Faure Requiem [Blu-ray]

Sublime music presented on a sublime disc.
This is a very lovely disc indeed, featuring several of Faure's best known and loved choral works and including a couple of surprises chosen from early to mature works. All are given affectionate performances.

The first piece brings the first surprise - the choral version of the famous Pavane. This is generally played in its original orchestral mode of 1887. What many may not be aware of is that Fauré made a version in 1891 including chorus, mime and dancing for a private party and it is that choral version we hear on this disc. This alternative setting completely changes the nature of the piece but it is nevertheless an effective transformation.

The only purely orchestral piece of the concert follows - the Elégie for cello and orchestra and this is given an attractive performance by Eric Picard who emphasises its apparent lyrical simplicity.

The remaining three pieces are from opposite ends of Faure's career. The early setting of a psalm...

Music so sublime it may make you cry
This all Faure concert disc by the Paris Orchestra and Chorus, nimbly conducted by Paavo Jarvi, is not perfect. For one, the audio though very clear is not the surround mix you might have expected given the DTS 5.1 labeling ....hardly any ambient signals from the rear speakers. Secondly, though for the most part the video quality is very good, it is not the pop up razor sharp image you'd expect from the best blu ray discs....some long shots of the choir at the back of the stage seem underexposed and soft and a curious shimmer sometimes mar the image causing for instance blacks to appear grayish and margins to lose their sharpness. But when the music starts all these seem trivial .
The 'Pavane' for orchestra and chorus is tender with its familiar haunting flute obligato, Jarvi highlighting the delicate interplay between the orchestra and the voices, and showing the flowing melodic lines that is simply Gabriel Faure. Picard next plays the Elegie for cello and orchestra and...



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