Search - Hector Berlioz, Dimitri Mitropoulos, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra :: Berlioz: Grande Messe des Morts

The Requiem is just the sort of big, dramatic work that Dimitri Mitropoulos excelled in, and sparks fly in this live 1956 performance from the Salzburg Festival. The mono sound is contricted, though--the last thing you'd want in a piece that even stereo can barely contain. But if you make the required mental adjustment, it's a ride worth taking. Leopold Simoneau is peerless in his solo turn, though his mellifluous tenor is heard in better sound on Charles Munch's RCA stereo recording made a few years later. But this well-filled disc (seconds shy of 80 minutes) is a valuable historical supplement. --Dan Davis