Added: 3 years ago
From: ScriptureBuster
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  • Masterpiece ...!!!!!!!

  • I am not so sure that it was Karajan who wept. I think you will find that it was Bruno Walter and it occured after Ferrier had finished rehersing this piece and asked "Was it all right?" or words to that effect. The whole orchestra was equally moved.

  • What do you do when you meet the ultimate beauty, the ultimate sunset, the ultimate piece of art? Shout? Jump? Sing? Weep? NO, you become SILENT. In awe and respect.

  • Don't weep! Shut up the suffer-talk - and listen! Then you'll believe.

  • A theological belief in God may lapse, but Lutheran pietism goes on forever.

  • She was and is the very best. Superb. Like Karajan I weep when I hear Ferrier sing this aria, it's so very very beautiful.

  • god is not christian, only people can be christian, or not

  • this is a very beautiful and moving aria,it was said that maestro Karajan wept after hearing Ferrier sing this aria and one can see why,

  • Bleghh

    

  • Beautiful.

  • soulmusic at its best hahaha

  • heavenly music and a heavenly voice!

  • An advice. If you want to challenge an atheist, do not talk him about Jesus, or Muhammad, Jehovah ... you do not have evidence. But you have proof of Bach.

  • @olmaleo And Bach is a proof of God

  • Absolutely beautiful !!!

  • LISTEN TO JESUS

  • Elle est au delà de toute question et critique éventuelle sur son accent, son adéquation stylistique ou sa technique vocale : on est toujours, avec elle, au plus profond de l'âme humaine.

  • Divine!

  • Eschewing reference to the many off-target comments that this item has produced, I shall merely offer thanks to ScriptureBuster for posting it and remind listeners that Kathleen Ferrier had only a year or two to live when this was recorded. - John Austin, Australia

  • @jrakg Quite so.

  • I would suggest that it is wonderful that by means of a recording we are able to listen to one of the finest contraltos!

  • Non finisco mai di stupirmi che una mente umana possa concepire armonie così meravigliose e mi affascina anche l' idea del piacere che può provare chi canta, quando sente uscire dalla sua gola suoni tanto armoniosi. Un grazie al grande Bach

  • Incredibly beautiful voice and music; both monumental and moving...

  • "...I think it a bit of an overstatement to suggest that he self-identified as a Buddhist." According to Karajan and others he had studied and practice zazen for over 40 years, saw Fr. LaSalle of Hiroshima as his zen master and according to Vojtech Janzy, the Czech director, in a phone call to him from his apartment in NYC, he told me Maestro Karajan was HIS zen teacher for many years.

  • Music dont need God.

  • Superb! TY for posting.

  • What is this symbol? This picture?

  • @samococo Bach's seal

  • @samococo Bach's seal 

  • @samococo Its Johann Sebastian Bach's monogram, if you see carefully is formed by his initials JSB and Inverted (like in a mirror) JSB

    Sorry for my bad English.

  • One of the great 'con morbidezza' voices of our expanded time. Attentione! Seek more and and you may survive.

  • One of the great 'con morbidezza' voices of our expanded time. Attentione!

  • 她从不让我失望。。

  • I love her voice; she brings feeling to what she sings.Perhaps there is a little too much vibrato, but I feel that was probably the fashion then.

    Just enjoy it!

  • Nice. Great aria. Great Bach. The best version I've ever heard is Nicholas Spanos's. That is just otherworldly.

  • @tamerlano236 --Listen to Eula Beal with Yehudi Menuhin.

  • No words for this.

    A galaxy of stars *****

  • L´ingratitude humaine n´a pas de limites, j´espère seulement que je ne mourai jamais de cette maladie là.

  • Your Quote:

    If i dont belive in the christian god that dosent mean i dont enjoy the music written 4 him :)

    .

    You don't have to write that; no one knows who you are, and you're really just like everybody else, who might have time to think.

    You may as well have wrote, nothing.

    Cheers.

    from,

    del-boy.

  • Love...

  • I am very surprised that this music that , even in the case of the unbelievers, has some soothing effect, can only inspire venom and hatered in some others.

  • @JBSERBIST Dear Jbserbist, Read more Books.

    .

    Cheers.

    from,

    del-boy

    .

    P.S. don't abuse caps lock. !

    .

  • Ascoltate altre eccellenti versioni, ma la Ferrier è sempre NEL pezzo, forse Bach lo ha composto per LEI ::))

  • Such a great talent. And she died so young.

  • This is the most wonderful music and this a brilliant interpretation of it by Kathleen Ferrier!

  • ...che brividi.......

  • I am not very good at philosophy; in fact, I always thought that philosophers were like dogs running after their own tail. But one thing is sure: a society who does not believe in God anymore can only produce rap music, Andy warhols, Soulages and their likes.

