Simon Rattle - Karol Szymanowski: Stabat Mater; Litany to the Virgin Mary; Symphony No. 3 (1994)
Karol Szymanowski: Stabat Mater; Litany to the Virgin Mary; Symphony No. 3 (1994)
Elzbieta Szmytka, soprano; Florence Quivar, mezzo-soprano; Jon Garrison, tenor; John Connell, bass
City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus & Orchestra; Sir Simon Rattle, conductor
EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 234 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 156 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Classical, Choral | Label: EMI | # 7243 5 55121 2 3 | Time: 00:56:04
Elzbieta Szmytka, soprano; Florence Quivar, mezzo-soprano; Jon Garrison, tenor; John Connell, bass
City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus & Orchestra; Sir Simon Rattle, conductor
EAC | FLAC | Tracks (Cue&Log) ~ 234 Mb | Mp3 (CBR320) ~ 156 Mb | Scans included
Genre: Classical, Choral | Label: EMI | # 7243 5 55121 2 3 | Time: 00:56:04
Three of Szymanowski’s most important works show Rattle’s ability to energise music in which he believes. Sensuality and cogency blend in refined sound.BBC Music Magazine
Originally issued in 1994, this is one recording which could never really be said to have much connection with the nice shiny LP on the cover of EMI Classics' ‘Great Recordings of the Century' series. A magnificent recording it undoubtedly is however, and with a Gramophone Award in 1995 and reviewers heaping praise left, right and centre it has rightful status in these annals of the great and greater.
Szymanowski's Stabat Mater is one of those works which, once heard, sticks in the mind forever. It possesses an often breathtaking simplicity of line, but has that magical mix of perfect scoring and voicing, a passionate empathy for the subject of human suffering - and working from a Polish language text. I have a soft spot for it as a piece, remembering my father's thickly packaged old Polish records conducted by Witold Rowicki, and having sung in the choir many years ago – an experience never forgotten. Szymanowski's intention was to create a kind of “Peasants' Requiem … a sort of prayer for souls.” The work became a commemoration for the recently deceased wife of the Warsaw industrialist Dr. Bronislav Krystall, but must also have been coloured by the tragic loss of Szymanowski's young niece Agnes Bartoszewicz, which occurred while he was working on the project.
All of the soloists make a powerful contribution in the Stabat Mater, but it is Elzbieta Szmytka's liquid tones which resonate most in the memory. Like a good poem, you can take any line or moment in this piece and become instantly involved, but if you want your tear ducts to go on instant alert then try the opening of the sixth movement, Chrystus niech mi bedzie grodem.
Litany to the Virgin Mary, one of Szymanowski's last works, nonetheless harks back to the atmosphere and sense of timeless antiquity in his Stabat Mater. He wrote of this piece that it was “perhaps my most profound and concentrated work”. Elzbieta Szmytka once again crowns the glorious choral and orchestral sound which Rattle generates from his Birmingham forces, and the spine once again tingles responsively to that new/old mixture of relatively simple progressions and polyphony, ornamented with a passionate and innate romanticism.
Symphony No.3 belongs to Szymanowski's so-called ‘impressionistic' period. Exempt from being conscripted into the Czarist army through disability, he avoided war and entered some of the most artistically fruitful years of his life from 1914 to 1920. The subtitle of the work, Le chant de la nuit, refers to the text of a mystical Iranian poet, which had been translated into Polish. Kaikhosru Sorabji summed the piece up as “giving us in musical terms … the essence of Persian art… that wonderful blend of ecstasy and languor of which only the great Iranian poets have the secret.” The score is indeed filled with exotic colour and elusive, translucent imagery, while at the same time having a firmly grounded structure and technique. It certainly creates a strong contrast with the other two works on this disc, but once understood and appreciated properly insinuates itself into the soul in a comparable fashion. You can also test your hi-fi on the climax at 6:33 into the final movement, when heaven's bells and hell's organ breaks loose in your living room.
Talking of sound quality, there is little to choose between the original 1994 CD and this re-mastered and noise-shaped reissue. There may be a little more gloss to the strings, a tad more definition in the subterranean organ pedal notes, a smidge of extra clarity in the mid-range, or it might be my mind playing tricks. In any case, the original recording was so good that the engineers must have had an easy time – I for one am glad that any tweaking has been kept to a minimum. It's a shame we lose Robin Golding's more analytical booklet notes from the original issue, but Jim Samson's commentary provides a good deal of background information.
