Verdi Requiem Angela Gheorghiu Roberto Alagna Daniela Barcellona Julian Konstantinov Claudio Abbado Berlin Philharmonic DVD with Angela Gheorghiu, Daniela Barcellona, Roberto Alagna (NR) +Movie Reviews

This one and Karajan 1967 are the best on DVD.

Robert G. VanStryland | Denton, TX USA | 05/27/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Abbado and the Berlin Philharmonic give a powerful and exciting performance. The only other DVD of Verdi's Requiem that is competitive with this one is the 1967 Karajan performance on Deutsche Grammophon. Karajan has the better quartet of soloists (Leontyne Price, Fiorenza Cossotto, Luciano Pavarotti, and Nicolai Ghiaurov), but Abbado's singers are more than adequate, and his more recent performance has the advantage of superior recorded sound. Karajan obtains the more beautiful pianissimos, but Abbado generates bigger thrills, especially in the Tuba Mirum where he projects the rolling momentum that Karajan misses. NOTE: Other (inferior) DVDs of this work, conducted by Abbado and Karajan respectively, are currently available. Don't get mixed up."

Magnificent

Jeffrey Danowitz | Ramat Aviv, Tel Aviv Israel | 07/05/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Although I have a maximum of 1000 words, only one is needed here: magnificent.
I bought this DVD, got home, and thought I would listen to the beginning to see how it would be. Wrong thought -- there is no way to stop in the middle.
The soloists are unknown to me and they are not the big name performers as in other performances, but this doesn't matter. They set the tone that Abaddo wants.
Abaddo brings out things in the orchestra that I never heard in this requiem. The multiple choirs singing are heavenly.
As I was listening to this recording I could not help but say to myself that this is going to be the recording that everyone will be talking about -- this is an historical legend. This is one of those rare moments in life that you need to cherish. There is no way to put in words the feelings that you get listening and watching this performance. Abbado here is more than a conductor, he is an actor, and a director. He creates an atmosphere.
Give yourself a real treat and listen to/watch this DVD."

A touching document from a conductor who nearly died

atacgene | New York, NY USA | 11/25/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The hushed solemn opening of the Requiem with the frail, almost unrecognisable Abbado at the podium must be one of the most moving moments in the history of music making. He, who had just recovered from a near fatal illness recently (I haven't found out exactly what illness yet) looked as if he was conducting a requiem for himself, and that all the musicians are singing and playing for him. It is therefore difficult not to imaging that this electrifying and gripping performance is a direct result of Abbado's near-death experience (and I felt the same with his recent DG Mahler No.9 even before I knew about his illness). And what a red-blooded tour-de force performance, especially in the closing pages when Gherorghui sang with such dramatic intensity and with the final, wrenching orchestral climax that Abaddo had to pause for > 10 seconds to allow himself to calm down before he let the audience clap. No need to repeat the praises by other reviewers, except to add that DTS is a superb contribution though it sounds great enough even without it and Alagna is in his greatest form, without any stage fright (as he sometimes get tensed in live performances) All in all, a disc to die for and definitely a short-list for DVD of the year."

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