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| |  | Yoga and Fitness | Home » » » Bach - Mass in B minor / Argenta, Nichols, Chance, Stafford, Milner, W. Evans, Gardiner | | | | | | | Product Promotions: | | | | | Description: | | One of the most frequently mentioned "favorite" works of Bach, the B Minor Mass is not really a functional liturgical work, but an assemblage of movements written over a period of many years. Its grand scale is certainly awesome, but its musical and spiritual unity is more remarkable, considering its origin and the fact that it contains several different compositional styles--not to mention some of Bach's most profound and beautiful music. Performing this work and preserving a sense of its grand design while bringing out the considerable musical details is a challenge that most choirs, orchestras, and conductors are not up to. Almost by consensus, however, John Eliot Gardiner's version is the most successful--and it is indeed a phenomenal recording--at once sumptuous and penetrating, with gorgeous choral and solo singing, and spacious, vibrant sound. --David Vernier | | | Product Details: | | | Audio CD Release Date:
| October 25, 1990 | | Studio:
| Archiv Produktion | | Number Of Discs:
| 2 | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 43 reviews |
| | | Track Listing: | | | Disc: 1 | | | 1. | Kyrie: Chorus: Lord, Have Mercy On Us. | | 2. | Kyrie: Duet (Soprano - Mezzo-Soprano): Christ, Have Mercy On Us. | | 3. | Kyrie: Chorus: Lord, Have Mercy On Us. | | 4. | Gloria: Chorus: Glory Be To God On High. | | 5. | Gloria: Chorus: And On Earth Peace To Men Of Good Will. | | 6. | Gloria: Aria (Soprano): We Praise Thee; We Bless Thee; We Adore Thee; We Glorify Thee. | | 7. | Gloria: Chorus: We Give Thee Thanks For Thy Great Glory. | | 8. | Gloria: Duet (Soprano - Tenor): Lord God, Heavenly King, God The Almighty Father. O Lord, The Only-Begotten Son, Jesus Christ, Most High Lord God, Lamb Of God, Son Of The Father. | | 9. | Gloria: Chorus: Thou Who Takest Away The Sins Of The World, Have Mercy Upon Us. Thou Who Takest Away The Sins Of The World, Receive Our Prayer. | | 10. | Gloria: Aria (Alto): Thou Who Sittest At The Right Hand Of The Father, Have Mercy Upon Us. | | 11. | Gloria: Aria (Bass): For Thou Alone Art The Holy One. Thou Alone Art The Lord. Thou, Jesus Christ, Alone Art The Most High. | | 12. | Gloria: Chorus: With The Holy Ghost In The Glory Of God The Father. Amen. | | | Disc: 2 | | | 1. | Credo: Chorus: I Believe In One God. | | 2. | Credo: Chorus: I Believe In One God, The Father Almighty... | | 3. | Credo: Duet (Soprano - Mezzo-Soprano): All In One Lord Jesus Christ... | | 4. | Credo: Chorus: And Was Incarnate By The Holy Ghost Of The Virgin Mary And Was Made Man. | | 5. | Credo: Chorus: And Was Crucified Also For Us Under Pontius Pilate... | | 6. | Credo: Chorus: And The Third Day He Rose Again According To The Scriptures... | | 7. | Credo: Aria (Bass): And I Believe In The Holy Ghost... | | 8. | Credo: Chorus: I Acknowledge One Baptism For The Remission Of Sins. | | 9. | Credo: Chorus: And I Look For The Ressurection Of The Dead... | | 10. | Sanctus: Chorus: Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God Of Hosts... | | 11. | Sanctus: Chorus: Hosanna In The Highest. | | 12. | Sanctus: Aria (Tenor): Blessed Be He That Cometh In The Name Of The Lord. | | 13. | Sanctus: Chorus (da capo): Hosanna In The Highest. | | 14. | Agnus Dei: Aria (Alto): Lamb Of God... | | 15. | Agnus Dei: Chorus: Grant Us Peace. | |
| | | Customer Reviews: | |
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 "Let's get through this, shall we?"Aug 14, 2010
I own several recordings of Bach's "B-minor Mass," and this one is not at the top of the list. My current two favorites are the Herreweghe performance, followed by the Minkowski version.
