Customer Reviews

Handel;George Frideric Messiah [Blu-ray]

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

There is little fault to be found in this DVD. The vocal soloists are superb, and the orchestra with their period instruments are near perfect. This is an inspiring performance that is delivered with crispness, is worth listening to again and again -- and not just at Christmas. There are some minor flaws that go with performing in front of a live audience, but because everything else is so well done it is easy to overlook them.

Again - anything from King's College Choir is outstanding. I felt moved listening and watching this presentation of the glorious work of Handel. The Messiah, and expecially King's presentation of it is second to none.

I just wanted to note that the version presented on this DVD is from 1752 and not 1852 as noted in the Amazon Review. Certainly just an overlooked typo... And a funny one, especially given that Handel died in 1759.

The performance in question is nothing short of sublime. Simply exquisite in all respects and a must-have for all lovers of this stirring work as well as those just curious.

This Blu-ray disc is 1080/50i (see the back cover image). I tried it on two different PS3s and another Sony Blu-ray player and it would not play. Beware if buying in North America.

An almost flawless performance is spoiled to a significant degree by the poor execution of the video. Granted filming in low-light conditions in a medieval church will be challenging but in this case the excessive graininess and lack of anamorphic enhancement create a serious detraction. Other video productions have used e.g. Kings' College and Westminster Abbey with far superior results. So a caveat to videophiles - the PQ is quite poor.

On the hand, the performances are without exception first-rate. Particular standouts are Lynne Dawson, bass Alastair Miles and noted Handelian John Mark Ainsley. The trumpet virtuoso Crispian Steele-Perkins is in particularly fine form.

I have been so disappointed with the video quality that I was tempted to purchase the DVD version by Marriner and the ASMF. But on realising that this is the same as the CD issued by Philips in 1992 of the Dublin performances, I have decided to save my money. Although Marriner and the Academy are sound as usual, this version is flawed by the second string multinational soloists.

The setting of the Messiah in Pieterskerk made the performance even more fabulous. Would highly recommend this DVD to anyone!

It's hard to imagine a better recording, given that this performance was recorded "live", in front of an audience!

The soloists make ample use of vocal ornamentation. The tempo is upbeat. The period instruments are well played, and the trumpeter, Crispian Steele-Perkins deserves a gold medal!

The only negative from my perspective is that portions of the sound show obvious signs of compression, not unusual for a European production, but distracting (mildly) to me nonetheless.

It should be noted that this recording was not made in the King's College Chapel in Cambridge, but rather in the Pieterskerk, Leiden, Holland.

No one would go wrong getting this DVD. And not just because the other one available on DVD is apparently poor (and Mozart's arrangement). Someone will have to go some to beat this one. My first recording of Messiah was the spritely Davis/Philips of many years back. I was imprinted by it, and it had remained my favorite. Of course, the DVD has the huge advantage of video, but even soundwise I think it has the edge (except for the boy choir -- not my fave). A Messiah is continuously a joy for me, but there are many jewels in addition. The centerpiece is usually considered the chorus "Hallelujah", but, as a trumpet player, I have to put "The Trumpet Shall Sound" in the spotlight also. This splendid piece (for bass and trumpet -- the only such I know of) is longish but thrilling. The trumpeter is Crispian Steele-Perkins, a world class Baroque trumpet player with impeccable technique. (He lost his hyphen and his final Steele "e" on the case notes.) He plays a natural trumpet (can't tell if it's a replica, but looks original) in D, with at least three tuning holes. These are closed by fingers of the right hand until some problem note needs one to be opened. A fair amount of this action is well caught by the camera. This was of considerable interest to me, and I've never seen it so clearly before. The bass, Alastair Miles, is outstanding, and the total effect is exceptional.

The vocal soloists are excellent. My ranking would put the bass and soprano (Lynne Dawson) on top, with the tenor (John Mark Ainsley) down a notch and the alto (Hillary Summers) half a head below that. I was most struck by Ms. Dawson. There's always somebody who doesn't get the word, and here that somebody is apparently I. I don't remember seeing her or hearing of her before, but she has been around for a while (born 1956) and has been performing and recording all over the world to rave reviews for years. I probably have recordings she's in and didn't notice. For a microsecond my reaction on seeing her was that she was a movie star lip synching (in an oratorio? Get real!). She looks that good. Needs to be in front of the camera more. And super, super singing. She has that light, fast vibrato, which I like. (Think Jane Powell.) I found Ms. Summers' histrionics distracting, like a silent film star, and her voice was a little covered, but still good. Maybe the review gods will forgive me if I observe that her nostrils are prominent and look like little surgically sculpted angel's wings. Unique.

