I consider this to be, for me, the overall best Messiah I’ve ever heard…

What characterizes this, for me, as a terrific Messiah is that it flows, has continuity…both singing and playing are highly detailed, lyrical, yet energetic when it counts, that the solos blend into the choruses flawlessly at every point, and in general that this performance combines splendid scholarship with a really great, rousing, we-actually-sound-as-if-we’re-enjoying-ourselves atmosphere.

…we are given a performance that is just littered with infused dynamics and all sorts of tempo changes that are nowhere in Handel’s score; I find it extremely refreshing, and am very happy that these folks have the guts to impose their own interpretative ideas on us…Each of the soloists here are excellent, though Robin Blaze’s countertenor can be a little strident on high held notes. Otherwise he has very good technique and good power for the voice. I enjoyed this recording immensely… © 2013 Audiophile Audition Read complete review

Tafemusik Chamber Choir music director Ivars Taurins has been leading Tafelmusik’s annual performances of Handel’s evergreen 270-year-old oratorio for a generation, steadily honing the group’s historically informed performances into paragons of taste and individuality.

The ultimate success of a Messiah depends on the soloists as much as the orchestra and chorus. Tafelmusik struck vocal gold a year ago with brilliant Montreal soprano Karina Gauvin, British countertenor Robin Blaze, New York City-based tenor Rufus Müller and Toronto’s own magnificent bass-baritone Brett Polegato.

So why should you hear this latest Messiah, recorded live on December 14 to 17, 2011 at Koerner Hall in Toronto? Well, there are plenty of reasons. To begin with, this is an exceptionally smooth performance in which all the elements are well integrated, the product of a director and ensemble that have been doing their thing since Ivars Taurins found the Tafelmusik Chamber Choir in 1981. That includes a full quarter-century’s tradition of performing Messiah as an annual event. There is a nice balance between the 24 voices in the chorus and the number of instrumentalists, 24 plus continuo organ. The vocalists are all top-rate, too. Karina Gauvin is exquisite in the soprano arias such as “Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion” and her wonderful, heart-melting duet “He shall feed us flock” with Robin Blaze.

The latter, in the alto role, is more satisfying than any counter-tenor I can recall hearing in this part. That type of male voice has been known to set my teeth on edge, something I happily did not experience when listening to his well-modulated voice with its graciously soft glow. It went well in the alto part, which, as Handel conceived it, carries so much of the message of comfort in this work. Tenor Rufus Müller is authoritative and direct in such key passages as the accompagnato “Comfort ye, my people” and the following aria “Ev’ry valley shall be exalted.”…there is much to savor here in the voices.

The big choruses such as “Hallelujah! The Lord God Omnipotent reigneth” and “Worthy is the Lamb” are grand and glorious without overwhelming the sound of your teenager’s video games. © 2012 Audio Video Club of Atlanta Read complete review