Overture - London Philharmonic Orchestra, Handel, George Fred
Comfort Ye My People
Ev'ry Valley Shall Be Exalted
And the Glory of the Lord
Thus Saith the Lord of Hosts
But Who May Abide the Day of His Coming
And He Shall Purify the Sons of Levi
Behold a Virgin Shall Conceive
O Thou that Tellest Good Tidings to Zion
For Behold, Darkness Shall Cover the Earth
The People that Walked in Darkness
For Unto Us a Child Is Born
Pastoral Symphony
There Were Shepherds Abiding in the Field
Glory to God in the Highest
Rejoice Greatly, O Daughter of Zion
Then Shall the Eyes of the Blind Be Open'd
He Shall Feed His Flock Like a Shepherd
His Yoke Is Easy, His Burden Is Light
Behold the Lamb of God
Track Listings (36) - Disc #2
He Was Despised and Rejected of Men
Surely, He Hath Borne Our Griefs
And With His Stripes We Are Healed
All We Like Sheep Have Gone Astray
All They That See Him, Laugh Him to Scorn
He Trusted in God that He Would Deliver Him
Thy Rebuke Hath Broken His Heart
Behold, and See if There Be Any Sorrow
He Was Cut Off from the Land of the Living
But Thou Didst Not Leave His Soul in Hell
Lift Up Your Heads, O Ye Gates
How Beautiful Are the Feet of Them
Why Do the Nations so Furiously Rage
Let Us Break Their Bonds Asunder
He That Dwelleth in Heaven
Thou Shalt Break Them with a Rod of Iron
Hallelujah
I Know that My Redeemer Liveth
Since by Man Came Death - For as in Adam, Eve
Behold, I Tell You a Mystery
The Trumpet Shall Sound
Worthy Is the Lamb that Was Slain
Amen
Messiah, oratorio, HWV 56: But Thou Didst Not Leave His Soul in Hell - London Philharmonic Orchestra, Handel, George Fred
Messiah, oratorio, HWV 56: Lift Up Your Heads, O Ye Gates - London Philharmonic Orchestra, Handel, George Fred
Messiah, oratorio, HWV 56: How Beautiful Are the Feet of Them - London Philharmonic Orchestra, Handel, George Fred
Messiah, oratorio, HWV 56: Why Do the Nations so Furiously Rage - London Philharmonic Orchestra, Handel, George Fred
Messiah, oratorio, HWV 56: Let Us Break Their Bonds Asunder - London Philharmonic Orchestra, Handel, George Fred
Messiah, oratorio, HWV 56: He That Dwelleth in Heaven - London Philharmonic Orchestra, Handel, George Fred
Messiah, oratorio, HWV 56: Thou Shalt Break Them with a Rod of Iron - London Philharmonic Orchestra, Handel, George Fred
Messiah, oratorio, HWV 56: Hallelujah - London Philharmonic Orchestra, Handel, George Fred
Messiah, oratorio, HWV 56: I Know that My Redeemer Liveth - London Philharmonic Orchestra, Handel, George Fred
Messiah, oratorio, HWV 56: Behold, I Tell You a Mystery - London Philharmonic Orchestra, Handel, George Fred
Messiah, oratorio, HWV 56: The Trumpet Shall Sound - London Philharmonic Orchestra, Handel, George Fred
Messiah, oratorio, HWV 56: Worthy Is the Lamb that Was Slain - London Philharmonic Orchestra, Handel, George Fred
Messiah, oratorio, HWV 56: Amen - London Philharmonic Orchestra, Handel, George Fred
The vocal quartet of soloists on this recording of Messiah is one of the best balanced. The singers are English, and they have been around for many years. Their interpretations of Messiah are known to audiences and congreg... more »ations all over Britain. April Cantelo, whose singing of the soprano arias is splendidly forthright and confident, is heedful to the underlying drama of the text. The upper range of her voice is more than clear: it has a silvery edge to it that she uses with uncommon intelligence, so that even a short passage like "And suddenly there was with the Angel . . ." remains fixed in the mind as a moment of genuine biblical drama. Her "Rejoice greatly" and "I know that my Redeemer liveth" are also magnificent and afford ready proof of sheer technique as well as a remarkable control of timbre. Helen Watts, in her deeply-felt interpretation of "He was despised", gives what is the best performance on record. Her voice is rich without being overopulent; it has all the qualities of a fine contralto without any loss of mobility. Wilfred Brown adds lustre to the tenor solos in a unique and personal way. The timbre of his voice is neither heroic nor lachrymose, but it has individual qualities that add up to something far more impressive than those. His intonation is rocksteady, and his upward range so well developed that the high notes in "Thou shalt break them" emerge almost effortlessly. Brown's vivid performance of this aria is one of the most praiseworthy in the entire set, for he sings the words as if he really meant them. "Every valley" is beautifully phrased and evokes a verdant pastoral picture which Handel was surely aiming at. Roger Stalman's fine bass voice is heard to advantage in "But who may abide." "Why do the nations", with all its ferocious roulades, holds no terrors for this singer. He has great powers of sostenuto as well as ample flexibility.« less
