bergers
Gounod: St Cecilia Mass
Faure: In Paradisum
Mozart: Laudate Dominum
Faure: Cantique De Jean Racine
Verdi: Ingemisco
Mozart: Ave Verum Corpus
Handel: I Know That My Redeemer Liveth
Haydn: The Heavens Are Telling
Faure: Pie Jesu
Mozart: Lacrimosa (Requiem)
Handel: Hallelujah Chorus

Customer Reviews:

A gateway drug, nothing more, nothing less. .......2007-03-11

To say that this album constitutes a necessity for the classical music enthusiast would be a great big unarguable lie. It has nothing innovative to offer you as a listener, except for maybe the labelling of melodies such as "My Heart Will Go On" (that god-awful Love Theme from the gruesome film Titanic) as a worthy member of "Best Classics 100". But than again, every collection of things that does not naturally belong together, is bound to have at least one outcast where the connection clearly isn't based on anything but cost and sale-ability.

This might sound like the beginning of a CD-slaughter, or a snobbish review where only the Deutche Grammophone's recordings are meting my standards, but although I am fairly picky when it comes to musical collections, best of albums, and such horrifying destructions of the universality of the works and the intentions of the artist behind it, I am willing to give this collection another chance, since classical music is somewhere between Arabic and wine in degree of unmanageability. It also helps that all the tunes are familiar to almost every one of us, and the fact that the artists' intentions probably got killed by the hundreds of different conductors trying to convey their personal interpretation of the works.

What I am saying is that this CD can be to classical music enthusiast what 'absolute rock' can be to a rock enthusiast, or to someone slightly interested, with no conceptual frames of where to start the search for knowledge. "Best Classics 100" offers nothing except a selection of melodies where there's bound to be one for every taste, but where the album feeling, the entirety or completeness intended by the composer, or conductor, or performer is completely lost in a trade-off made with variety.

The collection is attempted organised by giving each CD a different theme, supposedly to describe the mood of the music, and the labeller succeeds only to a limited extent as we move from themes such as 'uplifting' and 'relaxing' towards 'golden'. I wonder what that golden feeling constitutes. It apparently is to be found in, amongst others, "Jesus Bleibet Meine Freunde", and in "My Heart Will Go On"?

But no matter how I try to describe this CD it will sound worse than it actually is. This because to me it works as a great reference to which I can always turn with my classical music questions. Was it Schumann or Schubert who were the sad one? Of all the -inis, which where which again? Who composed "O Mio Babbino Caro"? The starting point for finding out if you belong to the romantic or the renascence wing, lies within this assemblage, if you look with your ears.

If you feel that classical music is something you like, and you'd like to learn more about it, this is a way to get started. If used together with a book on classical music, or wikipedia, it can be a gateway drug, leading you towards the great different experiences to be found within the different genres of classical music, and within the different periods ranging from the 12th century, maybe even earlier, towards yesterdays and tomorrows spectacular compositions of melodies that conveys a feeling, a state of mind with much more precision than any other musical genre. Expect a fairly alright collection of classical prunes, and you won't be disappointed.

Decent Selection, But..........2005-04-21

...The Audio Quality is really not great. I bought this CD because I am new to classical, and the price was great! 100 songs for 25 bucks, thats like 25 cents a song, most songs are 1 dollar or more. Now I know why it's cheaper. The audio quality isn't that good. I imported the entire collection to my computer using Apple Lossless, and it sounded fuzzy, not crisp, with background noise, and sounded like compressed music, cutting off the frequency response.
I then played the CD's through my home stereo, with the same results. I plugged in my SHURE E5c headphones and the sound was soft, uninviting, lacking punch, with significant backgound noise (not just from the headphones), which was especially distracting when the music would get softer. I have heard much of the music before, and it was much more dynamic, entertaining, this recording seems too flat.
The music selection is ok, but I was hoping for some more interesting selections from the vast classical genre.
Overall, not that great of a recording, but many might not notice the difference, so if you are new to classical or aren't like an audiophile, get this album because it's a great overview of pop-culture classical, and it's pretty inexpensive.

