Stabat Mater

Album review

The pieces included on Naxos' 2008 release of choral works by Karol Szymanowski exactly matches those of its 1996 recording featuring Karol Stryja leading the Polish State Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus, but the remarkable quality of this new version fully justifies the duplication of the repertoire. Antoni Wit, whose stature has become more recognized in the West since the turn of the century, conducts the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir in luxuriant readings of some of the composer's most appealing choral and vocal compositions. The Stabat Mater is a paradoxical work (in the best way), monumental but intimate, austere in tone but lush in its musical language. Szymanowski's success in integrating these disparate elements gives it a power and uniqueness that demand attention; it certainly deserves to be recognized as one of the masterworks of twentieth century choral music. In this impassioned performance, the orchestra, chorus, and soloists soprano Iwona Hossa, mezzo-soprano Ewa Marciniec, and baritone Jaroslàw Brek bring a searing dramatic intensity to the piece. One of its most telling moments is the intimate closing in which the three solo voices are highlighted. The remaining works on the CD share the compelling musical language the composer employs in the Stabat Mater: a saturated post-Romanticism tinged with impressionism, Eastern European folk traditions, and a sense of Middle Eastern mystery and exoticism. Veni, Creator is a grand and triumphant cry of exultation interspersed with radiant solos. The two movements of Litany to the Virgin Mary are a serenely ecstatic hymn of praise. Demeter and Penthesilea are secular cantatas, the first for alto and women's chorus and orchestra and the second for soprano and orchestra, and they are even more frankly sensual in their appeal: rhapsodic and passionate retellings of ancient myths. The performances throughout match those of the Stabat Mater in their heat and atmospheric coloring. The sound is flawless, warm, and pristine, with just the right amount of resonance.
© TiVo

Details of the original recording : 59:26 - DDD - Enregistré en mai, juin et août 2007 à la Salle Philharmonique de Varsovie - Notes en français et anglais