Felix Mendelssohn Reinhard Seifried Adrian Thompson - Mendelssohn Symphony No 2 Lobgesang Mary Nelson M Cullagh A Thompson R Seifried (12 tracks) +Album Reviews

A Great Recording of An Overlooked Masterpiece

Timothy Dougal | Madison, Wi United States | 08/17/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Mendelssohn's Symphony #2 is one of the most hard to find items in the classical repertoire, and for the life of me, I can't figure out why. What I do know is that outside of complete sets of Mendelssohn's symphonies until now you could generally only get this terrific choral sypmphony on overpriced imports. I had found a used one by Chailly on Phillips some years ago, but the recording job wasn't good enough to keep listening to, as much as I enjoyed the music. It was quite a relief to finally hear this vigorous, melodic masterpiece well-sung and played, as well as beautifully recorded, by Reinhard Seifried with the RTE Orchestra and soloists on Naxos. One can only hope other major labels would follow suit to bring this gem more into mainstream classical consciousness. Bravo, Naxos!"

Excellent. Solid, yet very expressive

Timothy Dougal | 10/28/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Seifried has that rare mix of power, precision, and expressiveness. Every single part comes through clearly with its distinctive texture. He captures the spirit of each movement very well from the brilliant choruses to the light hearted solos (eg "ich harrete den Herrn"). On the second instrumental movement he can take a melody line so smoothly through several different instruments seamlessly (even changing from strings to winds and from a forte down to the most delicate pianissimo). He makes the brass section come through clearly without overpowering. You can hear all the overtones in the string section. If you do not mind slow tempos, then you absolutely will not find a better recording at any price. Alles was Odem hat lobet den Herrn!"

This is a FABULOUS performance!

Timothy Dougal | 09/06/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"As the earlier reviewers have noted, this is a *brilliant* performance of Felix Mendelssohn's Hymn of Praise, worthy in every respect to the elevated nature of its text. I own six versions of this work to date, and over the years several have earned places in my heart (particularly the Abbado/Berlin Philharmonic, for its intense drama and virtuoso performance); however, without any hesitation whatsoever, whenever my heart yearns to be *spiritually* uplifted -- especially at Easter season -- it will be THIS performance of the Lobgesang that I will faithfully wrap myself in. The dignity, majesty and loving care that Herr Seifried clearly injects into Mendelssohn's score is underpinned by a resplendent, resonant pipe organ ad libitum forming the foundation of each of the beautifully sung and well paced choral movements, ensuring for the fortunate listener that this is, indeed, profound sacred music worthy of Mendelssohn's Leipzig predecessor, Bach, at his most heartfelt.

With no pun intended, I cannot sing enough praise for this special performance of the Lobgesang (a work whose longtime neglect in Mendelssohn's canon I still cannot fathom, though happily its day in the sun seems to have arisen once again in recent years). Nor, for that matter can I compliment highly enough Herr Seifried's powerfully charged direction of the score and his wonderful Irish forces, all clearly emotionally committed to this performance. (I only wish that the organist had also been credited in the notes -- whoever this musician is was as much a part of the masterly beauty of this performance as anyone else).

I *will* be turning to this disc in those moments when a closer connection to God arises within me, through the special power that only music can provide.

Five lofty stars, to the heavens above!!! Thank you, Naxos!

(and if Mack Wilberg is listening out there: the Mormon Tabernacle Choir should tackle this lofty score in its first *English* language recording...)"

Mendelssohn's "Lobgesang"

Robin Friedman | Washington, D.C. United States | 03/08/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Felix Mendelssohn's (1809-1847)second symphony, the "Hymn of Praise", is the fourth in order of composition of his five symphonies. The work was first performed in 1840 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the invention of the printing press. This symphony enjoyed great popularity during the 19th Century but, alas, has virtually disappeared from the repertoire. The performance on this budget-priced CD should go a long way towards introducing this work to the modern listener.The "Lobgesang" is a choral symphony scored for Orchestra, chorus, two soprano soloists, and a tenor soloist. It is set to biblical texts and to texts from the hymnal. As a choral symphony, the work is highly indebted to Beethoven's Ninth. But the work both follows Beethoven's great choral symphony and attempts to turn the form in a new direction.Mendelssohn's use of voices in the symphony differs from Beethoven's in the following ways. First, unlike Beethoven's symphony which celebrates the brotherhood of man under an essentially nonsectarian deity, Mendelsshon's symphony is an overtly Protestant work, with the final, climactic fugue offering "Praise, honour and laud be to God,/the Father and the Son/ and to his Holy Spirit/on the highest throne of heaven." Second in Beethoven's symphony, voices are introduced only in the final movement to speak directly to the listener after, Beethoven believed, the instruments of the orchestra had said all they were capable of saying. In the "Lobgesang" the voices and orchestra function as an integrated unity with no suggestion that the vocal part follows upon the alleged inadequacies of purely instrumental music.Third, and most importantly, Beethoven's Ninth is a work of doubt, struggle, and ultimate resolution in the words of Schiller's Ode and the singing of the chorus. There is no sense of struggle in the "Lobgesang". The work opens on a full-voiced, triumphant theme of praise to God and hope for mankind and never looks back. Thus, the symphony lacks the urgency and passion of the Beethoven Ninth. It remains in its own voice an outstanding work with much lovely writing for voice and orchestra. The work opens with three orchestral movements, consisting of perhaps one-third of the entire symphony. It opens with a call in the trombones which is repeated several times during the course of the work, particularly in the finale. The "Lobgesang" may be one of the first examples of the use of the cyclic form
in symphonic music. Following the lengthy introduction, there is a short, light scherzo and a lovely prayerful adagio, concluding the purely orchestral portion of the work.The following ten sections of the work (actually a cantata) feature singing. The vocal portion begins with a triumphal chorus (featuring the initial trombone theme) followed by a soprano solo with chorus "Praise the Lord, O my soul". Soprano Majella Cullagh does an outstanding job with her solo on this disc.The work continues with a tenor solo, followed by duet for two sopranos and chorus, "I waited for the Lord". There is a tenor solo in the minor on the phrase "watchman will the night soon pass" followed by a large, massed chorus and fugue. This is followed by a chorus on the hymn "Now thank we all our God" followed by a final fugue and the return of the opening trombone call.The symphony receives a first-rate performance on this CD by the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland conducted by Reinhard Seifried with the RTE Phiharmonic Choir. Majella Cullagh, (who sings beautifully as I noted above) and Mary Nelson are the sopranos and Adrian Thompson sings tenor.It is a joy to have this little-known work available in a worthy performance on a budget-priced CD. The writing for the chorus in this symphony is outstanding with many stirring fugal sections. I greatly enjoyed discovering this neglected work by a great composer."

Splendid

David Saemann | 06/20/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Reinhard Seifried is a veteran German conductor, particularly of opera. His talents are well suited to conducting a work for voice and orchestra. I enjoyed this CD immensely. The orchestral playing is the equal of any orchestra you can think of, and the vocal soloists all are very good. For a rarely performed piece, the Lobesang comes off here as an intimately interpreted and passionate experience. The sound engineering is generally quite good. My one caveat has to do with the recording of the chorus. The chorus seems to sing quite well. I say seems, because in loud passages the sound of the chorus turns somewhat misty and indistinct. When you are expecting the sound to pack a wallop, it instead turns mushy. Otherwise, this is an excellent CD, a real bargain, although I note that a Sawallisch performance that I haven't heard is available at an even lower price. I expect that I will return to Seifried's performance again and again with real pleasure."

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