EDWARD ELGAR

 

The Dream of Gerontius

 

CD1

1-7 Part I

 

CD2

1-14 Part II

 

Leader Lyn Fletcher

Paul Groves

Alice Coote

Bryn Terfel

Hallé Choir

Hallé Youth Choir

 

Musical Director Sir Mark Elder

 

Elgar’s late masterpiece is an extraordinary work full of drama and passion alongside exquisite music of sublime delicacy. It is a moving expression of the composer’s personally unorthodox religious faith and a poignant reflection on the journey of a man through death, depicted in striking writing for choir, orchestra and soloist.

 

“Mark Elder’s interpretation with the Hallé orchestra and choir evaded characterisation, though he stamps his dramatic instincts all over the piece. It is either a religious tone poem or a spiritual opera, either way the effect is frequently cataclysmic.” The Guardian

 

“It is, by a mile, the best-sounding Gerontius we have had, handsome in its depth and breadth with great spatial perspectives and a wonderful sense of how the score is layered. Of course, Janet Baker's timbre still haunts every measure of the Angel's music, but the wonderful Alice Coote conveys great confidentiality in her highly personalised reading.” Gramophone Magazine, January 2009

 

Total playing time: 94.21

 

Halle 2cds CDHLL7520