A must-have classical music set!.......2005-01-06

Classical music is, by far, my favorite type of music. It can make you happy or sad, it can make you laugh or cry, and it can make you want to fall asleep or get up and dance. This 6-disc set is a must-have for and classical music-lover! It has all the great composers like Handel, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Mozart, Bach, and Pachelbel. Some great songs include: Canon In D(Pachelbel), Morning: Peergynt(Grieg), Adagio For Strings(Barber), Cavatina(Myers), and much, much more. Every classical song you can think of is on here and the sound quality is great. So if you're looking for a good classical music CD, this set is all you need. Be prepared to be blown away!

Average customer rating:

Jessye Norman Collection

Manufacturer: Philips
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Spring Is Here
Love Is Here To Stay
In The Still Of The Night
With A Song In My Heart
Ave Maria
Amazing Grace
Greensleeves (What Child Is This)
The Holy City
Panis Angelicus
Messe solennelle de Ste. Cecile: Sanctus
There Is A Man Going Round
Give Me Jesus
Couldn't Hear Nobody Pray
Do Lawd, Oh Do Lawd
Gospel Train
He's Got The Whole World In His Hands

Tracks:

'Le nozze di Figaro': Porgi, amor
'Le nozze di Figaro': Dove sono i bei momenti
Zueignung, Op.10 No.1
'Ariadne Auf Naxos': Es gibt ein reich
Fruhling
Schlechtes Wetter, Op.69 No.5
'Dido and Aeneas': Dido's Lament: When I'm laid In Earth
'Les Nuits D'Ete': Le Spectre De La Rose
Gretchen am spinnrade
L'invitation au voyage
Je te veux
Les chemins de L'amour
'Tristan und Isolde': Tristan und Isolde: Isoldes Liebestod

Great Operatic Arias: Bruce Ford, Vol. 2

Average customer rating:

Great Operatic Arias: Bruce Ford, Vol. 2

Manufacturer: Chandos
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

General | Arias | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

French | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Italian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Oratorios | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

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

Oratorios | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Bruce Ford - Great Operatic Arias
Bruce Ford - Serious Rossini ~ Ricciardo e Zoraide · Armida · Mosè in Egitto · Otello · Ugo re d'Italia

ASIN: B0000AW0YH
Release Date: 2003-09-23

Tracks:

Comfort Ye My People
Ev'ry Valley Shall Be Exaulted
Her Beauty's A Wonder
If This Empire
All My Thoughts Are In Turmoil - Betrayed Me... Abused Me...
The True Sublime Enjoyment
I Lost The Will To Action
My Poor Heart Is So Full Of Emotion
Lord God Almighty
It Is Certain. She Wrote This Letter
One Hour To Wait Now
What Is This, Companions?
Death's Unrelenting Call
Aria: 'Rejoice Greatly, O Daughter Of Zion'
My Heart And I - We Are In Love With You
Oh, What A Beautiful Mornin'

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O Come Let Us Sing
Paul Manz , Healey Willan , Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina , Hector Berlioz , Charles Callahan , Maurice Durufle , Pablo Casals , Thomas Tallis , Charles Gounod , William Byrd , Charles Villiers Stanford , Joseph Noyon , Donald Dumler , Choir of St. Patrick's Cathedral , and John-Michael Caprio
Manufacturer: Gothic Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Oratorios | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

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

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

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

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

General Christmas | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music
Similar Items:

Alleluia: An American Hymnal
Jesus of Nazareth

ASIN: B000003J9U
Release Date: 1997-09-16

Tracks:

Venite, Exultemus Domino: O Come, Let Us Sing Unto The Lord
E'en So, Lord Jesus, Quickly Come
Liturgical Motet No. 7, For Advent: Lo, In The Time Appointed
In The Bleak Mid-Winter
Loving Mother Of Our Savoir: Alma Redemptoris Mater
'L'Enfance dlu Christ', Op. 25: Thou Must Leave Thy Lowly Dwelling
Sicut Cervus (As The Hart)
Father Of All
Where Charity: Ubi caritas
O ye People: O vos omnes
If Ye Love Me
Sanctus: Messe Solennelle (St. Cecilia)
Hail, O Hail True Body: Ave Verum Corpus
Deep In my Heart I Bear My Lord: Porto Jesus dins el meu cor: Eucaristica
Six Motets, No. 4: O Sacred Feast
Thou Art Peter: Tu es Petrus
Nigra Sum (I Am Black): Decepto ex Canticis
Three Motets, Op. 38: Beati Quorum Via
Six Motets, No. 2: O How Glorious
Christ Has Conquered: Christus Vincit

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Rereleased: A unique glimpse into the Berlioz of the future.

