Rezensionen Schubert Messe As-Dur

 

Württembergische Blätter für Kirchenmusik (März 2011, Michael Bender)

(...) "Die Stuttgarter Kantorei ... überzeugt durch einen warm verschmelzenden Klang. Im Unterschied zu (1 = Aufnahme der Es-Dur Messe mit dem Staatsopernchor und der Staatskapelle Dresden) wird hier ein homogeneres Klangbild erzielt. (...) Auch das international namenlose Orchester darf man mit der zu hörenden Leistung getrost zur ersten Liga zählen. Die Solisten sind trefflich ausgewählt und passen in ihren zahlreichen Ensembles perfekt zueinander." 

 

 

Choir & Organ (Februar 2011, Alan Bullard)

(...) "As we would expect from Schubert, there is an enjoyable inventiveness and musical sympathy in the response to the text, and the soloists, chorus and orchestra rise well to the variety of textures and moods in this persuasive and well-engineered disc." 

 

 

International Record Review (Mai 2010, Johan Warrack)

"Schubert wrote and rewrote this Mass, the fifth of his six, more than once before he declared himself satisfied with it, and then wrote yet another version (the one recorded here). It seems that he Was concerned especially with his abilities in counterpoint - it is a touching aspect of his character that, mortally ill, he started taking lessons at the very end of his life - and there are indeed some urnsharacteri.stieally laboured pages in the Cum sancto spiritu' fugue. Here, the choir does well to keep the movement fresh and alert. It rises enthusiastically to the Credo, when Schubert takes obvious delight in responding to the traditional setting of the different objects of faith after each repetition of the statement of belief. It is noticeable, incidentally-, that he emits the words 'et in unam sanctam Catholicam et Apostolicam Ecclesiam': the authority of the Catholic Church had been much restricted by the Emperor Joseph II, and Mass texts were adapted accordingly in Austria. Yet the harmonies at the opening of the Sanctus, progressions of a strangeness suggesting the contemplation of a mystery, before the tremendous outbursts of `Sanctus', are the gestures of a man who could write in his diary that, 'faith ... is far superior to knowledge and understanding; for in order to understand a thing one must first believe in it'- This extraordinary passage is sensitively played here by the orchestra, and the chorus rises warmly to its threefold outbursts all on different and astonishing chords.
This is Schubert's most lyrical Mass setting, and one which he eventually thought well of, well enough to entitle it Missa Solemnis. Kay Johannsen balances the music's different elements excellently, and keeps his soloists singing simply and in manner close to the choir rather than individualistically. The orchestra (which surprisingly includes only a single flute, used very sparingly) plays elegantly, with effects such as the muted upper strings over unmuted cellos and basses sounding clearly and effectively. The `Osanna' movements are light and cheerful, and the final 'Dona nobis pacem', also lightly taken here, effectively alternates the quietness of the prayer with powerful statements of confidence in it being granted. There are more than suggestions that Schubert had taken note of Haydn's great Mass settings."

 

Musik und Kirche (Mai 2010, Ingeborg Allihn)

"(...) Mit großer Sorgfalt und tiefem Verständnis werden die innere Dramatik der Komposition, die breite Palette der musikalischen Affektdarstellungen und der instrumentale Klangfarbenreichtum herausgearbeitet. Grandios die gewaltige Steigerung im "Gloria", anrührend das verinnerlichte "et incarnatus est", erschütternd das harmonisch unglaublich moderne "crucifixus". Und immer wieder der aufrüttelnde Übergang von den lauten zu den geiheimnisvoll-leisen Klängen.Die Orchesterbegleitung durch die Stiftsphilharmonie Stuttgarrt, insbesondere die der solistisch eingesetzten Instrumente, ist stets präsent, nie jedoch vordergründig. Wie sehr Schubert bei allen individuellen Neuerungen doch auch wieder die Tradition der Messe-Komposition und der klassischen Vokalpolyphonie fortsetzt, beweist die bestens disponierte und sorgfältig artikulierende Stuttgarter Kantorei. Aber auch der leuchtenden Klarheit des ausgewogenen und beseelten Solistenquartetts ist diese sehr befriedigende Interpretation zu danken."

