O Magnum Mysterium

( 1 )

Editorial Reviews

Barnes & Noble - David Kasunic
Although he had a long, distinguished tenure as music director of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, music for unaccompanied choir was the first love of the late, great Robert Shaw. After retiring from Atlanta in 1988, he rekindled this love affair in a series of summer choral festivals in the Quercy district in south-central France. These festivals spawned a host of acclaimed Telarc recordings, the most transfixing excerpts of which make up the final seven tracks of this serene, enthralling, and satisfying compilation. You can hear clear evidence of what Shaw did best: train choirs to sing with flawless diction, pristine blend, luscious sound, and laser-accurate ...
See more details below
CD
$15.64
BN.com price
(Save 13%)$17.99 List Price
Pick Up In Store

Pick Up In Store

Reserve and pick up in 60 minutes at your local store

Other sellers (CD)
  • All (10) from $3.27   
  • New (8) from $12.72   
  • Used (2) from $3.27   

More About This Product

Editorial Reviews

Barnes & Noble - David Kasunic
Although he had a long, distinguished tenure as music director of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, music for unaccompanied choir was the first love of the late, great Robert Shaw. After retiring from Atlanta in 1988, he rekindled this love affair in a series of summer choral festivals in the Quercy district in south-central France. These festivals spawned a host of acclaimed Telarc recordings, the most transfixing excerpts of which make up the final seven tracks of this serene, enthralling, and satisfying compilation. You can hear clear evidence of what Shaw did best: train choirs to sing with flawless diction, pristine blend, luscious sound, and laser-accurate entrances and cut-offs. But this is no routine compilation of greatest choral hits. The first four tracks -- lovely devotional pieces by the late Renaissance masters Thomas Tallis and Tomás Luis de Victoria -- are released here for the first time. Victoria's impassioned "O magnum mysterium" sets the reverential tone for the whole collection. Both Morten Lauridsen's and Francis Poulenc's settings of this same anonymous medieval text -- an ecstatic outburst at the sight of the baby Jesus in the manger -- give voice to a quiet, hypnotic sense of awe. The remarkable performance of "Khvalite imya Gospodne" "Praise the Name of the Lord" from Rachmaninov's Vespers captures a sense of wonder in both intended and unintended ways, ending with the distant chiming of a church bell -- in key, even! -- as the final "alliluya" dies away. Schubert's "Der Enfernten," for all-male choir, showcases Shaw's ability to elicit a palette of vocal colors so rich as to be the envy of glee club conductors the world over. And whether it's Schubert, Henryk Górecki, or a traditional spiritual, Shaw's singers perform in a truly loving, inspired manner.
All Music Guide - James Leonard
Robert Shaw is dead, but his recorded legacy lives on -- that is, if you can call recordings living. Telarc -- the label which served Shaw so faithfully in life by recording the greatest American choral conductor who ever lived in the core choral repertoire in exemplary sound -- Telarc is releasing every little scrap of music that the grand old man ever recorded. If sometimes those scraps are rather scrappy, well, we must be grateful. How else would we ever hear the master in such recherché repertoire as Tallis and Victoria? And if these scraps are released in tandem with previously available Shaw recordings, well, it's always good to have them reassembled in context of a program which makes sense, in this case a program dedicated to the "great mystery" -- the great mystery which is music itself. Although three-quarters of the music on this disc has been out before, the program of mostly religious pieces does work well as a whole. The one exception is Schubert's glorious "Der Entfernten" The Distant One, which, it could conceivably be argued, is a spiritual work. Needless to say, the performances are exemplary and Telarc's sound stupendous. The disc is imperative for those who have to have everything Shaw ever did, and highly recommended to those who simply want an interesting and beautiful collection of choral works.
Read More Show Less

Product Details

  • Release Date: 8/22/2000
  • Label: Telarc
  • UPC: 089408053122
  • Catalog Number: 80531
  • Sales rank: 10,526

