VERDI Requiem.1 4 pezzi sacri2 • Georg Solti, cond; Joan Sutherland (sop);1 Marilyn Horne (mez);1 Luciano Pavarotti (ten);1 Martti Talvela (bs);1 Vienna PO;1 Vienna St Op Ch;1 Chicago SO & Ch (Margaret Hillis, dir)2 • DECCA 475 7735 (2 CDs: 122:46)

The Requiem was recorded in 1967 and was considered a sonic blockbuster when first released nearly four decades ago. Hearing it in this superb transfer dims none of that original impact, the sound still proving uncommonly arresting. So, too, the performance, which in many respects reflects Toscanini’s whom Solti worked with in Vienna in 1937. If the soloists are not uniformly impressive, they nonetheless do not detract from what is essentially one of Solti’s more impressive studio ventures. The Quattro pezzi sacri, recorded in 1977, provide a welcome filler for the second of these two discs. Composed in 1898, they comprise Verdi’s last published works. Among them, the “Te Deum” is probably best known, in part because of Toscanini’s 1954 broadcast performance, which is still available from RCA. Here, the Toscanini influence is less evident, as Solti’s reading lacks some of the sustained breadth and intensity that the Maestro brought to the work. Still, it is impressive on its own terms, as is the chorus trained by Margaret Hillis. In short, these are welcome reissues.

FANFARE: Mortimer H. Frank