Search - Beetoven, Harper, Baker :: Missa Solemnis

A definitive performance

D. R. Lunsford | St. Louis, MO, USA | 12/02/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Long out of print, this magnificent performance is finally available on CD. I recently tracked down a vinyl copy and my memory of it was not wrong - everything is perfect here - Giulini's relaxed tempi and languid approach are not to be found, rather an athletic, muscular performance - but his great handling of the singers, as one would expect from an opera specialist, is; no choral performance of Beethoven has better singing. The recording is fantastically clear, particularly the horns - the "Credo" and "Et Vitam Venturi" will have you rethinking religion!



Good recordings of this work are in short supply, not to mention great ones. Look no further - this is perfection.



-drl"