Here is something a
little different. This is a French recording
of Brahms’ arrangement of the German
Requiem. This is for piano duet instead
of full orchestra and is known as the
‘London’ version. It was arranged for
voices and piano by Brahms at the request
of his publisher Rieter-Beidermann in
Leipzig. This was primarily so that
the work could be performed privately
in homes and so allow the music-loving
public access to the score in a playable
format. The full work had been premiered
in stages, various movements and groups
of movements being performed as they
were finished by the composer between
1861 and 1869. This current edition
first saw the light of day in 1869,
and is no mere reduction of the orchestral
score. Brahms, in some passages, had
re-emphasised the balances to suit the
lower volumes and different textures
of the piano compared with full orchestra.
The performance here
recorded is by the young French Chamber
Choir called Accentus, formed by its
Music Director, Laurence Equilbey in
1991. It is a choir of young professional
musicians numbering 32. They have the
intention of performing a capella music
in chamber choir formation. Laurence
Equilbey studied in Paris, Vienna and
Stockholm and was trained primarily
by Eric Ericson in Stockholm. Ericson
is the choir’s guest conductor. This
ensemble has appeared throughout Europe
at different festivals and has performed
extensively with Pierre Boulez’s Ensemble
Intercontemporain. Its initial CD releases
have been very well received throughout
Europe and this, its fifth and most
substantial disc, is well up with the
previous releases.
I have loved the Brahms
Requiem in its orchestral guise for
over forty years. I must admit that
I approached this release somewhat guardedly,
as my initial thought was that a piano
reduction would be a very pale replica
of the original. How wrong I was. I
found this performance every bit as
involving as the best orchestral versions
and anyone approaching this issue with
trepidation need not be concerned. My
second concern, admittedly a prejudice,
was that of the poor discipline of French
ensembles. There is no need for concern
here either, and the blending of the
fresh young voices is a constant delight,
as is the highly disciplined singing,
making Brahms’s masterpiece glow anew.
The other young contingent is to be
found in the soloists, Sandrine Piau
and Stephan Degout.
Sandrine Piau is relatively
little known on the international circuit,
having concentrated primarily in the
baroque areas and concentrating on Handel.
Here she sings the heavier Brahms work
to perfection. I expect that all newcomers
to this recording will be entranced
as I was. Not to be outdone, the baritone
soloist has more to do and Stephan Degout
handles his task with mighty aplomb.
Perhaps not yet with the surety of Fischer-Dieskau
with Klemperer but with a fullness of
tone, which I am sure will be enjoyed
by all.
The pianists, Brigitte
Engerer and Boris Berezovsky are absolutely
first-rate and well caught by the recording.
Rather than have the four hands on one
piano as written by the composer, the
separate piano parts are each handled
by one instrument. They are located
to the left and right of the conductor
with the choir and soloists behind.
This recording has
been sponsored by France Telecom in
their programme of support of young
vocal musicians and it gives me much
pleasure to be able to thoroughly recommend
this, the latest from their sponsorship.
John Phillips
Sandrine Piau (soprano), Stephane Degaut
(baritone) 
