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LS 0083
Elgar: The Dream of Gerontius
Label Catalogue Number:
LSO0083
LSO0083
Running Time: 92:13
Release Date: December 2006
Originally recorded in 2006
Originally recorded in 2006
Genre:
Orchestral & Concertos
Choir
Orchestral & Concertos
Choir
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About
Elgar’s Dream of Gerontius was thought by many to be outlandishly modern at the time of its completion in 1900. Telling the story of the journey of a dying man’s soul into the afterlife, the subject originally caused uproar within the English church yet is now acclaimed as one of the great choral masterpieces and one of Elgar’s most popular works.
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Reviews
Colin Davis’s Elgar always has something to say the LSO chorus are magnificent
The Guardian - 4 August 2006
For Davis Elgar is a European composer, and the links to Wagner are made succently clear Davis is the star: guiding shaping, enhancing the beauty and the flow."
The Times - 4 August 2006
Now in the absolute prime of his artistry, Davis adds his always visceral style to the atmosphere of the piece The direction of both orchestra and chorus is exceptionally nuanced, whilst all three soloists are dedicated to their task, creating a unified interpretation his [David Rendall’s] sense of the text is excellent. Prayerful in the opening statement, he becomes gradually more agonised in the Sanctus before his soul goes on its unknown journey in Part 2 As descendants of the English choral tradition we want to be overwhelmed by the power of massed voices in this work, and the LSC does not disappoint it’s a recording for all concerned to be proud of. But the laurels go to Davis for his inspired reading
MusicOMH - July 2006
Davis responds magnificently tapping the music’s drama while dwelling on it’s tender heart
Daily Telegraph - 12 August 2006
Colin Davis’s conducting is superb and the strings sound particularly luminous in the ecstatic sections; he also pulls the dramatic tension up to ever greater heights as the Soul both fears and hopes to meet God [Anne Sofie vonOtter’s] gorgeous performance is worth the price of the disc alone
Metro - 7 August 2006
In charge of his eloquent LSO forces, Colin Davis delivers this performance with passionate engagement, bringing to it an elemental sweep and dynamism on the one hand and spiritual tenderness on the other. Fine solo contributions from David Rendall’s intensely vulnerable Gerontius, Alastair Miles forthright Priest and Anne Sofie von Otter’s consoling Angel
The Observer - August 2006
Colin Davis and his LSO forces deliver a powerful, exciting, totally committed performance from first note to last. Davis obviously, and to his credit, takes the music as seriously as did Elgar himself. Tempos are admirably swift, the demons aptly scary, and the whole buildup to the great Praise to the Holiest chorus is stupendous. The opening of Part Two steals in with positively sublime discretion and sensitivity, a tribute to Davis’s keen attention to dynamics and phrasing The sonics are also among the finest to comefrom this source, with excellent balances between choir and orchestra and plenty of impact"
ClassicsToday.com (US), 14 August 2006
ClassicsToday.com (US), 14 August 2006
ClassicsToday.com - 14 August 2006
this new recording from the LSO and Sir Colin Davis is so detailed in its emotional responses - so magical is Davis’s phrasing that there are times that one dare not breathe for fear of breaking the spell All three soloists are interpretatively and tonally arresting Davis’s chorus and orchestra are really something special
International Record Review - September 2006
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