Extra Cushion

 

All to our benefit!

I love this performance of Mozart's Mass in C minor. Of course, it helps I enjoy the singing of Romanian soprano Ileana Cotrubaș, who takes on Constanze Mozart's soprano role.

This performance, though, will be for those who enjoy an old-fashioned rendition of the Classical Era. The tempos are slow and pious, yet the orchestra is warm and luxuriant, allowing for radiant pastoral beauty. Don't equate slow with limp, for Raymond Leppard coils the torque tightly here. The last thing I would stand for is underplayed Mozart.

This recording may have been my first introduction to the John Alldis Choir. With such a name, I had expected a light, British chorister type of chamber singing ensemble. How wrong I was! They are a solid choral group, and then some.

This is a beautiful performance of K. 427 from Mozart, and easily a prime recommendation from this listener. If you really want to get to the heart of Mozart's emotional beauty, with no fear for lack of rigor in his religious music, there is no better place to begin than here.

A review from 2024

This classic performance of Mozart’s ‘Great’ Mass in C Minor from Raymond Leppard is a reissue on Warner Classics from the earlier remastering on EMI .

Mozart’s Great Mass in c minor is definitely channeling Handel and the Baroque for the choral portions, sometimes split into 8-part double chorus. The virtuosic soprano solo, meant for Constanza herself, is very telling towards her historic abilities, requiring an adept an agile voice.

Excepting for The Great Karajan on DG , Raymond Leppard’s performance is one of the slower on record, but it is all to the benefit of Mozart’s music. The 8+ minute Kyrie is absolutely divine at Leppard’s languorous tempo, I could listen to it endlessly, and the chorus sustains a requisite swinging tension in Qui Tollis despite the 6+ minute runtime.

Which leads me to the highlight of this recording - the singing. The feature of sopranos Ilean Cotrubaș and a young Kiri Te Kanawa are not only finely matched, but Cotrubas’ simplicity makes this music shine throughout. The John Alldis Choir is a solid symphonic choir, and they maintain a certain level of torque that rarely flags, particularly the men’s sections doubled by the bass line. The New Philharmonia Orchestra of London in 1974 is a modern instrument ensemble that is finely integrated with all of the performers, thankfully devoid of any jangly harpsichord.

The EMI /Warner remastering is really quite stupendous, especially for its balances. The choral parts are clear, even in their multi-divisi double chorus numbers, and the soloists are heard perfectly well among the orchestra and chorus, while the instrumentals are subtly balanced. Wonderful sonics all around!

For an over-the-top, Romanticized view of Mozart, Bernstein on DG fits the bill too, and those preferring period influences might enjoy Gardiner on Philips or Rilling on Hänssler .

EMI's is truly a first-choice recording of Mozart’s Great Mass in c minor though, despite the 60 minute runtime, where recordings tend to come in closer to 50 minutes; the extra cushion is used to gorgeous effect by Raymond Leppard, orchestra, and singers that showcases the radiance of Mozart’s music and some of the finest vocalists featured in this work are on board.

Listen on YouTube

Works
Mass in C Minor, K. 427

Soloists
Ileana Cotrubaș, soprano
Kiri Te Kanawa, soprano
Werner Krenn, tenor
Hans Sotin, bass

Performers
John Alldis Choir
New Philharmonia Orchestra
Raymond Leppard, conductor

Label: EMI / Warner
Year: 1974; 2000; 2013
Total Timing: 59.21

A great way to begin exploring Mozart's Mass settings.

This performance is simply beautiful, but I know individual preferences will come down to voice types and shades of contemporary historical orchestral approaches.

This is my preference, though, and one to live with!

 

 

 

 

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