The vocal quartet of soloists on this recording of Messiah is one of the best balanced. The singers are English, and they have been around for many years. Their interpretations of Messiah are known to audiences and congregations all over Britain. April Cantelo, whose singing of the soprano arias is splendidly forthright and confident, is heedful to the underlying drama of the text. The upper range of her voice is more than clear: it has a silvery edge to it that she uses with uncommon intelligence, so that even a short passage like "And suddenly there was with the Angel . . ." remains fixed in the mind as a moment of genuine biblical drama. Her "Rejoice greatly" and "I know that my Redeemer liveth" are also magnificent and afford ready proof of sheer technique as well as a remarkable control of timbre. Helen Watts, in her deeply-felt interpretation of "He was despised", gives what is the best performance on record. Her voice is rich without being overopulent; it has all the qualities of a fine contralto without any loss of mobility. Wilfred Brown adds lustre to the tenor solos in a unique and personal way. The timbre of his voice is neither heroic nor lachrymose, but it has individual qualities that add up to something far more impressive than those. His intonation is rocksteady, and his upward range so well developed that the high notes in "Thou shalt break them" emerge almost effortlessly. Brown's vivid performance of this aria is one of the most praiseworthy in the entire set, for he sings the words as if he really meant them. "Every valley" is beautifully phrased and evokes a verdant pastoral picture which Handel was surely aiming at. Roger Stalman's fine bass voice is heard to advantage in "But who may abide." "Why do the nations", with all its ferocious roulades, holds no terrors for this singer. He has great powers of sostenuto as well as ample flexibility.
CD Reviews
Wonderful version of Messiah
L. Reimer | San Jose, CA USA | 03/17/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is the 1st version of Messiah I cam across, by accident, and I have really enjoyed it for the last several months ... the audio quality isn't top-notch, and after reading the previous reviews stating this is an original analog recording from the 50's I understand better why, but I still feel that this version of Messiah captures, for me, how it should sound ... both the orchestra, vocalists, and tempo are perfect in my opinion, and having now purchased other versions of the work w/ quicker tempo's, I continue to prefer this version ... theres just something about the British accents of the vocalists and the purity of the tone of their voices that makes this version very special to me ... if I could find a recording w/ similar tempo w/ better audio quality, I would be interested in that ... however, I don't think you could match the quality of the vocalists ... perhaps someone could digitally enhance or re-master this version ?? Either way, highly recommended!"
For sentimental reasons
John Falkenberg | Stockholm, Sweden | 11/10/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This recording was my first meeting with Händels Messiah, in the beginning of the 60-ies. Yes "Jazzbaritone", it was on PYE, Golden Guinea. But with number GSGL 10062. Anyway this is the number on the three LP that I have in front of med now.
They were recorded in 1958 and in stereo.
I did not knew who the singers were, so I am greatful to "jazzbaritone" for his research and findings. It is thus the voice of April Cantello (soprano) and Helen Watts that has given me so many wonderful moments. Even now 40 years later is it Cantellos version of "I know that my Redeemer liveth", that counts for me. I find her version more natural and sincere than many others, even Janet Bakers or Margarete Price's versions. And I love the sound of the London orchestra. But of course it may be performed somewhat faster in some parts. But it is still my favorit. Maybe for sentimental reasons.
