Search - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Peter Schreier, Trudeliese Schmidt :: Mozart: Requiem

Very close to being five stars!!! I can't believe it!!!

Margaret C. Turnbull | 08/02/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I have spent so long looking for recordings of Mozart's Requiem Mass that are worthy of a second listening, and THIS one of the very best. Finally someone has come along who is musically talented and spiritually sensitive enough to _almost_ NAIL this piece. In listening to most of Amazon's other recordings, I have cringed at bad tempo, bad pronunciation (e.g. the Latin word "spargens" is pronounced with a hard "g", not as in "sparjens," ugh, what are we speaking, French??), lack of expressiveness, lack of POWER, lack of imagination, and you name it. But the soloists in this recording are near perfect, the choir sections sing as ONE VOICE (none of this nonsense where you can hear individual primadonnas warbling away within the soprano section), the musicians are emotionally engaged in their music, and Schreier pulls everyone through a huge dynamic range, as is crucial for this piece. This performance exudes darkness, power, mystery, and triumph.



Even so, there ARE a few things that I would change: in the Tuba Mirum, the tuba should meld and intertwine with the voices, not drown them out, and the alto is too operatic--we need "big" without excessive vibrato...and the SOPRANO, who is at the peak of the Tuba ascension, should seem to be the most angelic voice on the planet, as if she is literally levitating over all, but alas, she sounds strained and her vowels all come out like "ooo." In the Kyrie, the "main" part tends to overwhelm the ear rather than simply being emphasized--we should distinctly hear all the parts and choose for ourselves which one to focus on. Finally, if I could give the choir a factor of TEN more power in the Rex, I would--the Rex should be absolutely overwhelming, I don't care if you have to bring in a whole extra choir just for that one piece.



But in the Domine Jesu, my hair was standing on end, it is exquisite!!!!! (Although I'm not sure what is the purpose of the sudden volume drop at ~2:27...there is no context for this...maybe a recording flaw?) The Benedictus is awash in blessings and forgiveness, and the Communio reaches such heights that I was afraid to look down. In this Mass, Mozart has made a documentary of the journey to heaven, and to our joy Schreier has been "faithful over a few things."



I must take a deep and grateful bow to Schreier and all of his musicians. In today's world of electronic manipulation, listeners don't always appreciate just how difficult it is to pull off this level of quality in a choral/orchestral performance, even with breaks between songs. I encourage all lovers of this Mass to try and sing in it one day--you will see that everyone was "on" the day they made this recording. It is an accomplishment of a lifetime.



...Oh yeah, the Coronation--that was good too. ;-)"

Simply the BEST

Fernando Cisneros | Mexico City | 06/22/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I find this version above all others. I have heard Marriner's, Harnoncourt's, Abbado's, Sir Colin Davis', but I stay with Schreier's. I've never heard him conduct before, but I was really surprised with his version.

He gives all power and strenght requiered in parts like "Dies irae" or "Confutatis", while he also plays sweetly the "Lacrimosa". Never too fast, neither too slow.

I've got to say the Dresden Staatskapelle is terrific.

Going to the soloists.-



Theo Adam - Bass

Francisco Araiza - Tenor

Margaret Price - Soprano

Trudeliese Schmidt - Alto



Theo Adam has a more bariton voice, rather than a bass one. This make high notes sound with great power, but you can bearly hear low notes. Still, when you hear his "Tuba mirum", you end with eyes wide open.



Francisco Araiza has a voice which suits pretty well in my opinion. He is dramatic and powerful.



Margaret Price has the sweetest voice I ever heard. She gives every note with a unique colour.



Trudeliese Schmidt sings well, but there are no great parts for this voice.



If you are going to buy a Requiem.......BUY THIS ONE!!!"

One of the finest renditions available

Eric S. Kim | Southern California | 03/18/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Peter Schreier's rendition of Mozart's final classical piece ranks among the best in stereo (Gardiner, Herreweghe, and Marriner). His handling of the Staatskapelle Dresden is flawless: he never misses a step, always keeps full control of the orchestra, and always manages to keep the tempi neither fast nor slow. The orchestra itself is fine: the strings and woodwinds are haunting and the brass and timpani are powerfully energetic. The choir of the Leipzig Radio is very good: maybe not as good as others, but still good. The soloist are almost excellent: Francisco Araiza knows his Mozart; Margaret Price has to be one of the best sopranos of this generation (so charming and so full of flair); Trudeliese Schmidt sounds a bit weak in the second half, but she's wonderful in the first; Theo Adam is as powerful as he was in a studio recording of Wagner's Ring cycle (conducted by Marek Janowski). As for the sound quality, it's fabulous: some of the minor details clearly stand out from the Dies Irae to the Lux Aeterna.



If you already own one or more Mozart Requiem CD, then add this to your collection. If you don't already own one, then I suggest you buy Philippe Herreweghe's version first, and then purchase Peter Schreier's version."