From Chicagoland

I seem to be in the minority for preferring Solti's 1977 Verdi Requiem recording.

Sonically, this is not the most hefty recording. Even after two remasterings, there was only so much which could be done.

Solti gives a frightening, hair-raising performance, an aspect which won't be to everyone's desires in this work. I like to think Verdi's Requiem more as a sacred opera, and that is what we get here.

The soloists are one of the reasons I like this version so much. This is later Leontyne Price, so there is a fair amount of swooping, but her lower register is like no other. So too, Veriano Luchetti's Italianate tenor is dripping olive oil everywhere, and I love it! Dame Janet and Van Dam don't have as much to do, but I like their contributions, especially to the ensemble moments.

The Chicago Symphony Chorus is yet another reason. They are such a remarkably cohesive band of singers, and they give Solti exactly what he wants. I haven't even mentioned the orchestra yet, but it goes without saying.

Most will point to Solti's late 60's recording as superior; let us agree to disagree. I do like the paired Four Sacred Pieces afforded that one, however.

This 70's recording can be found remastered, the latest one put on a single CD instead of two, so this original won't be as valuable anymore. Still I think the cover is striking, and the remastered releases very bland in comparison. But a cover a recording does not make.

A review from 2000

Verdi’s Requiem Mass setting is equal parts chorus and soloists, although in this 1977 Chicago recording, the soloists are center stage. Leontyne Price has the dramatic growl emanating from her use of chest voice in the Libera Me, truly evoking the fear and trembling of the text, and unlike other star sopranos of the stage, she does not have a bright, cutting voice; it has instead a darker golden tone, often associated with singers of a lower tessitura, and owns the inherent drama of Verdi’s music. Veriano Luchetti might not be a tenor name that has remained in the common lexicon of famous Italian tenors, but he has a great vocal ring to his sound, passionate verismo drips from every sentence, and I actually prefer Luchetti’s performance over Pavarotti with Solti in 1968. Janet Baker’s tone is a well-tailored balance to sing with Price here, and her syrupy stylistic choices in the Lacrymosa are hardly bettered elsewhere. Van Dam doesn’t get the limelight like the others here, but dutifully fills out the quartet which, for a work written in a large orchestral setting, sings the many formidable a cappella passages with aplomb.

The Chicago Symphony Orchestra is in top form here, and while many believe Solti is purely spewing spectacle and pressing the music, I think he plays particularly well to Verdi’s compositional strengths: winning melodic lines, orchestral and solo/ensemble music meant to evoke experiential moods out of an audience (this time in a funereal ecclesiastical setting), and interesting instrument combinations (exposed bassoons, flute choirs, etc.) that Chicago pulls off with alacrity. This recording also marks the start of the award-winning Margaret Hillis and the Chicago chorus in a slew of wins at the Grammy’s for choral performances from the late 70’s to early 90’s before Robert Shaw started taking over at Atlanta. The chorus is great here, and while I think they take second seating to the soloists, this is an electric performance.

While this recording would certainly benefit from a re-mastering, the extreme dynamic changes in the chorus require a little volume work on the remote, but I think it is safe to say this recording still sounds great. Also, there are certainly more reverent performances of Verdi’s Requiem, but I will always come back to this angst-y, dramatic performance for its virtuosic playing by Chicago, well-crafted musicianship among the chorus, and solid gathering of great soloists.

 Listen on YouTube

Works
Requiem (81.34)

Kyrie (8.31)
Dies Irae (36.21)
Offertory (9.55)
Sanctus (2.40)
Agnus Dei (4.20)
Lux Aeterna (6.17)
Libera Me (13.13)

Soloists
Leontyne Price, soprano
Janet Baker, mezzo
Veriano Luchetti, tenor
José van Dam, bass

Ensembles
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Margaret Hillis, chorus master
Georg Solti, conductor

Label: RCA
Year: 1997; 2004, 2011
Total Timing: 81.34

 

 

If you haven't heard Verdi's Requiem, time to do it now!

Not everyone will like Solti's frightening vision of this work, and I will admit the sonics could always have been better.

Yet, this is a reference for me. Of course, coming from Chicagoland, recordings of Solti, Reiner, and Stock were rampant. Blame my proximity, not my musical tastes...

Find more Verdi recordings HERE!

 

2004 reissue

2011 Remaster