Berlioz: Messe Solennelle

Manufacturer: Polygram Int'l
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

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

Classical | Imports | Stores | Music
ASIN: B000051YD7
Release Date: 2000-12-25

Tracks:

Introduction
Kyrie
Gloria
Gratias
Quoniam
Credo
Incarnatus
Crucifixus
Resurrexit (Original Version)
Motet Pour L'offertoire
Sanctus
O Salutaris
Agnus Dei
Domine, Salvum
Resurrexit (Revised Version)

Customer Reviews:

Rereleased: A unique glimpse into the Berlioz of the future........2003-12-15

Two hundred years ago this week, Louis-Hector Berlioz was born. This, then, is a time for me to comment on a few of my favorite performances of his works, some of them "favorites by acclamation" and others simply those in which I find special merit, enough so that they are frequently in my CD players.

Never mind that Hector Berlioz destroyed this student work. It is our good fortune that a copy of the manuscript survived these efforts, and moreover ended up in the hands of John Eliot Gardiner, who directs his Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique and the Montiverdi Choir plus soloists in this premiere recording.

Seemingly because of its central importance in better understanding the Berlioz canon of works - as well as its splendid recorded sound that captures the excitement of the performance - this premiere recording of the Messe Solennelle has now been deemed worthy to be rereleased as a member of the distinguished "Philips 50" series of historically important recordings by the Philips label.

The story of the discovery of the manuscript, believed - or at least hoped - by Berlioz to have been destroyed, is very well set out in the comprehensive booklet notes, as are Gardiner's comments on the work and "getting it to work."

This is truly "Hector in the raw," the work of a 20-year-old Paris Conservatory student barely trained in the essentials (a burden he would carry around, on and off, throughout his life, thanks to his critics, not to mention his own proclivities toward writing music having few if any harmonic or rhythmic antecedents and which others couldn't fathom). The work clearly has its weaknesses: structural, harmonic, melodic, rhythmic and melodic immaturities simply flood the work, and it is little wonder that, after only two performances, Berlioz designated the work for the scrapheap.

But either he kept good notebooks or he had total recall. So much of this work showed up later (suitably transmogrified, of course, but far from totally disguised) in several of his mature masterpieces: the Symphonie fantastique, the Requiem, the Te Deum, and even his mid-period opera Benvenuto Cellini. Anyone familiar with these works will have little trouble identifying precursor sources throughout the Messe Solennelle. And even the "bad bits" that never did get recycled into later works have their own share of visceral excitement and primitive charm, despite all the weaknesses noted.

The performance, by Gardiner and his troupe, could hardly be more authentic short of partaking of time travel and actually being at the true premiere. The Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique is a true period-instrument ensemble (and sounds it), not only for its insistence on the reproduction of "standard" instruments of the time (low-tension stringed instruments, valveless trumpets and horns, etc.) but also for its incorporation of instruments (which Berlioz in the main plucked out of the brass bands of the time) that have now been obsolete for nearly as long as the work has been around: bass brass instruments that include the ophicleide, the buccin and the serpent. And what a joyful noyse this ensemble makes!

The vocal soloists are uniformly fine. Gilles Cachemaille, the bass, is an old hand at singing Berlioz, and Donna Brown (soprano) and Jean-Luc Viala, while not known to me before this recording also acquit themselves very well.

Recorded now a decade ago, in Westminster Cathedral (to best simulate its initial premiere venue, Saint-Roch in Paris), the sound is certainly among the best for such a type of venue: a great sense of acoustical space, but not buried in excessive reverberation. Very nicely done!

Not long after this recording came out, Bernard Holland, writing in the New York Times, said, "Mr. Gardiner seems to have the early franchise on the 'Messe Solennelle'." As far as I know, this is still the case a decade later. And perhaps that is as it should be; the last thing we need is to have another conductor come along, take a close look at the score, and try to "improve" it. Best that we hear this "Hector in the raw" as it was meant to be heard, and not all "prettified up."

