Gramophone Magazine
May 2003
Disc of the Month
Recommended Recording
Presto Favourites
Recommended Recording
Deborah York, Julia Gooding (sopranos), Magdalena Kozená, Susan Bickley (mezzo-sopranos), Mark Padmore - Evangelist, James Gilchrist (tenors), Peter Harvey - Jesus, Stephan Loges (basses)
Gabrieli Consort, Paul McCreesh
"Paul McCreesh's audacious decision to use just eight singers makes for an unusual performance - albeit one that is backed by recent research. Whatever the answer to the intractable question of authenticity, the musical rewards are rich - a more intimate and vastly clearer vision of the work. The crowd scenes in particular seem paradoxically more ferocious despite the smaller forces." - David Smith, Presto Classical