I can waffle on for hours about this music, but the bottom line is this question: can you hear the last movement of this recording of Szymanowski's Stabat Mater – now at mid price - and leave the shop without it? If so, either your heart, or your wallet must be empty, for either of which affliction you have my sympathy.Review by Dominy Clements, MusicWeb-International
(reviewing reissue EMI CLASSICS 3 61592 2)
Simon Rattle - Karol Szymanowski: Stabat Mater; Litany to the Virgin Mary; Symphony No. 3 (1994)
Simon Rattle - Karol Szymanowski: Stabat Mater; Litany to the Virgin Mary; Symphony No. 3 (1994)
Elzbieta Szmytka, soprano 1-8
Florence Quivar, mezzo-soprano 1-6
Jon Garrison, tenor 9-11
John Connell, bass 1-6
City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus (Chorus Director: Simon Halsey)
Peter Thomas, violin
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
Sir Simon Rattle, conductor
Tracklist:
Stabat Mater Op. 53 (1926)
01. I. Mother bowed with grief appalling (06:11)
02. II. Is there any, tears withholding (02:25)
03. III. Love's sweet fountain, Mother tender (03:51)
04. IV. In Thy keeping, watching, weeping (03:02)
05. V. Maid immaculate, excelling (02:53)
06. VI. May his sacred cross defend me (04:57)
Litany to the Virgin Mary Op. 59 (1933)
07. Twelve-toned cithara (03:26)
08. Like a dwarf bush (04:34)
Symphony No. 3 Op. 27 "Song of the Night" (1916)
09. I. Moderato assai (07:42)
10. II. Vivace, scherzando (07:13)
11. III. Largo (09:45)
Exact Audio Copy V1.0 beta 3 from 29. August 2011
EAC extraction logfile from 2. October 2013, 17:48
Szymanowski / Stabat Mater, Litany, Symphony No. 3 - Simon Rattle
Used drive : TSSTcorpCDDVDW SH-216BB Adapter: 0 ID: 0
Read mode : Secure
Utilize accurate stream : Yes
Defeat audio cache : Yes
Make use of C2 pointers : No
Read offset correction : 6
Overread into Lead-In and Lead-Out : No
Fill up missing offset samples with silence : Yes
Delete leading and trailing silent blocks : No
Null samples used in CRC calculations : Yes
Used interface : Installed external ASPI interface
Gap handling : Appended to previous track
Used output format : User Defined Encoder
Selected bitrate : 1024 kBit/s
Quality : High
Add ID3 tag : No
Command line compressor : C:\Program Files (x86)\Exact Audio Copy\Flac\flac.exe
Additional command line options : -6 -V -T "ARTIST=%artist%" -T "TITLE=%title%" -T "ALBUM=%albumtitle%" -T "DATE=%year%" -T "PERFORMER=%albuminterpret%" -T "TRACKNUMBER=%tracknr%" -T "TOTALTRACKS=%numtracks%" -T "GENRE=%genre%" -T "COMPOSER=%composer%" -T "ALBUMARTIST=%albumartist%" -T "ALBUM ARTIST=%albumartist%" -T "COMMENT=EAC Secure Mode, Test & Copy, AccurateRip, FLAC -6" %source%
TOC of the extracted CD
Track | Start | Length | Start sector | End sector
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––-
1 | 0:00.33 | 6:11.35 | 33 | 27892
2 | 6:11.68 | 2:25.12 | 27893 | 38779
3 | 8:37.05 | 3:51.38 | 38780 | 56142
4 | 12:28.43 | 3:02.12 | 56143 | 69804
5 | 15:30.55 | 2:53.45 | 69805 | 82824
6 | 18:24.25 | 4:57.28 | 82825 | 105127
7 | 23:21.53 | 3:26.10 | 105128 | 120587
8 | 26:47.63 | 4:34.70 | 120588 | 141207
9 | 31:22.58 | 7:42.50 | 141208 | 175907
10 | 39:05.33 | 7:13.72 | 175908 | 208454
11 | 46:19.30 | 9:45.30 | 208455 | 252359
Track 1
Filename D:\EAC extraction\01 - Stabat Mater - I. Mother bowed with grief appalling.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:02.33
Peak level 33.8 %
Extraction speed 2.2 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC BCDAA672
Copy CRC BCDAA672
Accurately ripped (confidence 27) [2CB92DC3] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 2
Filename D:\EAC extraction\02 - Stabat Mater - II. Is there any, tears withholding.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.03
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 1.9 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 65959383
Copy CRC 65959383
Accurately ripped (confidence 27) [54D6CBB7] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 3
