Beethoven: Large Choral Works
Three Cantatas, two Mass settings, an Oratorio, the 'Choral' Fantasy, and a lone choral/orchestral piece make up Deutsche Grammophon's Large Choral Works, Vol. 19 from that label's 1997 20-volume Complete Beethoven Edition, each volume available separately. DGG's later Beethoven 2020 monster of a set includes all of these choral works, plus a period-instrument version of the Missa Solemnis (Gardiner), as well as an additional portion allotted to the composer's orchestral songs, taking up CDs 93 - 98, for those interested in a comparison. That 118-CD set comes all in one, plus two DVDs and three Blu-rays.
As to the original 1997 Large Choral Works volume, I covered the individual entries from each of the 5CDs, easily found on our Beethoven composer page, at least for those interested in a more detailed review (BLOG).
By and large, Deutsche Grammophon chose performances covering the decade of the 1990s for Volume 19, with only one exception (Klee 1970). Also, they picked rather old-world performing styles for these choral works, preferring Austro-Germanic modern-instrument orchestras, with grand, thickset interpretations, again with only one exception (Gardiner's Mass in C Major). Odd, since the period-instrument movement was well on the rise at that time. To add to the curiosities, Karajan and Böhm, old Deutsche Grammophon hands, are nowhere to be seen in this set. In a positive PR move, DGG replaced the Missa Solemnis from James Levine from the 1997 set, with that of Karajan in the 2020 set.
I can safely say the sound is very good in each of these works, capturing the chorus and soloists in pleasing balances, and the orchestra in full, deep sonics. My guess is DGG commissioned or gained rights to Christian Thielemann's second early cantata by Beethoven, as they already had the first, and Myung-Whun Chung in the rare cantata Der Glorreiche Augenblick with Italian performers. James Levine's Missa Solemnis is the only choral work which is performed live; the rest are studio recordings.
The only period performers on the set comes in the Mass in C Major from John Eliot Gardiner. Luckily, it is a very fine performance, maybe even the best the work has been given on record, and that being said even though I am not a fan of the historically-informed performance trends. This is mainly due to the fine work from The Monteverdi Choir, who also offer up Beethoven's Meeresstille und Glückliche Fahrt. The Beethoven 2020 edition includes Ah! Perfido from Gardiner's original recording as well, but does not feature on this choral set.
Because I enjoy the sort-of Old-World approach to Beethoven, this 5CD set proved to be right up my alley. For those interested in the choral music of Beethoven, this could very well be an intriguing set, especially if your tastes align with mine.
Works
Vol. 1: Cantatas (71.40)
Vol. 2: Glorreiche Augenblick (52.49)
Vol. 3: Mass in C Major (49.27)
Vol. 4: Missa Solemnis (82.30)
Vol. 5: Christus am Ölberge (56.12)
Year: 1970-1996; 1997
Label: DGG
Total Timing: 5.12.38
I can't say every performance Deutsche Grammophon chose for their Large Choral Works volume is the finest, but I do enjoy the Old-World performance styles represented from the likes of conductors Bernhard Klee, Christian Thielemann, and Claudio Abbado.
The soloists are a who's who from the 1990s and the choral contributions are first rate.
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