Twyla Robinson (soprano) & Mariusz Kwiecien (baritone) Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Chorus, Robert Spano Johannes Brahms wrote Ein deutsches Requiem (A German Requiem), Op. 45, following the deaths of his mother and Robert Schumann, his mentor. Although Brahms based his Requiem on scriptural passages, beginning and ending the work with a blessing “Blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted” (Matthew 5:4), he didn’t write it as a religious piece concerning itself with the souls of the departed, but as a cantata whose message is of comfort, acceptance, peace, and serenity for those left behind. “The star of this show is the vast Atlanta Symphony Chorus, the pianissimo of whose 200 singers is an awesome sound. So, too, is their threatening crescendo molto in Denn Alles Fleisch. They create graceful lines of sound in Wie Lieblich, with the 50 tenors relishing the top Gs and none of them shirking the As. They deserve better soloists than the baritone Mariusz Kwiecien, whose gruff, lived-in voice lacks freshness. Elsewhere, the soprano Twyla Robinson's voice is oversweet, even sickly, at times. The orchestra has depth and power, but seems to want to canter away from Spano's over-moderate speeds.” The Times, 12th July 2008 *** “Spano's interpretation pays acute attention to the communicative traffic between singers and instruments. …the choir's many hushed pianissimi (and excellent German) allow the big cadence points of each movement truly to blaze.” Gramophone Magazine, August 2008 “As an account of one of Brahms's most personal works this version remains curiously uninvolving.” BBC Music Magazine, August 2008 *** | 
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