Filename D:\EAC extraction\03 - Stabat Mater - III. Love's sweet fountain, Mother tender.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.02
Peak level 68.1 %
Extraction speed 2.0 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 882D03C7
Copy CRC 882D03C7
Accurately ripped (confidence 27) [58447B66] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 4
Filename D:\EAC extraction\04 - Stabat Mater - IV. In Thy keeping, watching, weeping.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.03
Peak level 19.2 %
Extraction speed 1.9 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 9F5E891F
Copy CRC 9F5E891F
Accurately ripped (confidence 26) [EC184908] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 5
Filename D:\EAC extraction\05 - Stabat Mater - V. Maid immaculate, excelling.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.02
Peak level 100.0 %
Extraction speed 1.6 X
Track quality 99.9 %
Test CRC 4746C210
Copy CRC 4746C210
Accurately ripped (confidence 27) [BFBFF35F] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 6
Filename D:\EAC extraction\06 - Stabat Mater - VI. May his sacred cross defend me.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.02
Peak level 53.1 %
Extraction speed 2.1 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC CEDD3ADB
Copy CRC CEDD3ADB
Accurately ripped (confidence 28) [EC00E120] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 7
Filename D:\EAC extraction\07 - Litany to the Virgin Mary - Twelve-toned cithara.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.03
Peak level 47.4 %
Extraction speed 2.0 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC ADF3F90F
Copy CRC ADF3F90F
Accurately ripped (confidence 27) [56CB64A1] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 8
Filename D:\EAC extraction\08 - Litany to the Virgin Mary - Like a dwarf bush.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.03
Peak level 28.2 %
Extraction speed 2.1 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 72FB59DB
Copy CRC 72FB59DB
Accurately ripped (confidence 27) [5EECB3F7] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 9
Filename D:\EAC extraction\09 - Symphony No. 3 - I. Moderato assai.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.03
Peak level 98.2 %
Extraction speed 2.2 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 9FB9860E
Copy CRC 9FB9860E
Accurately ripped (confidence 26) [3C2716DE] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 10
Filename D:\EAC extraction\10 - Symphony No. 3 - II. Vivace, scherzando.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.03
Peak level 48.3 %
Extraction speed 2.1 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 0A023D20
Copy CRC 0A023D20
Accurately ripped (confidence 27) [59B388EC] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 11
Filename D:\EAC extraction\11 - Symphony No. 3 - III. Largo.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.02
Peak level 99.7 %
Extraction speed 2.2 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC DFF3738D
Copy CRC DFF3738D
Accurately ripped (confidence 26) [095ACA0E] (AR v2)
Copy OK
All tracks accurately ripped
No errors occurred
End of status report
==== Log checksum BB8C22F97B07C86C93D68888353F2778325DF6C59E777B08788095E200F37CB2 ====
EAC extraction logfile from 2. October 2013, 17:48
Szymanowski / Stabat Mater, Litany, Symphony No. 3 - Simon Rattle
Used drive : TSSTcorpCDDVDW SH-216BB Adapter: 0 ID: 0
Read mode : Secure
Utilize accurate stream : Yes
Defeat audio cache : Yes
Make use of C2 pointers : No
Read offset correction : 6
Overread into Lead-In and Lead-Out : No
Fill up missing offset samples with silence : Yes
Delete leading and trailing silent blocks : No
Null samples used in CRC calculations : Yes
Used interface : Installed external ASPI interface
Gap handling : Appended to previous track
Used output format : User Defined Encoder
Selected bitrate : 1024 kBit/s
Quality : High
Add ID3 tag : No
Command line compressor : C:\Program Files (x86)\Exact Audio Copy\Flac\flac.exe
