Search - George Frideric Handel, Andrew Davis, Samuel Ramey :: Handel: Messiah / Andrew Davis [Highlights]

Absolutely Glorious!

Tom Colao | Libertyville, IL United States | 01/31/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have listened extensively to more than 15 recordings of Handel's Messiah, and have performed it several times as a tenor soloist, and I must say that this rendition has the combination of technical mastery, musical drama, and historical accuracy that renders it overall the best recording I have heard to date. Davis's solid, but not overly large orchestral forces balance the forte of the choral passages wonderfully, and he also makes use of the organ, which conductors all too frequently overlook - it absolutely makes all the difference, especially in numbers like the Hallelujah Chorus, which is done to perfection and which sold me on this recording in the first place. The soloists are fantastic; I wish the tenor (John Aler) had better command of dynamics and spent less time singing under pitch (I, being a tenor myself, notice these things far too much), but the overall effect of his voice is warm, burnished, and very well modulated. Battle, Quivar, and Ramey deliver superstar performances from superstar singers, and the Toronto Mendelssohn Chorus, while a little quiet for its size, nonetheless delivers the chorales with a precise strength that's refreshing, especially if you've grown up listening to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir wade around neck-deep in the choruses. Worth every penny you spend."

Handel's Messiah highlights

Tom Colao | 08/24/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Kathleen Battle does not dissapoint on this one. Her crystal clear and purely gracefull voice does handel great justice. Brovo !!!"