Nikolaus Harnoncourt
is one of the most thoughtful and thought-provoking
conductors currently before the public.
In 1992 he recorded a cycle of the Schubert
symphonies with the Royal Concertgebouw
Orchestra, which I found very stimulating,
albeit his is not for me the only way
with Schubert. The same verdict applies
to these performances of Schubert’s
last and most substantial Mass settings.
As with his readings
of the symphonies Harnoncourt does not
play down the lyrical side of Schubert’s
muse but he does favour, as he tends
to in other music, razor-sharp accents
and fully-observed dynamic contrasts.
Actually, I find this a helpful approach
in both of these Masses.
I’ve sung in several
performances of D950 but I’ve only ever
experienced D678 as a listener. Paradoxically,
I consider D678, the work I only know
from the outside, so to speak, to be
the finer piece. I wonder if this is
anything to do with the respective gestation
periods of the two works? D 950, a very
late work, was composed in 1828. On
the other hand D 678 occupied Schubert
on and off over an extended period of
time. He began it in 1819 but did not
complete it until 1822. Despite this
lengthy time-span it seems to me that
the creative fires burned more strongly
in the earlier work. In particular,
Schubert resorted much more readily
to fugal endings in D 950. The Gloria
in that Mass ends with a lengthy fugue,
while that which concludes the Credo
is longer still. Both the Sanctus and
Benedictus end in the same way with
a fugal ‘Osanna’. It’s in these passages
in particular that I feel Schubert’s
inspiration tends to flag though I’m
sure there’s ample technical prowess
on display. By contrast, in D678 only
the Gloria contains a fugue and the
work is much more interesting as a result,
I think.
There are more imaginative
touches too in D 678, I find. These
include a telling use of crescendo in
the Credo at ‘Et incarnatus est’ to
convey a sense of wonder. Again, in
the same movement at the ‘Crucifixus’
a heavy tread underpins the music, making
it sound like a trudge to Calvary. I
also like the dancing ’Osanna’ in the
Sanctus and Benedictus. There’s a great
deal of beautiful music in D 950 but
somehow Schubert doesn’t quite match
his achievement in D 678.
It’s clear that both
these Masses mean a great deal to Harnoncourt.
He is quoted in the booklet comparing
them to Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis,
regarding all these three compositions
as the "greatest, most important
and artistically significant attempts
to come to terms with the Christian
liturgy …. these works have an expressive
force that is quite literally capable
of stirring us to the very depths of
our souls." High praise indeed
from such a fine musician!
Certainly Harnoncourt
lavishes great care and attention to
detail on both these Masses. As I’ve
indicated earlier, he consistently makes
a great deal of the dynamic contrasts
that Schubert builds into these scores
and that’s vital if the music is to
make its full effect. In saying that,
however, I mustn’t give the impression
that the dynamic contrasts are excessively
or pedantically observed. These are
performances that are faithful to the
score but not restricted by that fidelity.
I also found Harnoncourt’s pacing of
both works consistently satisfying.
He is aided by fine playing from the
CoE and by expert, committed singing
from the Arnold Schoenberg Chor. I’m
sure it helps that the conductor has
worked regularly with both ensembles.
The soloists have relatively little
to do but they sing well.
The recorded sound
is good though I found that on my equipment
I obtained best results if I played
the CDs at a slightly higher volume
setting than usual. Though both performances
are apparently ‘live’ I could not detect
any obtrusive audience noise. There’s
a decent note about the music (in English,
French and German) and, happily, even
though the discs are offered at bargain
price the Latin texts are supplied,
though there are no translations.
All in all these are
very well executed, highly musical and
considered performances, which will
give much pleasure. A stimulating pair
of CDs that make an attractive bargain.
John Quinn
Luba Organosova (soprano); Birgit Remmert (contralto);
Deon van der Walt (tenor); *Wolfgang Holzmair
(baritone); Anton Scharinger (bass) 
