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Rundfunk Sinfonie Orchester, Leipzig/Herbert Kegel; Rundfunkchor, Leipzig/Jorg-Peter Weigle; Mari Anne Hoggander, soprano; Siegfried Lorenz, baritone. Recorded in the Paul Gerhardt Kirche, Leipzig, 1985. Brilliant Classics CD, 2012.

Here is another grouping from the DDR, except these are professional musicians, singers, and conductors, and it is a full orchestra and chorus.  This is a very good group, and it is a fine performance done in a “mid-tempo” that is adhered to pretty closely throughout. The soloists are excellent, and they seem like opera singers, which is not so much bad as it just seems “inappropriate” to me, considering the nature of the piece. The chorus is remarkably good in terms of vocal skills. I guess I wish they were looser. Likewise, the orchestra; they can’t be faulted; I would like to hear them looser. The recording gets the job done.

Re-reading the foregoing, I’m afraid I seem lukewarm about this performance, which is not the case. If I’d never heard the old Mengelberg version, this one would be my new favorite, as IMO the overall performance is "better realized" than the early H v Karajan.

Paul S

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