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The Europadisc Review

Mozart - Requiem

Raphael Pichon, Chadi Lazreq (treble), Ying Fang (soprano), Beth Taylor (mezzo-sopr...

£13.75

Here’s a bold and uncommonly thoughtful new take on one of the greatest warhorses in the choral repertoire: Mozart’s Requiem. Raphaël Pichon and his choral/instrumental Pygmalion ensemble have already made their mark with several Bach recordings (including an acclaimed 2022 release of the St Matthew Passion), as well as Monteverdi, Rameau and Libertà! (‘an imaginary drama giocoso’ compiled from various Mozart works). Now, turning their attention to this iconic opus ultimum, they present it (in Pichon’s own words) as ‘a veritable “ark of the covenant” between death and Mozart’s own vision of hu... read more

Mozart - Requiem

Raphael Pichon, Chadi Lazreq (treble), Ying Fang (soprano), Beth Taylor (mezzo-soprano), Laurence Kilsby (tenor), Alex Rosen (bass), Pygmalion

If all this sounds like so much background waffle, the proof of the pudding is in the eating – or, in this case, the execution. And here Pichon and his colleagues are daring, providing neither the work on its own nor a liturgical ‘reconstruction’; instead they base their performance (recorded in September 2023 at Grand Manège de Namur in Belgium) on a bold staging in which they collaborated with Romeo Castellucci in 2019 at the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence. Although a couple of photos from that production make it into the accompanying booklet, this audio-only recording relies on creating a musical context and continuity to give backbone to the idea of a celebration of life at the moment of death. (This celebratory element makes Pygmalion’s conception of the Requiem quite distinct from the solace of a work like Brahms’s Ein deutsches Requiem.)

The performance is framed by the plainsong antiphon ‘In paradisum’, affectingly sung by treble Chadi Lazreq, but on its first appearance it is interrupted by the four main soloists (Ying Fang, Beth Taylor, Laurence Kilsby and Alex Rosen) singing the four-voice canon Ach, zu kurz ist unsers Lebenslauf (‘Ah, too short is the course of our life’), K228/515b, delivered with exquisite refinement and a spring in its step, and ending in medias res once it has run (as it were) its own course. Then comes another a cappella work, the striking early Kyrie, K90, here recast as Miserere mei, which in its steady tread directly anticipates the opening of the Requiem itself.

Having created an effective build-up to the Requiem, the performance is then further enriched by the interpolation – often at surprising but always telling moments – of further little-known works. Between the Kyrie and the Sequence comes Ne pulvis et cinis, K Anh.122 (‘Do not behave arrogantly, ye who are dust and ashes’), featuring the bass soloist in full Commendatore mode, and providing an even more thrilling introduction to the ‘Dies iræ’ than the traditional segue from the Kyrie. Between ‘Rex tremendæ’ and the ‘Recordare’ there’s a Solfeggio in F major, K393/2 arranged for (wordless) voice and orchestra by Vincent Manac’h, again guilelessly sung by Chadi Lazreq.

In the Offertorium, between ‘Domine Jesu Christe’ and the ‘Hostias’ comes a gorgeous anonymous arrangement of the Adagio from the great Gran Partita for wind instruments, cast as Quis te comprehendat (‘Who can comprehend thy greatness’), K Anh.110, for voices and orchestra. This gives the instrumentalists (particularly oboe, clarinet and horn) a spotlight alongside the choir, magically reinforcing the mood of stillness and reflection. Finally, between the Benedictus and Agnus Dei we have one of the two Church Songs, K343, ‘O Gottes Lamm’, again arranged by Vincent Manac’h, for solo alto, choir and trombones. Its prayerful tone is a point of welcome repose, and the vernacular text balances that of the earlier vocal canon.

None of this would be so effective were the performance of the Requiem itself (performed in Franz Xaver Süssmayr’s completion) not so blazingly committed, caring and urgent. The Kyrie and ‘Dies iræ’ have an edge-of-the-seat thrill, yet every line has clarity. Arnaud Brétécher’s trombone solo in the ‘Tuba mirum’ is as eloquent as Alex Rosen’s singing, and the livelier pace at the tenor’s ‘Mors stupebit’ is most convincing. All the solo singing has a youthful vitality which adds enormously to the underlying conception, while the hugely accomplished choral singing (from 10 sopranos, 8 altos, 9 tenors and 9 basses) combines agility, sensitivity and weight in perfect measure, with a well-nigh ideal balance against the marvellous period timbres of the orchestra. Within the context of Pichon’s overall vision, the appending of the incomplete fugal ‘Amen’ to the ‘Lacrimosa’ makes a thought-provoking detail.

In conclusion, this is one of the most fascinating and compelling accounts of Mozart’s Requiem we’ve ever heard on disc. Quite apart from the overarching conception, the level of technical and musical accomplishment from this vibrant team of artists is something to lift the heart, and every aspect of the production, including the packaging, oozes class. Even the crustiest of traditionalists ought to give it a spin: it’s so strikingly life-enhancing as to silence all doubt. Certainly one of our choral discs of 2024!

The Spin Doctor Europadisc's Weekly Column

Two Operas from the French Golden Age 1st October 2024

1st October 2024

What do you think of at the mention of ‘French opera’? Bizet’s Carmen, perhaps? Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande? The operas of Berlioz and Massenet? The grand oparas of Meyerbeer, the opéras comiques of Auber or the operettas of Offenbach? Yet the French operatic tradition is almost as old and certainly as impressive as that of Italy. And there are many who would argue that its ‘golden age’ came as early as the 18th century, with the generation of composers who followed the pioneering works of Jean-Baptiste Lully (1632–1687), building on the achievements of his tragédies en musique to create works which combined opulence and refinement, that beguiling mixture of passion, grace and colour which is still considered to be the hallmark of French musical style.

Chief among the generations who immediately followed Lully was Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683–1764), still most familiar... read more

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