Disappointing
01/08/2004
(2 out of 5 stars)
"Although the samples here on Amazon sounded questionable, I went ahead and bought this disk to see what the SACD format might add to one of my favorite pieces of music. Well, I should have trusted my instincts.The performance is simply dull. Slow moving (even for a requiem) and uninspired - lacking in cohesiveness and emotion. If pressed to find something positive, I suppose I could say that the sound is organic and unpolished, which can be a nice change from some of the over-produced titles. The worst offense here is the sound engineering. The sound levels are not nearly optimized - the volume must be turned up quite far, and yet even then the dynamics are just not there. The sound is also unbalanced, with cello and bass overemphasized. I can only wonder why they bothered with the SACD format...it is wasted on this recording, other than to once again prove the maxim; garbage in, garbage out.I apologize for being so blunt, but this disk is best avoided."
Not the best version!
03/11/2004
(2 out of 5 stars)
"This version was okay as a regular CD (which I've owned and played for several years), but as a SACD the better version is Phillipe Herreweghe's 1893 version of the Requiem. If you carried that, I would buy it in a heartbeat.
NE Ohio listener"