Additional command line options : -6 -V -T "ARTIST=%artist%" -T "TITLE=%title%" -T "ALBUM=%albumtitle%" -T "DATE=%year%" -T "PERFORMER=%albuminterpret%" -T "TRACKNUMBER=%tracknr%" -T "TOTALTRACKS=%numtracks%" -T "GENRE=%genre%" -T "COMPOSER=%composer%" -T "ALBUMARTIST=%albumartist%" -T "ALBUM ARTIST=%albumartist%" -T "COMMENT=EAC Secure Mode, Test & Copy, AccurateRip, FLAC -6" %source%
TOC of the extracted CD
Track | Start | Length | Start sector | End sector
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––-
1 | 0:00.33 | 6:11.35 | 33 | 27892
2 | 6:11.68 | 2:25.12 | 27893 | 38779
3 | 8:37.05 | 3:51.38 | 38780 | 56142
4 | 12:28.43 | 3:02.12 | 56143 | 69804
5 | 15:30.55 | 2:53.45 | 69805 | 82824
6 | 18:24.25 | 4:57.28 | 82825 | 105127
7 | 23:21.53 | 3:26.10 | 105128 | 120587
8 | 26:47.63 | 4:34.70 | 120588 | 141207
9 | 31:22.58 | 7:42.50 | 141208 | 175907
10 | 39:05.33 | 7:13.72 | 175908 | 208454
11 | 46:19.30 | 9:45.30 | 208455 | 252359
Track 1
Filename D:\EAC extraction\01 - Stabat Mater - I. Mother bowed with grief appalling.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:02.33
Peak level 33.8 %
Extraction speed 2.2 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC BCDAA672
Copy CRC BCDAA672
Accurately ripped (confidence 27) [2CB92DC3] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 2
Filename D:\EAC extraction\02 - Stabat Mater - II. Is there any, tears withholding.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.03
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 1.9 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 65959383
Copy CRC 65959383
Accurately ripped (confidence 27) [54D6CBB7] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 3
Filename D:\EAC extraction\03 - Stabat Mater - III. Love's sweet fountain, Mother tender.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.02
Peak level 68.1 %
Extraction speed 2.0 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 882D03C7
Copy CRC 882D03C7
Accurately ripped (confidence 27) [58447B66] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 4
Filename D:\EAC extraction\04 - Stabat Mater - IV. In Thy keeping, watching, weeping.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.03
Peak level 19.2 %
Extraction speed 1.9 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 9F5E891F
Copy CRC 9F5E891F
Accurately ripped (confidence 26) [EC184908] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 5
Filename D:\EAC extraction\05 - Stabat Mater - V. Maid immaculate, excelling.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.02
Peak level 100.0 %
Extraction speed 1.6 X
Track quality 99.9 %
Test CRC 4746C210
Copy CRC 4746C210
Accurately ripped (confidence 27) [BFBFF35F] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 6
Filename D:\EAC extraction\06 - Stabat Mater - VI. May his sacred cross defend me.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.02
Peak level 53.1 %
Extraction speed 2.1 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC CEDD3ADB
Copy CRC CEDD3ADB
Accurately ripped (confidence 28) [EC00E120] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 7
Filename D:\EAC extraction\07 - Litany to the Virgin Mary - Twelve-toned cithara.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.03
Peak level 47.4 %
Extraction speed 2.0 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC ADF3F90F
Copy CRC ADF3F90F
Accurately ripped (confidence 27) [56CB64A1] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 8
Filename D:\EAC extraction\08 - Litany to the Virgin Mary - Like a dwarf bush.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.03
Peak level 28.2 %
Extraction speed 2.1 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 72FB59DB
Copy CRC 72FB59DB
Accurately ripped (confidence 27) [5EECB3F7] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 9
Filename D:\EAC extraction\09 - Symphony No. 3 - I. Moderato assai.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.03
Peak level 98.2 %
Extraction speed 2.2 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 9FB9860E
