Déjà Review: this review was first published in March 1999 and the recording is still available.
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Missa Solemnis in D Op. 123
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Symphony No. 38 in D K. 304, ‘Prague’
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf (soprano), Christa Ludwig (mezzo), Nicolai Gedda (tenor), Nicola Zaccaria (bass)
Singverein der Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde, Wien
Philharmonia Orchestra/Herbert von Karajan
rec. 1959/60
Includes rehearsal sequences and an interview with Elisabeth Schwarzkopf
Testament SBT2126 [2 CDs: 158]
Another historical package that really sweeps the board is imbued in this latest Testament issue. The story of Karajan’s Philharmonia ‘Missa Solemnis’ was always a stunted one and it is all the more the pity that EMI’s top executives should have seen the wrong side of things as there is definitely nothing wrong with the superb performance. Walter Legge’s gaffe of issuing the mono recording first was not entirely his fault as Bicknell and co were still dilly-dallying on the effects of stereo whilst Decca took the plunge and once again stole a march on their cumbersome rival.
As Richard Osborne tells us in his excellent notes, the set disappeared from the catalogue and was forgotten for almost forty years until Testament came to its rescue. Karajan’s performance comes into direct comparison with Klemperer’s studiously marmoreal EMI account and Karajan’s later dashing and glitzy version for DG. After several hours of extended comparisons, I am inclined to favor this Philharmonia recording for the natural ‘cut and thrust’ achieved by Legge and Dillnutt and most of all, for the singing of Elisabeth Schwarzkopf in the title role.
As she recounts in her fascinating interview that precedes the actual recording, Karajan and his fastidious ear for balance unnecessarily protracted most of the sessions and correct interpretative quirks occasionally had the soloists in bad tempers. The Philharmonia’s playing is a joy throughout and the recording is a true picture of what the best engineering could produce in those days. But let us proceed to the performance itself. The ‘Kyrie’ is a heavy-handed affair but immediately one senses the clear delineation between the soloists, chorus and orchestra.
As Karajan always favored a clear beat, the ebb and flow of the music is definitely clearer than in Klmeperer’s somewhat murkier alternative. The ‘Gloria’ is a literal tour-de-force of choral mastery; the Viennese chorus obviously has its work cut out to keep with the murderously fast speeds Karajan adopts. Moving on to the ‘Credo’, one has to observe that the performance is curiously bland here, other conductors such as Solti and Giulini have felt this sacred moment with much greater spirituality. One marvels at the demands made on the orchestra, this was really a top-class ensemble in those days, a fact demonstrated by the magnificent Beethoven cycle recorded earlier in the 50’s in resplendent mono sound.
Coming to the ‘Sanctus’, one is almost drained of dramatic strength but Hugh Bean’s resplendent violin solo is even better than Michel Schwalbe’s schmaltzier rendering in 1966. The martial expositions in the Agnus Dei are almost thrillingly done, Haydn is recalled with his Missa in Tempore Belli not very far away! All in all, Karajan’s first version is dramatically satisfying and I would be tempted to state that the Philharmonia are just a shade better than the BPO in their admirable woodwind section.
We must not forget a real rarity in Mozart’s ‘Prague’ Symphony, a version which never saw the light of day but which is another blemish on executive policy taking precedence over artistic greatness. Karajan’s unique way with Mozart lent an especially alluring view to the music and the aristocratic geniality of K. 504 I something to marvel at. The performance is truly magnificent. The rehearsal sequences that make up the rest of this unmissable two-disc set show Karajan at his most autocratic, exacting and getting the standards he constantly demands.
I have been one of the many who have fallen under the spell of Richard Osborne’s truly ‘unputdownable’ biography of the maestro and listening afresh to something about which I had read in detail in that book was an immensely rewarding experience. Not a first-choice ‘Missa’ then, but definitely a supplement that is made all the more attractive by the interview and the colourful rehearsals.
Gerald Fenech
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