Mozart: Christian Blackshaw

Anima Eterna Brugge, founded by Jos Van Immerseel in 1987, is a period-instrument orchestra based in Bruges. The size of the ensemble varies from seven to eighty musicians, depending on the programme. Its repertory ranges from Monteverdi to Gershwin.

This is a review of the 'live' Mitropoulos recording from Salzburg. Although it is in mono sound the sense of perspective is actually better than in many stereo efforts. Yes sometimes voices recede further than is ideal but that is to be expected in the theatre. The audience is unobtrusive between numbers. The stage noise is generally very low frequency so does not obscure the music.

Between 1961 and 1986, Herbert von Karajan made three recordings of the Mozart Requiem for Deutsche Grammophon, with little change in his conception of the piece over the years. This recording, from 1975, is, on balance, the best of them. The approach is Romantic, broad, and sustained, marked by a thoroughly homogenized blend of chorus and orchestra, a remarkable richness of tone, striking power, and an almost marmoreal polish. Karajan viewed the Requiem as idealized church music rather than a confessional statement awash in operatic expressiveness. In this account, the orchestra is paramount, followed in importance by the chorus, then the soloists. Not surprisingly, the singing of the solo quartet sounds somewhat reined-in, especially considering these singers' pedigrees. By contrast, the Vienna Singverein, always Karajan's favorite chorus, sings with a huge dynamic range and great intensity, though with an emotional detachment nonetheless. Perfection, if not passion or poignancy, is the watchword. The Berlin orchestra plays majestically, and the sound is pleasingly vivid.

Originally released in the 1980s as separate albums, Itzhak Perlman's recordings of Mozart's violin sonatas were reissued in this box set in 1991 as a special collector's edition. In these sonatas for keyboard and violin, the piano dominates as the violin often tags along in unison with the piano's melody, rarely departing from it except in an ornamental capacity. Even so, Perlman brings his customary good humor and energy to these pieces, and through his vibrant and spirited playing makes the violin's obbligato more or less equal to the pianist's elaborate part.

Arthur Grumiaux and Walter Klien offer playing with spring in its step and a lyrical yet unsentimental warmth in the slow movements, though that of K296 might with advantage have lingered a little more. These are stylish artists who are also eloquent in the unusually wistful Andante con moto of K380 … Perhaps a touchstone for Grumiaux's qualities is the great slow movement of K454, where he is sensitive to the extraordinary harmonic design and yet over-reliant on the same tricks of tone-colour to project it.

This transcription of Don Giovanni for string quartet by an anonymous arranger perfectly conveys the symbiosis of voice and instrument – a hallmark of Mozart’s genius. Throughout the opera, the deft arranger recreates the balance between the purely musical aspects of the work, without detracting from its theatrical qualities. In short, drama and buffoonery are both preserved.

This is the kind of package which represents the best of the Philips Classics Duo series. Slightly older recordings, but in beautiful, clear, warm analogue sound; artists of the old school and the first rank; a compilation of potentially neglected music made available absurdly cheaply in attractive packaging with high production values and intelligent notes; what's not to like?