Sheer diversity of performing forces makes Britten’s War Requiem a challenge both for musicians and recording teams. Britten’s own 1963 world-premiere recording has not been matched, despite a hissy analog master tape. In common with nearly every other subsequent recording, Helmuth Rilling’s SACD surround effort on Hänssler Classics has enough faults in enough elements of the score that it is not recommendable.
The Owen songs and duets on this release have the best sound and strongest interpretations (with a crucial exception). The voice of James Taylor, a Texan tenor, has a sweet quality that humanizes many sections (especially the poem “Futility”) in a way that Peter Pears’ singing does not for Britten. However, Taylor is a bit less penetrating at the angry and sarcastic moments. German baritone Christian Gerhaher takes his lead from Britten’s exemplary Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. But Gerhaher sounds uncomfortable with English, and although he sings well, he lacks Fischer-Dieskau’s tonal warmth. The crucial exception noted above is the final English poem, “Strange Meeting”. Here the singers are given slow, largely unmeasured recitative, intended to allow the utmost expression of despair. But Taylor and Gerhaher do not achieve this; the emotional tension instead slackens, vitiating the power of the final expression of eternal rest.
This alone makes the performance unsuccessful, but it is also undone by weak orchestral and choral forces. The chorus (itself lacking a really full-throated sound) overbalances the orchestra even when the brass should be at full bray. So the big moments (Dies Irae, Sanctus, and Libera Me) fail to overwhelm. Soprano Annette Dasch has more solid intonation than Decca’s Galina Vishnevskaya, but the Russian diva’s imperious voice is loaded with sibylline authority. And although the SACD sound is clean and has imaginative surround effects, this release will not occupy a high spot on the list of War Requiem recordings.
Strong alternatives to Britten’s original are Giulini’s 1969 broadcast tape (BBC Legends–intensely dramatic, with a strong Albert Hall echo) and Hickox’s well-balanced 1991 Chandos recording that among other glories preserves the splendid performance of Heather Harper, who actually sang the premiere (but avoid the poor SACD surround mix). Rattle (EMI) is a bit too cautious but also is worth hearing (especially if you can find the release coupled with Bliss’ Morning Heroes, conducted by Groves).