 

www.fye.com (April 2010, James Manheim)

"The Stiftsphilharmonie Stuttgart cultivates the ability to give performances on both Baroque and modern instruments, depending on repertoire. You might expect this rendition of the Schubert Mass in A flat major, D. 678, to show the influence of historical-instrument approaches, and so it does, in the best way, with perfectly transparent instrumental textures. The sound engineering backs up the aims of the performers to the hilt. This mass, begun in 1819, completed over a three-year period, and subsequently revised (it is the final version from 1825 that is performed here), is the most ambitious of Schubert's six settings, with the Gloria and Credo leading up in harmonically complex sonata-like movements to vast fugal finales. Schubert intended the mass for an imperial dedication, and it is of appropriate splendor, with a remarkable spiritual tone in the smaller movements setting off the formality of the larger structures. Conductor Kay Johannsen, and, one can add, recording producer Michael Sandner, open up wide spaces and let the music fill it in. The dynamic range is impressive, with the soloists seeming to come from a distance when they first enter, but with Schubert's complex writing for brasses and winds revealed in great detail. The superbly warm sound of the Stuttgarter Kantorei, one of Germany's remarkable regional choirs, is perfectly integrated with the orchestra and with the solo quartet, and the impact of the whole is very strong. There are versions of this mass that emphasize its Schubertian lyricism to a greater degree, but few that give it greater overall weight. Informative and evocative booklet notes are given in German, French, and English. A standout release from Stuttgart's Carus label."

 

musicweb-international.com (April 2010, Dominy Clements)

"The Carus label seems to specialise in clean recordings of performances infused with refinement and clarity, and this Mass in A flat major is no exception. Kay Johannsen has appeared before on the Carus label, producing some highly regarded recordings as an organist, but his work as conductor of the Stuttgarter Kantorei and Stiftsphilharmonie Stuttgart are no less a significant part of his musical activities, and his recordings with soloist vocal ensemble Stimmkunst have also been received with critical acclaim. (...)
This recording and performance as a whole is of the very highest standard, with a nice balance between choir and orchestra, and the soloists not unnaturally forward. The soloists are a very strong team, with Andrea Lauren Brown?s pure soprano tones deserving special mention. (...) There isn't an especially "period" emphasis in the performance and modern instruments are used, though as mentioned, clarity and a lightness of touch is an important part of the performance, even in grander tutti passages."

 

Pizzicato (März 2010, Guy Wagner)

"Dies ist eine jener CDs, die man bereits kaufen kann, ohne sie angehört zu haben, denn alle Ingredienzien stimmen: Ein sicherer und ausgewogener Chor mit einer hervorragenden Diktion und einer echten Gesangskultur, die Stiftsphilharmonie Stuttgart, ein überaus sensibles und feinsinniges Orchester, die Stuttgarter Kantorei, und ein Dirigent, Kay Johannsen, der genau weiß, was er will, oder vielmehr noch: was Schubert wollte. Und so kann er auch dank eines unaufdringlichen aber sehr homogenen Solistenquartetts diese wohl komplexeste Messe Schuberts in schönstem Glanz erblühen lassen. Wenn man dann erst den Einstieg ins Kyrie gehört hat, so gibt's kein Zögern mehr... Hier erfolgt ein ungekünstelter, ganz selbstverständlicher Dienst an der Musik, aus dem Wissen heraus um die Anforderungen dieser Musik..."

 

Stuttgarter Zeitung (März 2010, Florian Wetter)

"Ambitioniert und doch zurückgenommen wirkt Schuberts erste große Messe in As-Dur. Nach vier kürzeren Vorgängern sollte eine Musik entstehen, die sich dem Kaiser widmen ließ. Kay Johannsens Interpretation des Werks trifft diesen feierlich repräsentativen Tonfall. Dezente Finesse ist hier augenfälliger als offensichtliche Kühnheit. Wo Schuberts Messe fast gehemmt wirkt, beleben feine Schattierungen das Klangbild. Beachtlich ist dabei vor allem die dynamische Bandbreite mit ihren vielen kleinen Empfindungsnuancen sowie eine sorgfältig gearbeitete Vokalfarbe und Artikulation im Chor. Das Orchester mischt sich unauffällig hinzu, ohne zu dominieren. (...) Es ist eine Darbietung der Zwischentöne, die auf Vordergründiges verzichtet und Effekte nur am Rande bedient. Das erfordert Geduld beim Hören, belohnt aber durch einen schlüssigen Gesamteindruck. Das Soloquartett mit Andrea Lauren Brown (Sopran), Ruth Sandhoff (Alt), Andreas Karasiak (Tenor) und Tobias Berndt (Bass) fügt sich unaufdringlich ins Ganze und verleiht der Aufführung eine angenehm kammermusikalische Note."