Beethoven: Missa Solemnis; Schubert: Symphony No. 8; Wagner: A Faust Overture

Beethoven: Missa Solemnis; Schubert: Symphony No. 8; Wagner: A Faust Overture

Disc 1
1	Missa solemnis in D major / Ludwig van Beethoven
2	Missa solemnis in D major / Ludwig van Beethoven
3	Missa solemnis in D major / Ludwig van Beethoven
4	Missa solemnis in D major / Ludwig van Beethoven
Disc 2
1	Missa solemnis in D major / Ludwig van Beethoven
2	Symphony no 8 in B minor, / Franz Schubert
3	Symphony no 8 in B minor, / Franz Schubert
4	Faust Overture / Richard Wagner
Beethoven: Missa Solemnis; Schubert: Symphony No. 8; Wagner: A Faust Overture
1.	Mass for soloists, chorus & orchestra in D major ("Missa Solemnis"), Op. 123- I. Kyrie. Assai sostenuto. Mit Andacht 9:23
	Composed by Ludwig van Beethoven
	Performed by Kim Borg, BBC Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony Chorus, Richard Lewis, Norma Procter and Teresa Stich-Randall
	Conducted by Jascha Horenstein
2.	-- II. Gloria. Allegro vivace 17:48
3.	-- III. Credo. Allegro ma non troppo 22:32
4.	-- IV. Sanctus. Adagio. Mit Andancht / Benedictus. Andante molto cantabile e non troppo mosso 17:01
1.	-- V. Agnus Dei. Adagio 16:58
2.	Symphony No. 8 in B minor ("Unfinished"), D. 759- I. Allegro moderato 11:56
	Composed by Franz Schubert
	Performed by BBC Symphony Orchestra
	Conducted by Jascha Horenstein
3.	-- II. Andante con moto 13:27
4.	A Faust Overture, for orchestra in D minor, WWV 59 11:54
	Composed by Richard Wagner
	Performed by BBC Northern Symphony Orchestra
	Conducted by Jascha Horenstein

All Music Guide

This is what one lives for: one lucid moment of absolute understanding. Jascha Horenstein's recording from February 23, 1961, is what one lives for: one of the two of three greatest performances of one of the two or three greatest sacred choral works ever recorded. If Jascha Horenstein is not one of the great names in twentieth century conducting, it is only because he insisted too much on rehearsals and not enough on publicity. But, from the long view, Horenstein's technically impeccable sound gets better and better and his ability to infuse even the most rigorously rehearsed performance with the brilliant light of inspiration is in itself inspirational. At its best Horenstein could create performances as magisterial as Klemperer and as ecstatic as Furtwängler and this entire performance of the "Missa Solemnis" is Horenstein at his best. The radiant splendor and sublime bliss of Horenstein's performance is proof in itself that humanity is capable of transcendence. And the remaining performances on these discs -- Horenstein's dark-hued 1971 "Unfinished Symphony" of Schubert and his tragic 1972 "Eines Faust Overture" of Wagner -- are just as transcendent. While it is true that the sound of the "Missa Solemnis" is a bit muddy, the sense of place and time is compensation. James Leonard