  • Comment removed

  • @JBSERBIST i hope you meet your god soon. anyway, a society that believe in god is very good at religious wars, bigotry, etc, etc.

  • @proletinkult The same can be said for those who don't believe in God. Many atheists have caused bigotry, wars, corruption in the world as well.

  • @JBSERBIST Yours is the typical self-referential nonsense that religious bigots like to comfort themselves with instead of recognizing and embracing the diversity and challenges of an ever-changing society (for better or for worse); they prefer to throw out the baby with the bathwater.

  • Comment removed

  • @EmilyGreene1984 A guilty conscience, eh Emily? it's so obvious you don't even know what I was referring to, I never said that all religious people were bigots .... I guess that's another poor baby down the drain

  • Comment removed

  • Hearing Kathleen's voice, from so many years ago, singing this most beautiful of Bach's songs, is an especially moving experience which the old recording and slightly dated singing style do nothing to dim. It is wonderful to see so much of Ferrier's repertoire on You Tube. There are, of course some other superb and moving perfornances, such as by Julia Hamari. They are well worth exploring by anyone of any age.

  • crying and genial!

  • Bach believed in God but God died - wounded by horror. He/she became a cynic. In H. Bach did a course in philosophy and soon wasn't quite so sure if there was a G. The G he now found was a billionaire porno magnate... he started to hate all music - great as he once thought his was...but was it? G came to look at the world...all was not well...he sought perfection but the postmodernists dissuaded him...he gave up music and just sat in silence listening to silence. G could hear the stars talking.

  • People who say God doesn't exist are not only ignorant, but misguided. Bach believed in God and all of his music was dedicated to Him.

  • @EmilyGreene1984 There is am old saying. 'The fool that sayeth there is no God'.

  • @saxonfield

    Not sure if there is a God. But there were definitely two Geniuses called Bach and K Ferrier

  • @saxonfield Dear saxy, Don't worry about him, he just likes to feel popular.

    .

    Cheers.

    from,

    del-boy.

  • Bach may have believed in God, but he lived a long time ago when little was known about the working of the world. On the other hand, people like Bach and Ferrier make one believe in the limitless potential of mankind.

  • Bach may have believed in God, but he lived a long time ago when little was known about the working of the world. On the other hand, people like Bach and Ferrier make one believe in the limitless potential of mankind.

  • Bach may have believed in God, but he lived a long time ago when little was known about the working of the world. On the other hand, people like Bach and Ferrier make one believe in the limitless potential of mankind.

  • p.s. - in every language an important aspect of singing is the CONSONANTS

  • so good to hear that after all those little boys voices of counter tenor !

  • @shakingguy Kathleen Ferrier has a wonderful voice, but my favorite version of "Erbarme dich" is by Andreas Scholl (Philippe Herreweghe).

  • Ik geloof in Bach en God

  • Ik geloof in Bach en God

  • I'm not sure there's a God, but I believe in Bach, and I certainly believe in Ferrier...

  • Comment removed

  • So magnificent. Interpreted with reverence, warmth and simplicity. Such a depth to her soul. Thank you, Kathleen.

  • Wow, I didn't know Karajan ever worked with Ferrier! Magnificent stuff!

  • Dear Mariandelochs,

    As you mentioned Karajan I found other works that he conducted here on YouTube. Wagner's Liebestod with Helga Dernesch is beyond words. Magnificent!

    Bonnie

  • A glorious, profoundly moving tribute to

    faith in all its forms and dedications!

    Thank you for posting this masterpiece!

  • Time to time I'm returning to this recording and enjoying with PERFECTION. Thank you so much

  • Comment removed

  • Perfection!!!

  • @ditogam

    Yes.... absolutely!

    Many thanks to ScriptureBuster for this wonderful posting, and to Dito for sharing!

  • a beautiful soul

  • Можно слушать бесконечно

  • Why so pedantic, we all know singers have accent problems in other languages, hear the MUSIC not the syntax!!

  • May I interpose that I have been admiring KF since I first heard her four decades ago.

    Don't you think that better is the enemy of good?

    Why is positive criticism a lèse majesté?

    What has 'pronunciation' got to do with 'syntax'?

    Singing is more than producing 'Wohllaut'. KF's German is excellent - except for the / l / sound.

  • I was brought up with Ellington, although I did go to a Karajan concert when I was 18. Since retirement I am listening, playing and singing from the so called "classical" reperoire. The listeners of this type of music however seemed to be more concerned with the technicalities, rather than the soul of the music.

  • @Rattywotin

    sung texts are not just music, they are words that say something.

    Being a singer is hard work...doesn't mean you don't have to do it

  • @Rattywotin Music was syntax to Bach. A language for god and humanity.

  • LOL.... ouch =/

    well that's probably what i'd sound like... NOT ... *cough*

  • Ой, какая красота!!! Мистический, потусторонний голос у Кэтлин Ферриер!