Tracks

Disc 1
  1. 1 If ye love me, anthem for 4 voices - Thomas Tallis & Anilda Carrasquillo (2:18)
    Composed byThomas Tallis
    Performed byRobert Shaw Festival Singers, Robert Shaw
  2. 2 A new commandment, anthem for 4 voices - Thomas Tallis & Anilda Carrasquillo (3:15)
    Composed byThomas Tallis
    Performed byRobert Shaw Festival Singers, Robert Shaw
  3. 3 O vos omnes, qui transitis per viam, motet for 4 voices - Tomás Luis de Victoria & Anilda Carrasquillo (5:13)
    Composed byTomás Luis de Victoria
    Performed byRobert Shaw Festival Singers, Robert Shaw
  4. 4 O Magnum Mysterium, motet for 4 voices - Tomás Luis de Victoria & Anilda Carrasquillo (4:12)
    Composed byTomás Luis de Victoria
    Performed byRobert Shaw Chamber Singers, Robert Shaw
  5. 5 O Magnum Mysterium, for chorus - Anilda Carrasquillo & Morten Lauridsen (6:19)
    Composed byMorten Lauridsen
    Performed byRobert Shaw Chamber Singers, Robert Shaw
  6. 6 O magnum mysterium, motet for chorus (4 motets pour le temps de Noël), FP 152/1 - Francis Poulenc & Anilda Carrasquillo (3:08)
    Composed byFrancis Poulenc
    Performed byRobert Shaw Chamber Singers, Robert Shaw
  7. 7 Vespers (All-Night Vigil), for alto, tenor & chorus, Op. 37: Khvalite imya Gospodne, Op.37/8 - Sergey Rachmaninov & Anilda Carrasquillo (3:29)
    Composed bySergey Rachmaninov
    Performed byRobert Shaw Chamber Singers, Robert Shaw
  8. 8 Der Entfernten ("Wohl denk' ich allenthalben"), quartet for male voices, D. 331 - Franz Schubert & Anilda Carrasquillo (4:20)
    Composed byFranz Schubert
    Performed byRobert Shaw Chamber Singers, Robert Shaw
  9. 9 Wondrous Love, folk song - Anonymous & Anilda Carrasquillo (4:02)
    Composed byAnonymous
    Performed byRobert Shaw Chamber Singers, Robert Shaw
  10. 10 Amazing Grace - Anilda Carrasquillo & John Newton (4:12)
    Composed byJohn Newton
    Performed byChristopher Cock, Robert Shaw Chamber Singers, Robert Shaw
  11. 11 Sometimes I Feel Like A Moanin' Dove - Traditional & Anilda Carrasquillo (4:57)
    Composed byTraditional
    Performed byRobert Shaw Chamber Singers, Robert Shaw
  12. 12 Totus Tuus, for chorus, Op. 60 - Henryk Mikolaj Górecki & Anilda Carrasquillo (11:20)
    Composed byHenryk Mikolaj Górecki
    Performed byRobert Shaw Chamber Singers, Robert Shaw
Read More Show Less

Album Credits

Performance Credits
Robert Shaw Primary Artist
Read More Show Less

Customer Reviews

Average Rating 4
( 1 )
Rating Distribution

5 Star

(0)

4 Star

(1)

3 Star

(0)

2 Star

(0)

1 Star

(0)

Your Rating:

Review Guidelines
Add Recommendations
Your Name: Create a Pen Name or

Barnes & Noble.com Review Rules

Our reader reviews allow you to share your comments on titles you liked, or didn't, with others. By submitting an online review, you are representing to Barnes & Noble.com that all information contained in your review is original and accurate in all respects, and that the submission of such content by you and the posting of such content by Barnes & Noble.com does not and will not violate the rights of any third party. Please follow the rules below to help ensure that your review can be posted.

Reviews by Our Customers Under the Age of 13

We highly value and respect everyone's opinion concerning the titles we offer. However, we cannot allow persons under the age of 13 to have accounts at BN.com or to post customer reviews. Please see our Terms of Use for more details.

What to exclude from your review:

Please do not write about reviews, commentary, or information posted on the product page. If you see any errors in the information on the product page, please send us an email.

Reviews should not contain any of the following:

  • - HTML tags, profanity, obscenities, vulgarities, or comments that defame anyone
  • - Time-sensitive information such as tour dates, signings, lectures, etc.
  • - Single-word reviews. Other people will read your review to discover why you liked or didn't like the title. Be descriptive.
  • - Comments focusing on the author or that may ruin the ending for others
  • - Phone numbers, addresses, URLs
  • - Pricing and availability information or alternative ordering information
  • - Advertisements or commercial solicitation

Reminder:

  • - By submitting a review, you grant to Barnes & Noble.com and its sublicensees the royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable right and license to use the review in accordance with the Barnes & Noble.com Terms of Use.
  • - Barnes & Noble.com reserves the right not to post any review -- particularly those that do not follow the terms and conditions of these Rules. Barnes & Noble.com also reserves the right to remove any review at any time without notice.
  • - See Terms of Use for other conditions and disclaimers.
Search for Products You'd Like to Recommend

Recommend other products that relate to your review. Just search for them below and share!

Create a Pen Name

Your Pen Name is your unique identity on BN.com. It will appear on the reviews you write and other website activities. Your Pen Name cannot be edited, changed or deleted once submitted.

 
Your Pen Name can be any combination of alphanumeric characters (plus - and _), and must be at least two characters long.

Continue Anonymously
Sort by: Showing 1 Customer Review

  • Posted October 1, 2010

    Wonderful

    Nice selection of choral pieces around a theme (O Magnum Mysterium). The highlight for me was the Morten Lauridsen work.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.
Sort by: Showing 1 Customer Review