Copy CRC 9FB9860E
Accurately ripped (confidence 26) [3C2716DE] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 10
Filename D:\EAC extraction\10 - Symphony No. 3 - II. Vivace, scherzando.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.03
Peak level 48.3 %
Extraction speed 2.1 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 0A023D20
Copy CRC 0A023D20
Accurately ripped (confidence 27) [59B388EC] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 11
Filename D:\EAC extraction\11 - Symphony No. 3 - III. Largo.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:00.02
Peak level 99.7 %
Extraction speed 2.2 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC DFF3738D
Copy CRC DFF3738D
Accurately ripped (confidence 26) [095ACA0E] (AR v2)
Copy OK
All tracks accurately ripped
No errors occurred
End of status report
==== Log checksum BB8C22F97B07C86C93D68888353F2778325DF6C59E777B08788095E200F37CB2 ====
foobar2000 1.2 / Dynamic Range Meter 1.1.1
log date: 2016-09-24 22:35:21
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Analyzed: Szymanowski / Stabat Mater / Litany to the Virgin Mary / Symphony No. 3 - Simon Rattle
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
DR Peak RMS Duration Track
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
DR15 -9.42 dB -31.63 dB 6:11 01-Stabat Mater - I. Mother bowed with grief appalling
DR12 -0.20 dB -18.80 dB 2:25 02-Stabat Mater - II. Is there any, tears withholding
DR14 -3.33 dB -25.32 dB 3:52 03-Stabat Mater - III. Love's sweet fountain, Mother tender
DR12 -14.29 dB -34.07 dB 3:02 04-Stabat Mater - IV. In Thy keeping, watching, weeping
DR11 0.00 dB -17.06 dB 2:54 05-Stabat Mater - V. Maid immaculate, excelling
DR14 -5.49 dB -27.25 dB 4:57 06-Stabat Mater - VI. May his sacred cross defend me
DR13 -6.47 dB -26.82 dB 3:26 07-Litany to the Virgin Mary - Twelve-toned cithara
DR13 -10.97 dB -31.32 dB 4:35 08-Litany to the Virgin Mary - Like a dwarf bush
DR13 -0.15 dB -19.65 dB 7:43 09-Symphony No. 3 - I. Moderato assai
DR13 -6.31 dB -25.76 dB 7:14 10-Symphony No. 3 - II. Vivace, scherzando
DR13 -0.02 dB -19.51 dB 9:45 11-Symphony No. 3 - III. Largo
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Number of tracks: 11
Official DR value: DR13
Samplerate: 44100 Hz
Channels: 2
Bits per sample: 16
Bitrate: 546 kbps
Codec: FLAC
================================================================================
log date: 2016-09-24 22:35:21
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Analyzed: Szymanowski / Stabat Mater / Litany to the Virgin Mary / Symphony No. 3 - Simon Rattle
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
DR Peak RMS Duration Track
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
DR15 -9.42 dB -31.63 dB 6:11 01-Stabat Mater - I. Mother bowed with grief appalling
DR12 -0.20 dB -18.80 dB 2:25 02-Stabat Mater - II. Is there any, tears withholding
DR14 -3.33 dB -25.32 dB 3:52 03-Stabat Mater - III. Love's sweet fountain, Mother tender
DR12 -14.29 dB -34.07 dB 3:02 04-Stabat Mater - IV. In Thy keeping, watching, weeping
DR11 0.00 dB -17.06 dB 2:54 05-Stabat Mater - V. Maid immaculate, excelling
DR14 -5.49 dB -27.25 dB 4:57 06-Stabat Mater - VI. May his sacred cross defend me
DR13 -6.47 dB -26.82 dB 3:26 07-Litany to the Virgin Mary - Twelve-toned cithara
DR13 -10.97 dB -31.32 dB 4:35 08-Litany to the Virgin Mary - Like a dwarf bush
DR13 -0.15 dB -19.65 dB 7:43 09-Symphony No. 3 - I. Moderato assai
DR13 -6.31 dB -25.76 dB 7:14 10-Symphony No. 3 - II. Vivace, scherzando
DR13 -0.02 dB -19.51 dB 9:45 11-Symphony No. 3 - III. Largo
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Number of tracks: 11
Official DR value: DR13
Samplerate: 44100 Hz
Channels: 2
Bits per sample: 16
Bitrate: 546 kbps
Codec: FLAC
================================================================================
Simon Rattle - Karol Szymanowski: Stabat Mater; Litany to the Virgin Mary; Symphony No. 3 (1994)
Simon Rattle - Karol Szymanowski: Stabat Mater; Litany to the Virgin Mary; Symphony No. 3 (1994)
