Fauré, Duruflé - Requiems (in paradisum) - Terfel, Bartoli, Myung-Whun Chung

Fauré, Duruflé - Requiems (in paradisum) - Terfel, Bartoli, Myung-Whun Chung
Vocal | Eac, flac, cue | log, cover | 1 CD, 238 MB
May 11, 1999 | DG | RapidShare

Once described as a "lullaby of death," Gabriel Fauré's Requiem is a work of supreme composure that seems to illustrate the gentlest of goings into that good night. This recording bucks the current trend favoring the composer's original version for reduced chamber orchestra, offering the fully orchestrated edition from 1899. The result gives a solid, spacious context for Fauré's modal lyricism, his interplay of light and shadow, to unfold. Conductor Myun-Whung Chung at times even suggests a dark undertow of despair, as in the funereal plunge and tread of the Introit, yet he is also keenly sensitive to the agnostic composer's essentially sensuous textures (listen to the dark amber interweaving of inner string lines in the Offertorium), thereby escaping the potential sentimentality that sometimes pits Fauré's vision unfavorably against the robust fire and fury of Verdi's Requiem. In this regard, Chung's choice of soloists is ideal. Cecilia Bartoli's rendition of the Pie Jesu will stop you in your tracks (simply one of the most achingly beautiful examples of her artistry), while Bryn Terfel uses the rich resonance of his baritone to powerful effect. Maurice Duruflé's Fauré-inspired Requiem, offered as the coupling, is likewise given in its fully orchestrated version. The patient serenity of its culminating In Paradisum seems to offer a harmony of the spheres for our age of anxiety. --Thomas May

While not everyone will give this magnificent recording the chance it deserves because it may seem irreverent to praise full-bodied performances of two delicate French masterpieces, those who truly love both the Fauré and Duruflé Requiems will find much to love here. Myung-Whun Chung has opted to record the full orchestra/full mixed chorus versions of these two works usually heard in the pared-down versions for church settings, and in doing so he unveils even more mysteries than one would think possible. Chung knows the French repertoire well, having been associated with French Opera in France for many seasons. And here he draws upon the Chorus and Orchestra of the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia as well as the full-bodied, intelligent and sensitive voices of singers Bryn Terfel and Cecilia Bartoli as his soloists.

The result: dreamily romantic reading of these beautiful scores. Though Bartoli is a mezzo-soprano in name, her range is so vast that she offers the most genuinely spiritual 'Pie Jesu' in the Fauré in this listener's history. The same can be said for Terfel's involved singing. Often these solos are given to minor singers and it is a thrill to hear them from the gifted voices of two of today's finest recitalists. Chung draws gorgeous sounds from his gathered ensemble and produces the warmest, romantic performances these two Requiems are likely to enjoy.

Different interpretations, yes, but still very much in the core of both composers' concepts. Highly recommended.--Grady Harp


CD Content

Requiem, for 2 solo voices, chorus, organ & orchestra, Op. 48
Composed by Gabriel Faure
Performed by Roma Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia
with Cecilia Bartoli, Enrico Balboni, Daniele Rossi, Luigi Piovano, Bryn Terfel
Conducted by Myung-Whun Chung

Requiem, for orchestra, organ & chorus; for organ & chorus; for small ensemble, organ & chorus, Op. 9 (3 versions)
Composed by Maurice Durufle
Performed by Roma Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia
with Cecilia Bartoli, Enrico Balboni, Daniele Rossi, Luigi Piovano, Bryn Terfel
Conducted by Myung-Whun Chung

Messiaen - Turangalila Symphony - Myung-Whun Chung

Messiaen - Turangalila Symphony - Myung-Whun Chung
Symphonic | Eac, flac, cue | log, cover | 1 CD, 346 MB
May 12, 1992 | Deutsche Grammophon | RapidShare

This recording of the Turangalila Symphonie, which bears Messiaen's imprimatur, surely rests with the finest achievements of the century. The work is one of astonishing complexity, more akin to a fantastic piano concerto or showcase for the ondes martenot than a symphony. Cast into ten movements, the work seeks to portray, in Messiaen's own words, "[an] all at once love song, hymn to joy, time, movement, rhythm, life, and death." Widely touted as his seminal work, the symphony comes to life in this vivid and electrifying reading by Myung-Whun Chung. The recording is less perfect than others, but retains the fire and excitement of the piece faithfully. The ondes martenot, in particular, sounds mellow and soft, rather than strong and commanding. Despite some minor flaws, the reading is amazing, and, being recorded in Messiaen's presence, with his wife and sister-in-law on the piano and ondes martenot, it gives us a definitive account of what Messiaen himself would have wanted us to hear. The work bursts with life and energy, as befits a piece whose title can be loosely translated from the Sanskrit as meaning "speed of life." This particular disc has received wide accolades from several reputable sources, including "The Rough Guide to Classical Music" and "The Penguin Guide." As an advocate of 20th century music, I consider this piece and this reading essential.--Amazon


To my knowledge, Messiaen never met a recording he wouldn't endorse, but this really is a superb recording of what is Messiaen's best known and perhaps best loved work. Chung approaches the score with the attention to fine detail that a complex 20th century score deserves while attaining the sweep and grandeur necessary to make this truly romantic work sing like only it can. Francis Bacon said that in every beauty there is some proportion of strangeness. This beauty fell to earth from the stars, an alien--weird, startling, but wholly organic and fetching in its own chillingly unique way. Who can listen to Jardin du sommeil d'amour and fail to be touched? Chung brings a delicacy and spirituality to the whole that will leave you mesmerized and the contributions of Yvonne and Jeanne Loriod could not be more expert or authentic--no soloists know this score as they do, surely. This is one of the most successful of Chung's DG Messiaen recordings, and that's saying something.

Turangalîla-symphonie, for piano, ondes martenot & orchestra, I/29
Composed by Olivier Messiaen
Performed by Bastille Opera Orchestra
with Yvonne Loriod, Jeanne Loriod
Conducted by Myung-Whun Chung