Gardiner seems to be saying to his performers, "Let's get through this, shall we? I have another appointment and I don't want to be late..." The tempii seem rushed; the horns sound strident rather than triumphal; the vocalists have trouble keeping up. There's something of a mechanical quality to the whole thing. It's as if Gardiner isn't aware of the religious significance of the piece, and sees it only as a series of notes to be generated. I certainly doubt that Gardiner's interpretation bears any similarity to the way this music would have been played in Bach's time.
All in all, this surprised me, given that I generally like Gardiner's work. This performance just seems superficial.
 a suggestionAug 14, 2010
If you are interested in this recording, you might want to know that for about $60 you can get Sacred Masterpieces / Cantatas, which includes this one, as well as many others by Gardiner and these artists (the Monteverdi Choir, the English Baroque Soloists):
- Bach - Christmas Oratorio / Gardiner (2 disks; ~ $34)
- Bach: St. Matthew Passion / Rolfe Johnson, Bonney, von Otter, Chance, Crook; Gardiner (3 disks, currently not available directly through amazon)
- Bach: St. John Passion / Gardiner, The English Baroque Soloists (2 disks; ~ $34)
- Bach - Mass in B minor / Argenta, Nichols, Chance, Stafford, Milner, W. Evans, Gardiner (2 disks; ~ $30)
- Bach: Magnificat, BWV. 243; Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen (~ $14)
- Bach: Advent Cantatas (~$16)
- Christmas Cantatas (~16)
- Bach: Cantatas, BWV 82. 83, 125, 200 (~ $18)
And so on. I'm tired of doing that. Even if you already own MOST of these recordings, this is still a bargain, maybe the single best bargain I've ever encountered in classical music.
All beautiful, justly famous works by one of the most devout and talented composers in European history. All either the most widely respected recordings, or among them; all by talented artists dedicated to period performance.
The little booklet that comes with the disks is just a track listing, but as the other reviewer mentioned the lyrics and translations are available online.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
 Lovely version, Note that it is sung in Italian Latin thoughFeb 19, 2010
Italian Latin was the only Latin being taught when I first sang this decades ago. If learning to sing it with a choir director asking for German Latin, then this is not the recording for you. This recording will be great for those singing in Italian Latin however. Ultimately, you'll probably wish to own several recordings, if you adore this music as much as many of us do. For many, Bach's B Minor Mass is the culmination of everything wonderful in music, and all modern music and civilization owes Bach a great debt for it. It is as viscerally satisfying to sing and to listen to as eating excellent food, or seeing a great painting, and can even be a source of spiritual and emotional solace. Hooray for Bach!
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Gardiner at his worstJan 30, 2010
I don't have much to add to what has been said by the other naysayers -- I just want to add my vote to the side that says this is icy and without much pleasure. I don't understand those who love this. But then I general find Gardiner icy and mannered.
ExcellenceNov 11, 2009
Over the past few decades I've heard a number of versions of this, one of Bach's finest works and one of the true classical classics, and Gardiner's still reigns supreme.
If there's a flaw it might be the relatively low-key soloists, but perhaps that was Gardiner's concept: to not let any specific performance overwhelm the amazingly perfect balance of the period instruments and respect for the intention of the compser.
This feels like the version JS himself would like, if one might hazard such a guess. It has all the hallmarks of the man's genius--incredible musical logic combined with sheer musicality, deep emotion and yet much restraint--and never seems to highlight the conductor over the music, as many baton wavers tend to do.
And let's face it: this is such an incredible work of musical art, the best idea is to get out of Bach's way and simply present as much transparency as seems possible. Gardiner and his players do just that.
This would have to be on pretty much any list of the top 100 classical cds, and perhaps quite near the top of that list.
Glorious, truly.
Bach composed music for the glory of God, and whatever deity one chooses to worship, you can hear His or Her divinity herein.
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