"
Historical Stereo Recording of the Messiah
Jim Grigsby | Indianapolis, IN USA (but I am a Southener !) | 12/07/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I can shed some light on the recording as I own it on a 4 lp set issued by Audio Spectrum label which was the "classical" side of Alshire Records, where all those 101 String albums came from.
The recording was made in Sepetember 1958 on two open reel machines, one a Telefunken at 30 IPS and an Ampex unit at 15 IPS, to follow the then European curve, and the American curve. It was made in the church: St. Mary Magdalene in Paddington England.
Overall, it sounds very good for the time, yet does not have the depth that a true digital recording can have. It was made in true stereo, and if you happen to have a system that can extract ambiance, the surround sound in very good indeed. I am not speaking of digital enhancments, but true extraction such as Dolby Prologic II or a matrix decoder. I am not a great lover of this work (or any of this period)...I start up at the classical era so for me to judge this performance would not be correct; I just wanted to add to the historical context of this recording."
Sentimental favorite
The Night Owl out on the Town | Los Angeles, CA United States | 12/31/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Like others, I recall this set's first appearance. It was my initial introduction to the complete Messiah growing up, and a pleasant revelation. It appeared off and on over the following decades. I know The Musical Heritage Society offered it prominently in the 70's and 80's.
Madacy, which has exhibited some spotty quality issuing old videos on DVD, has done a very good job digitalizing this 1958 recording.
April Cantelo, the first Mrs. Colin Davis, is wonderful in the soprano part, So is Helen Watts whom I gather almost owned the part in her heyday. Wilfred Brown, not a big name even then, does quite well with the tenor music as does Stalman with the bass solos, though he is perhaps the least suave of the quartet. (If I encountered a quartet of this quality at a public performance these days I'd be in heaven.)
George Malcolm's harpischord continuo is very prominent throughout, as I had recalled. I suspect he had a lot to do with the style of the over-all project. He was a pioneer in early music performance and moved the forces in this direction.
The chorus is well-drilled. Jackson recorded a similar performance of his own with many of the same forces a few years later, but I always felt this version had more personality.
When it first appeared, the style of presenting The Messiah was still big and slow and reverent (read Victorian). Susskind, the Czech expatriate conductor, was for many years a house conductor in London for EMI. Later he became music director of the St. Louis Symphony, and associated with, (I believe) the Aspen Festival and the Cincinnati Symphony. He was always a reliable conductor, but never associated with the growing movement toward authentic style in the performance of Baroque music which was just getting off the ground.
There are zippier versions, but I never find the music dragging. The speeds are plausible and lively. Susskind has in fact forged a compromise between more spritely scholarly Baroque style and the feeling associated with the British tradition of Messiah performances. I find myself returning to this version again and again and it does not disappoint.
I do wish I knew why it is missing a few movements. I gather they just were not recorded. Too bad, but at the time it was one of the few recording that came close to be complete, so we just had to be grateful.
If the Miller-Alshire people, stereo pioneeers who liked pronounced separation and who recorded it and first issued it, are sitting on these other movements in their vault, I wish they would release them posthaste.
(They also have some early stereo recordings of Sirs Adrian Boult and John Pritchard.)
Maybe Testament could be persuaded to take up the cause if this kind of miracle occurred.
We will ask Santa next year.
Still, with allowances for its age as an early stereo Messiah, it still has its charms and appeal--- like returning to see a beloved old friend!
"
My first "complete" Messiah
James Sheridan | 06/11/2008
(4 out of 5 stars)
"This was given to me as a birthday gift on vinyl in the late 70's. I found Audio Spectrum's 1987 CD release in a Salvation Army thrift store a few years ago and snapped it up. For all the differences between the many recordings of this work (and there are SO many worth giving at least one listen), this one is my favorite. Probably for all of the same reasons already stated by other posters here. I noticed that the sound quality on the CD is markedly improved over the vinyl release. I'd love to hear from anyone who can compare Audio Spectrum's disc with this Madacy one. After having purchased a few of their video offerings, I'm a little leary."
Track Listings (20) - Disc #1