Deeply inspirational!
01/22/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I bought this album to hear Andrea Bocelli's "I Believe", to which I still cannot listen without tears in my eyes. It is truly the most beautiful "hymn for the world" on the album! Of course, Bocelli is magical and never disappoints! Two other pleasant surprises were "A Song for Athene", the haunting melody I recalled from Princess Diana's funeral - very mysterious and moving. Bartoli's rendition of Gounod's Ave Maria is gorgeous beyond words, just like "I Believe". I believe you should buy this album - a wonderful experience."
Knocked My Socks Off!
Robin Currier | 10/11/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"As a choral singer, I am familiar with most of these works, but this recording knocked my socks off when I heard excerpts from it on a local classical music radio station. Not only does this CD group together some of the best music anywhere, but the performances are fantastic. The choral group has a remarkable precision and clarity in their sound that is admirable. And wonderful soloists. In summary, you might have heard many of these pieces elsewhere, but the impact of having these great performances all on one CD is amazing."
Uniformly good, except for one rather nasty exception
Kevin P. Costello | Atlanta, GA | 11/05/2003
(4 out of 5 stars)
"This collection (Also released as "Voices from Heaven", I believe) provides a nice retrospective of 400 years of sacred music. The choir is strong overall, and Bartoli and Bocelli (in his one song) prove admirable soloists, especially in the "Pie Jesu".Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for Terfel, and for the "Libera Me" in general. What was the purpose of Faure carefully cutting most of the Dies Irae and hellfire passages if the singers attempt to put it all back in in an overdramatic rendition?"