Haydn: Seven Last Words of Christ

[Alison]

Every Easter I mean to get to know this work.

Which version - orchestral, quartet, other, do you find most satisfying and could you make a CD recommendation, please?

[pastoralguy]

Every Easter I mean to get to know this work.

Which version - orchestral, quartet, other, do you find most satisfying and could you make a CD recommendation, please?

A wonderful work. I would suggest the quartet version. There's a super version by the Cuarteto Casals.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I only know the Quartet version, which is superb - I've never encountered a poor performance/recording and first owned the Kodaly's recording on Naxos; a very fine performance.

[visualnickmos]

....the Kodaly's recording on Naxos; a very fine performance.

it is; as are all the Kodaly's Haydn string quartets on Naxos. All one needs, IMO.....

[teamsaint]

This has got to be worth a watch, Alison.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=V7TYJz4we3U

le Concert Des Nations/ Jordi Savall.

( and rather unusually, 10k views and 4 comments!!!!!)

[EdgeleyRob]

The only version I know is the string quartet.
I have the Aeolian recording,as part of the complete quartets box,with readings by Peter Pears,which is wonderful.
I don't think it's available separately,which is good in a way.

[Petrushka]

I've only got the orchestral version in a live 1982 Salzburg performance with Riccardo Muti and the Wiener Philharmoniker which I've not played yet. I'll save it for Good Friday.

Always found the different incarnations of this work a bit of a puzzle.

[jayne lee wilson]

Bruggen and the Orchestra of the 18thC. on Glossa are - poetic, dramatic, haunting, beautifully recorded - everything you could wish for, but...

In lieu of spoken passages between the musical Last Words, Bruggen decided to commission Ron Ford to compose tiny intermezzi which fall between each of the 7 movements. These are gentle, often no more than a few chords, but you can't program them out... (imagine two or three soft chords from the 1st movement of Webern's Op21 - that's the impression). If you find online excerpts, the intermezzi are at the start of each track.
Bruggen says they are meant to be "a worthy musical substitute for no music"..
I find them unobtrusive (if neither compelling or truly necessary, silent contemplation would be fine by me...); but you should be aware of their presence...

Gram. review 8/2009 - NA, very positive, not terribly insightful...

[MickyD]

Thanks, JLW for pointing out those Ron Ford commissions which can't be got rid of - that would certainly put me off the disc.

The spoken passages are in Savall's account on Alia Vox - and in the recording's previous incarnation on Astrée which I have, it was possible to programme them out. I've always liked this recording, which I suspect shares many of the Bruggen version's qualites.

[gurnemanz]

A wonderful work. I would suggest the quartet version. There's a super version by the Cuarteto Casals.

About a year ago I also decided to get to know the work and likewise went for the Cuarteto Casals following glowing reviews. eg BBC mag. It has the additional advantage of having been recorded in the atmospheric acoustic the Oratorio de la Santa Cueva, the Cádiz church where it was first performed.

[verismissimo]

Love this work. I have two orchestral recordings on LP (Prague Chamber Orch/Munclinger and Little Orch of London/Jones), two SQs (the old Aeolian Q and the Lindsays) and the piano version by dear departed John McCabe. Never had the choral.

The Adderbury Ensemble (led by the wonderful David LePage) will be doing the SQ version in our local parish church of King's Sutton on the Tuesday in Holy Week (31 March). 7pm. Borders of Northants/Oxon, J10 of M40 near Banbury, north of Oxford.

All welcome.

[BBMmk2]

I have the orchestra; version and I would love to hear the piano version sometime.