Gabriel Fauré's Requiem is one of the French composer's most frequently recorded pieces. Given its popularity, it is therefore a temptation and, in view of the mass of possible comparisons, a risk to take on the composition. Le Concert Spirituel under Hervé Niquet with sprano Emöke Baráth and baritone Philippe Estèphe took the risk. And won.

The recording, which has now been released by Alpha Classics, is an outstanding presentation of the musical treasure that Fauré wove into his music. The orchestra and soloists capture the sonorous richness of the lament and its emotional density in a captivating manner. It is to be highly commended that they chose the early version from 1893, in which winds and strings are still missing, so that the musical statement remains very concentrated and thus almost a distillate. Their interpretation is correspondingly moving and, thanks to the quality of the recording, sounds transparent and full from the loudspeakers.

The seven movements of the Requiem are supplemented by the Messe de Clovis, which Charles Gonoud composed in 1891, shortly before Fauré's Requiem. It is a mass for the hero Choldwig, who, like Janne d'Arc, is revered as an iconic figure in France. Gounod's sounds here are of a completely different character. This is partly due to his compositional approach, which is more closely orientated towards classical church music, and also to the instrumentation, which is limited to organ and choir. This gives the music a much more spiritual character, which is further emphasised by the naming of the pieces with classical names such as Kyrie, Gloria, Credo and Sanctus.

The album is rounded off by two short pieces, O salutaris by Louis Auvert and Adagio pour violon et orgue by André Capalet. They also belong to the group of sacred pieces, and they extend the range of the tonal performance. Auvert creates a very intimate atmosphere with organ, violin and soprano, which is almost tangible in the recording. Capalet reduces even further and saves the vocals, which makes the interplay of organ as a supporting foundation and violin as a plaintive voice even more intense.

This is a worthy conclusion to an extremely successful album, for which Alpha Classics is to be congratulated. (Thomas Semmler, HighResMac)

Emőke Baráth, soprano (tracks 4, 14)
Philippe EstèphePhilippe Estèphe, baritone (tracks 2, 6)
Chouchane Siranossian, solo violin (tracks 14, 15)
Le Concert Spirituel
Herve Niquet, direction