Chandos Disc of the Month – 2-CD set at mid-price

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‘He was a great individual, totally unafraid to take risks and\nlargely misunderstood because people didn’t see his universality,’\nKristjan Jarvi on Leonard Bernstein.

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One of his most controversial compositions, Bernstein’s Mass was\nwritten at the request of Jacqueline Kennedy Onnassis for the\nopening of the John F.Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in\nWashington DC and received its gala premiere at the venue’s opening\non 8 September 1971. Bernstein declared that his intention in\nwriting the piece had been ‘to communicate as directly and\nuniversally as I can a reaffirmation of faith.’ Recalling Britten’s\nWar Requiem in its use of Catholic liturgical text interrupted with\ncommentary, the work caused a storm of controversy particularly\nwith its exploration of the concerns of the era – Nixon and\nVietnam. Unlike Britten, however, as with many of his compositions,\nBernstein brought together an embarrassment of riches of musical\nstyles both classical and popular music at the start of the 1970s.\nThe New York Times notes, ‘Bernstein left nothing of himself out of\nMass, and like the man who wrote it, the piece demands to be\nnoticed… beneath the original dramatic conception, the creative\nexuberance, the showbiz glitter and the ear-catching set numbers is\na sophisticated, carefully controlled piece of musical\ncraftsmanship that repays close scrutiny… an extravagant, exuberant\nand endlessly inventive creation…’ Mass is now recognised as one of\nthe central works of Twentieth Century American music, and its\npolitical and cultural importance as well as amazing music extends\nits relevance to today.

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The Times wrote of a recent performance by Kristjan Jarvi and\nthe Tonkunstler Orchestra. ‘The conductor Kristjan Jarvi is\nbringing a bracing blast of Bernstein.’ Der Standard noted ‘… There\nhas not been this much drama for a long time… conductor Kristjan\nJarvi, together with his his Absolute Ensemble New York, the\nTonkunstler Orchestra, Chorus sine nomine, Company of music and the\nTolzer Boys’ Choir, presents the theme of modern man’s crisis of\nfaith…’ ‘Kristjan Jarvi proves himself a perfect strategist with a\nreal feeling for Bernstein’s tonal dramatisation. He creates a\nmonumental theatre of sound …’ Kronen Zeitung.

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Leading Baritone Randall Scarlata takes the role of the\ncelebrant, a role he has performed on many occasions. He is\nespecially recognised for his performances of American repertoire.\nThe Boston Globe recently commented, ‘A triumph – this baritone has\nin his keeping the vocal wherewithal to do just about anything he\nwants.’

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