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Product Description
Acclaimed for their recordings of large-scale masterpieces including Bach's St Matthew Passion, Handel's Saul and Mozart's Mass in C Minor, Paul McCreesh and his Gabrieli Consort turn their attention to Haydn's greatest work: The Creation
Paul McCreesh has revised large parts of the text of the English-language version, also rewriting the recitatives "as Haydn might have done had he been more familiar with the English language"
Not only is this the world premiere recording of this newly revised version, it is also the first release of Die Schoepfung in its equally authentic English version in the Deutsche Grammophon catalogue
Employing a luxuriously large cast of five soloists, almost 100 singers and 113 players as used by Haydn for the premiere of the German version, this promises to be the English-language recording of The Creation
McCreesh and the Gabrieli Consort are regarded as highly acclaimed experts in recreating large-scale orchestral/choral works as they might have been performed historically; here they bring their unique insight to Haydn's well-loved masterwork
Product Description
2CD Gabrieli Consort
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
By enthusiast
TOP 500 REVIEWER
Format:Audio CD
This is a first rate account of a much recorded masterpiece. McCreesh has a real gift in bringing out the emotional impact of works he records and the present record is no exception. I must say that I also think The Creation works well in English. As the other reviewer here notes, Haydn would have been familiar with an English version as well as the "original" German one. I own two German versions - Gardiner's and Harnoncourt's excellent recent recording. I think I prefer this new one to both of those (I certainly prefer it to Gardiner's rather driven and bland account).
This record is an extraordinary bargain. A fairly recent recording with a true star - so many of us feel we just have to hear a new McCreesh issue no matter how many other versions we may have heard - of a work that is familiar enough but in a form that it is rarely recorded in these days (in English). The account is stirring, stylish and sprightly. It conveys concentration and a sense of joy in music making. It is strikingly well played and is well sung. Some might be distubred that two of the singers are not mother tongue English speakers. I am not.
This record is an extraordinary bargain. A fairly recent recording with a true star - so many of us feel we just have to hear a new McCreesh issue no matter how many other versions we may have heard - of a work that is familiar enough but in a form that it is rarely recorded in these days (in English). The account is stirring, stylish and sprightly. It conveys concentration and a sense of joy in music making. It is strikingly well played and is well sung. Some might be distubred that two of the singers are not mother tongue English speakers. I am not.
34 of 38 people found the following review helpful
By Mr. S. J. Bonsor
VINE™ VOICE
Format:Audio CD
It has become `de rigueur' for choral works to be performed in their original languages: For example, where once Brahms' German Requiem or Haydn's Creation were regularly sung in English- often by large northern choirs - nowadays it seems that no-one dares to sing them in anything other than German.
The fact is that, in the case of The Creation, the English version has as much validity as the German, and it would appear that Haydn had both languages in mind when setting his text: all the more reason to have a recording in English.
Similarly, where once works such as Bach's B Minor Mass would have been given by huge choirs, modern `historically informed' practise tends towards paring down the forces, even to the extreme of having a single singer for each vocal line.
I feel there should be a range of ways of performing the established choral classics, just as I don't think that period instrument groups should have exclusive ownership of anything written before 1850- but that's a bigger debate. Suffice to say that there are precedents for performing The Creation with a large choir and orchestra, so why not?
I know the English text fairly well and for all its faults, and despite the latest trends, it has developed its own currency over the years. Mc Creesh has done a reasonable job in transposing some of the more awkward phrases and providing clearer translations elsewhere, but by and large it's little more than a matter of taste. If you're used to the words, be prepared for a few surprises.
This is a beautifully played and sung recording with McCreesh eliciting a clear intelligent reading of the piece from the Gabrieli Consort and Players which manages to hit the right emotional response. No unwieldiness either from the larger vocal forces.... Read more ›
The fact is that, in the case of The Creation, the English version has as much validity as the German, and it would appear that Haydn had both languages in mind when setting his text: all the more reason to have a recording in English.