Mr. Cleobury directed well. His tempi were nicely up (like Davis's). When he wasn't needed (as in parts of "Trumpet Shall Sound") he would just stand there, not wave his arms slavishly. The orchestra seemed to have good control of its period instruments. This is not always the case in such performances. (I had to reflect on how horrible a barge of 110 Baroque oboes would be!)

I am not a fan of boys' choirs, which I don't think were what Handel and Bach heard in their heads when composing, but were an artifact of the churches' ban on females in their choirs (a peculiar proscription which still hangs on in the Catholic priesthood). Nevertheless, I've never heard one do better. It was not distracting.

The camera work was pretty good. I would prefer more orchestra and less choir, and the things to watch on the trumpet are his right hand and embrochure, not the bell of the horn or the left grip on the bell ball. The singers were never seen at full height except at a distance. The trumpets were never shown until Part III, even though they first played in Part I.

If I have a criticism, it's the sound balance. Certainly this is a difficult venue -- brick and mortar and stone -- and this was well handled. But the choir overwhelmed the orchestra, and the strings overwhelmed the winds, even the trumpets. When composers use trumpets, they're not kidding, yet you can barely hear them mostly. A good example of how to balance trumpets in oratorios is in the Richter "Christmas Oratorio" (Bach) with André, Gediga, and Oppermann. (An unsurpassed recording of this.) I don't think I ever heard an oboe, at least not while they were featured on camera. I felt the surround channels were used too aggressively in the Dolby 5.1 mix. Kind of ambience with a vengeance, every echo from every brick.

Lastly, the DVD has no special features. No history of the piece, nothing on the venue, the period instruments, biographies, performing edition comments, interviews, nothing. A missed opportunity.

But, still 5 stars.

This DVD is a nice surprise: a very good version of Handel's Messiah. Although here we don't see any pretensions of authenticity (like in some performances with no oboes/bassoons, or with the soloists forming part of the choir, etc.), is very authentic indeed. Using the 1752 version, we have a small orchestra, with period instruments (The Brandenburg Consort, including two trumpets, an organ and a harpsichord), and an all-male choir (King's College) - the sopranos are boys with beautiful voices. An excellent team of soloists: the bass (Alastair Miles) haves a strong voice, very adequate to this work; Hillary Summers is a true contralto, with an outstanding timbre, secure at low notes. John Mark Ainsley and Lynne Dawson completes the team - they sing very well, easily in the most difficult passages. Conducting, Stephen Cleobury, an specialist in this field.
The venue is an old church (twelfth century) at the Netherlands, with candle-lit interior: a very calm, pious atmosphere (but some people in the audience must be send to an hospital, to heal his coughing... thank God , they choose to cough only at the moments between the chapters). Camera work is good, with minor faults (like the passage of the trumpeters in front of the camera at the start of "Hallelujah" chorus). But technically speaking, the quality is excellent, as occurs with the sound Dolby 5.1(personally, I would prefer listen more the winds, and less the harpsichord, but the balance of this DVD don't bothered me ).
Unfortunately, there's not extras or subtitles, but you can easily find the chapters (it doesn't occurs in the Haydn's "Schoepfung" DVD, with Schreier conducting).
I'm very satisfied with my copy: the Messiah is a work that lives in my heart - the most wonderful music, the most beautiful message.

This DVD contains spectacular sounds and images, and is the most complete in audio tracks. The major desapointment in this DVD is that the camera keeps filming the same boys, it seems that the parents of the childrend payed the camera man to do so... in some ocasions in the major tracks like ( Hallelujah ), you see people walking in front of the camera, and the camera films the back of the choir and the trumpets insted of the choir itself from the front. In other words, this DVD is a best buy for the sound, image, and content. The children and boys made an extraordinary performence. You wont be desapointed.