Bon anniversaire, M. Berlioz!

Bob Zeidler

Average customer rating:

Messe Solennelle
Berlioz , Lamoreaux , Tucker , Cook , and Lewis
Manufacturer: Koch Int'l Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Tracks:

Messe Solennelle: introduction - Hector Berlioz
Messe Solennelle: kyrie - Hector Berlioz
Messe Solennelle: Gloria - Hector Berlioz
Messe Solennelle: Gratias - Hector Berlioz
Messe Solennelle: Quoniam - Hector Berlioz
Messe Solennelle: Credo - Hector Berlioz
Messe Solennelle: incarntus - WNCCS
Messe Solennelle: Crucifixus - WNCCS
Messe Solennelle: Resurrexit - WNCCS
Messe Solennelle: Motet pour l' offertoire - WNCCS
Messe Solennelle: Sanctus - WNCCS
Messe Solennelle: O salutaris - WNCCS
Messe Solennelle: Agnus dei - WNCCS
Messe Solennelle: Domine salvum - WNCCS

Average customer rating:

Berlioz: Messe Solennelle

Manufacturer: Accord
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Masses | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
ASIN: B000004CF9
Release Date: 1997-02-18

Average customer rating:

Hector Berlioz, Romantic Spirit

Manufacturer: Universal Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Sacred & Religious | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

French | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Oratorios | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

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

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

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

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

Te Deum | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
ASIN: B00008VR6V
Release Date: 2003-07-01

Tracks:

Ouverture - London Symphony Orchestra
No.2: Air-'Ah! Si De La Tendresse - Janet Baker
La Captive, Op.12 - Josephine Veasey
Resurrexit - Monteverdi Choir
IV. Marche Au Supplice - Pierre Boulez
II. Choeur D'Ombres - Lambert Wilson
IX. Sanctus - John Mark Ainsley
Ouverture - Nicolai Gedda
'Une Heur Encore' - Nicolai Gedda
'La Gloire Etait Ma Seule Idole' - Nicolai Gedda
III. Marche Funebre Pour La Derniere Scene D'Hamlet - Pierre Boulez

Tracks:

Marche Hongroise - Anne Sofie Von Otter
'D'Amour L'Ardente Flamme' - Anne Sofie Von Otter
'Au Son Des Trompettes' - Anne Sofie Von Otter
Chasse Royale Et Orage - Charles Dutoit
'Nuit D'Ivresse Et D'Extase Infinie!' - Jon Vickers
III. Serenade - Pinchas Zukerman
I. Villanelle - Regine Crespin
IV. La Reine Mab, Ou La Fee Des Songes (Scherzo) - London Symphony Orchestra
L'Adieu Des Bergers A La Sainte Famille: 'Il S'En Va Loin De La Terre' - Choeur De Montreal
IV. Christe, Rex Gloriae (Hymne) - London Symphony Chorus
Ouverture - John Alldis Choir
'Dieu Qui Guidas Nos Bras' - John Alldis Choir
'Approchez, Claudio!' - John Alldis Choir
'Ici L'On Voit Benedict' - John Alldis Choir
'L'Amour Est Un Flambeau' - John Alldis Choir

Track Listings:

Track Listings

track listings

Track Listings

Rubble-Rousing Misspent Bouts [EP]

Three Tenors: Best Loved Arias

West Coast Blues

Remixed

Redd Foxx for President [Explicit Lyrics] [Original recording remastered]

Tp-2.Com [Import]

The Very Thought of You

Tchaikowsky: Symphony No. 4; Schumann: Symphony No. 4

The Legendary Josh White

The Big Soul Band

The OMD Singles

Titanic

Tragos Que Salen a Ti

Bill Gaither Remembers Homecoming Heroes

Swing Gitan CARAVAN

1. Introduction
2. Kyrie
3. Gloria
4. Gratias
5. Quoniam
6. Credo
7. Incarnatus
8. Crucifixus
9. Resurrexit (Original Version)
10. Motet Pour L'offertoire
11. Sanctus
12. O Salutaris
13. Agnus Dei
14. Domine, Salvum
15. Resurrexit (Revised Version)