Search - Osvaldo Golijov, Maria Guinand, Orquesta La Pasion :: Golijov: La Pasión según San Marcos CD/DVD Deluxe Edition

Golijov Ten Years Later

Scott L. Foglesong | San Francisco, CA | 04/27/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"According to Osvaldo Golijov, this new performance of the San Marco is older, more grown-up than the earlier recorded performances. "We can really have a clear picture of what this piece is, as opposed to just a snapshot which is what we had ten years ago. Also, the performance is different. It is still visceral but grown-up. It is a piece that already exists. It is a presence; it is an entity in the world. And it sounds like that."



If you haven't heard this astounding composition, this recording is your best possible entry point. You're given two separate performances -- one in the studio, one on stage on the DVD. The studio recording is superbly engineered and recorded; instruments are clearly delineated, particularly all those different percussion batteries. The voices emerge from the texture with precise placement and superb presence. The whole is a testament, in my opinion, to just how good a recording can be.



The performance may not be as rough 'n' ready raw as the Hänssler Classic 2001 version, but it incorporates Golijov's more recent edits and also offers clarity and a sweeping power that I find absolutely compelling.



It's a great recording of a magnificent piece; I really can't recommend it highly enough."

Golijov without the passion

j in boston | 04/11/2010

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I really love this music. In February of 2001 this piece was performed by the Boston Symphony, conducted by Robert Spano and featuring the same chorus as is heard here, The Schola Cantorum de Caracas. I deeply regret having missed that concert, but I did make a recording of the live radio broadcast which I have been listening to ever since.



I have been eagerly awaiting this cd, but I have to admit that it is something of a disappointment. The fire is gone. Perhaps these forces have been performing the same piece a bit too often and too long. Perhaps it was the pressure of trying to make a "perfect" studio recording. Everything seems slower, less passionate, less important, a tad bland.



The performance on the dvd is much better. The performers actually seem to be involved in what they are doing. It has an urgency that's missing from the cd.



Nevertheless, I have two complaints regarding the dvd.



Considering the premium price DG is charging for this set would it really have killed them to have included subtitles on the dvd? One of the reasons I was looking forward to this release was that I would finally have a copy of the text. That is supplied in the booklet, but it would have been even better if I could have followed along with the dvd without having to refer to the booklet for a translation.



This is also a piece of music that cries out for multi-channel recording. I knew the chances of an SACD were just about zero, but I had high hopes the dvd would be in 5.1, but, alas, two channel stereo is the only audio option.



I have not heard the other commercially available recording of this so I can't make a comparison. I certainly recommend this if you don't have any other version or have never heard it, but I'm sorry we haven't been given a better product."

A five-star work no matter how you slice it!

T. Fisher | 06/16/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"There are some tough critics out there, lamenting the sound and excitement of the original recording of Golijov's "Pasión". I admit I came late to the game. I have not heard the Hanssler version of the work, which may indeed reflect a better performance as some have said. If I had unlimited funds, I'd get both versions of this fantastic work.



But I don't, so I chose this DG set, which provides both a studio recording (the first ever) and a DVD version of a live performance. And judging this set on its own merits, I just can't see how it could deserve anything less than five stars. It is spectacular.



The CDs show outstanding recording quality, of course, and a performance that had me plenty excited. Coming to the CD performance with few expectations, just open curiosity, I was floored by the energy and power, as well as by the significance of the work, whose broad appeal is sure to open new doors and new audiences for "classical" music in general.



The CD/DVD combination has a clear advantage in terms of understanding and appreciating what Golijov has done. It is a strongly visual work, especially considering elements like the three dances, the choreography of the chorus, and the Afro-Latin gospel atmosphere imparted by the costumes. As another reviewer rightly points out, the lack of subtitles in the DVD is a major shortcoming -- the biggest and most obvious in the set. However, I found that reading along in the libretto, included in the booklet, did not totally ruin the experience.



Just listening to the CDs, I had a hard time trying to figure which singer was portraying Jesus, St Mark, Judas, and the other characters. The DVD helped in understanding that the roles really are not assigned to specific singers. Golijov's vision was that the voices should be those of "the people" -- so the parts of Jesus and all the other characters are sung sometimes by men, sometimes by women, always by different people.



Just for the record, I realize that speed is not the same as passion, but the performance on these CDs comes in at 1:24:31, while the Hanssler is a somewhat slower 1:25:21, according to the time published at amazon.co.uk. Of course, this DG version includes some revisions by Golijov, and I'm not sure how those affect the total time. The performance on the DVD, excluding non-musical content at the start and end, totals 1:24:48.



I look forward to hearing the Hanssler someday, but in the meantime it's hard to recommend this set highly enough. It has two great performances -- although it is true that the CD version is a bit more "established" sounding. The DVD makes this the one to get. You have to see La Pasión at least once, the experience is incomplete otherwise."