Similarly, where once works such as Bach's B Minor Mass would have been given by huge choirs, modern `historically informed' practise tends towards paring down the forces, even to the extreme of having a single singer for each vocal line.
I feel there should be a range of ways of performing the established choral classics, just as I don't think that period instrument groups should have exclusive ownership of anything written before 1850- but that's a bigger debate. Suffice to say that there are precedents for performing The Creation with a large choir and orchestra, so why not?
I know the English text fairly well and for all its faults, and despite the latest trends, it has developed its own currency over the years. Mc Creesh has done a reasonable job in transposing some of the more awkward phrases and providing clearer translations elsewhere, but by and large it's little more than a matter of taste. If you're used to the words, be prepared for a few surprises.
This is a beautifully played and sung recording with McCreesh eliciting a clear intelligent reading of the piece from the Gabrieli Consort and Players which manages to hit the right emotional response. No unwieldiness either from the larger vocal forces.... Read more ›
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By Marcolorenzo
TOP 1000 REVIEWER
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
The libretto of "The Creation" comes primarily from Genesis Chapter 1, Milton's Paradise Lost and the book of Psalms. Haydn was given a copy of this libretto written in English by an anonymous author while in London on one of his trips. (This libretto has however unfortunately been lost). It was re-written by Baron Gottfried van Swieten, the same man who was instrumental in having Mozart arrange some of the works of Handel. Haydn actually originally wanted to disseminate this work in both an English and in a German version. Sweiten translated the libretto from English into German and later back translated the German into English and further adapted the English prose to Haydn's musical setting. The original score of "The Creation" was originally published in a bilingual version with however a problematic English text ( which kept the work from being performed in English most of the time). The English was written in above the German version in the original score. According to Haydn's original intentions the work should have been performed in English for English speaking audiences. And Haydn's original intentions are now finally realized and really pay off in this splendid completely re-edited English text version by McCreesh. The emotional word-painting and the triumphant sublimity of the work come across brilliantly in McCreesh's revision of the text and interpretation of the musical score, for any English speaking listener. The pastoral emotionalism and all the invocations in music of nature's creatures finally have seemed to come fully alive for me (one who doesn't speak German and usually has to follow with difficulty the sung text in the German versions with the English translations).... Read more ›
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
I think this is an excellent recording of The Creation, unusually but very successfully sung in English. Paul McCreesh is best known for his recreations of rather earlier works and events, but he brings a fabulous life, energy and sensitivity to this Haydn masterpiece. Never afraid of employing very large forces, here McCreesh directs a choir and orchestra of over a hundred members each, often giving a thrilling impact, but also capable of great tenderness and spiritual depth. The soloists are uniformly excellent and their ensemble singing is wonderful and truly affecting in places.
The huge majority of recordings of the Creation are sung in German, although Haydn conceived it as a work to be sung in either German or English. This is partly because the surviving English libretto is a rather stilted translation from the German, and McCreesh has "fine-tuned" it for this recording. I think he has done an excellent job and this combined with the quality of the performance make it an immense pleasure to hear and fully understand a profound statement of faith by one of the greatest of all composers.
This version won't replace my dearly-loved recording (in German) by John Eliot Gardiner Haydn, J.: The Creation, but it makes a wonderful companion to it, and I recommend it very warmly.
The huge majority of recordings of the Creation are sung in German, although Haydn conceived it as a work to be sung in either German or English. This is partly because the surviving English libretto is a rather stilted translation from the German, and McCreesh has "fine-tuned" it for this recording. I think he has done an excellent job and this combined with the quality of the performance make it an immense pleasure to hear and fully understand a profound statement of faith by one of the greatest of all composers.
This version won't replace my dearly-loved recording (in German) by John Eliot Gardiner Haydn, J.: The Creation, but it makes a wonderful companion to it, and I recommend it very warmly.
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