Karajan, Herbert Von
Beethoven Missa Solemnis & Mozart Requiem
Among the various recordings of H.v. Karajan of Beethovens Missa Solemnis and Mozarts Requiem (no less than 4 for each of them), the 1958 and 1961 recordings stand out among critics as perhaps his most important interpretations of this repertoire. The Missa, never released by EMI, was made available by Testament more than 20 years ago. It has not been available on the market for some time. It is actually one of the most extraordinary interpretations of Beethovens religious masterpiece, also due to the extraordinary sound quality achieved by the Columbia technicians of the time. Mozarts Requiem was Karajans first recording of this work. Even this production, which has always been available in the DG catalogue, is currently very difficult to find.