  • @MariBEllada как будто она туда перенеслась,в 2000 лет назад...

  • The melody is so beautiful, that if someone hears it for first time cannot imagine that it's written in the baroque era, and especially from Bach! I am posting an orchestral arrangement of this!

  • This is so beautiful , thank you for posting

  • The violin solo also tasteful and delicate:-)

  • one of the most beautifull singing soul

  • smooth warm voice, very even long breath, superb singing, what joy!

  • If I don´t believe in the cristian God, that doesn´t mean that I don´t enjoy the music written by Him ;-)

    Tutto quello che rimane sarà la bellezza e ritroveremo la fede attraverso la bellezza.

  • Hai perfettamente ragione. Io sono ebreo eppure non posso che credere nel D-o a cui Bach si rivolgeva, a cui tutti gli uomini si rivolgono, anche quelli che non credono: l'unico D-o, possa Egli far risplendere il Suo volto su di noi.

  • Grazie, Erdheim. Anche mio nonno era ebreo, ho ereditato da lui la passione per la musica classica.

  • Già, mio nonno adorava Kathleen Ferrier ed era particolarmente colpito dalla Mattheüs Passion, nonostante il fatto che era ebreo.

    Todah, Erdheim.

  • Endymion, anch'io adoro la Ferrier sempre, e cosi' anche in questo pezzo (io sono cattolica). Sono cosi' felice che Suo nonno adorava la Ferrier e che era colpito da questo sublime pezzo religioso (la prova che era delicato e in grado di essere commosso da questa bellezza.) Ma scusi, Suo nonno era ebreo, ma e' Lei ebreo o cattolico o cosa? Infatti cristiani ed ebrei credono nello stesso Dio.

  • Corellithebest,

    non sono né ebreo, pur avendo atenati ebrei, né cattolico, ma...protestante. But what´s in the name? Importante è credere. Io sono credente.

  • Ma certo. Che Dio La benedica!

  • @Erdheim Io sono cattolica e sono completamente d'accordo con Lei. Dio La benedica! E la Ferrier e' cosi' commovente cantando questo pezzo!

  • Ihre Stimme berührt mich wie kaum eine andere, einfach wunderschön.

  • Her high notes don't seem to come as freely as her middle and lower notes do, but Kathleen does a wonderful job emotionally wise with this piece. It makes up for whatever faults she has with her upper register.

  • Faults? What faults?

  • @njmezzo Its her tessitura that bugs me. I know that not all contraltos have the same tessitura, but as a contralto also - its not my taste.

  • Comment removed

  • Tessitura is a term that generally is used to refer to the area in the range of a voice where most of the content of a song or aria is concentrated. Perhaps you mean, instead, the quality of her voice in a certain area of its range. What one person likes is not always what another likes, etc. This is a reasonable and valid opinion. But, individual taste notwithstanding, Ferrier's technique throughout the range of her voice was above reproach.

  • I agree, her techinque is faultless. :)

  • If we asked for a vote on the best ever rendition of this awsome composition kathleen would not only come top but those who voted for anyone else might be severely embarrassed

  • @BryanMRoland I think that's your opinion. But I find that your very incorrect. There is only one other contralto I know who does this aria just as well - Eula Beal.

  • @EmilyGreene1984 Ewa Podles would also be good.

  • Absolutely marvelous ! Thanks for uploading.

  • Singing of the highest order! Brava!

  • richter und hamari sind viel besser, viel musikalischer, viel näher an bach und hamari singt viel verinnerlichter

  • Scripturebuster,Thanks. Merci beaucoup for this pleasure. I also do not believe in their christian little god, but I love Bach musical harmonies...and I think that Bach first motivation was his pleasure...:-)

  • Thanks for posting this wonderful version of Kathleen Ferrier. It was one of the favourites of my mother when I was a little girl. Ferrier was a legend in Holland, because she was so 'unpolished' and direct in her singing of this classical Bach-piece. Nice to meet a scripturebuster, by the way.

  • On my opinion the version of Karl Richter in better!

  • In italian you write contralto, not contr´alto, although it derives from contro (not contra) and alto. Contralto è un derivato di alto con il prefisso contro. Secolo sedicesimo!!!

  • i listened to this a thousend times and i still think its marvelous! I posses the album with Kathleen Ferrier "Das lied von der erde". That last song of that album is so impressive!! Legendary! I tried to put it on youtube, but its quite too long (25 minutes or so). Pity!

  • So beautiful-Kathleens Voice lives on

  • c'est merveilleux !! Cette voix qui vient dire "prends pitié de moi"... j'en ai pleuré dès les premières notes. Impossible ne pas aimer avec tout son coeur cette version. Kathleen... Merci !

    Merci à la personne qui a mis cette vidéo en ligne

  • What I would give to have heard that voice live!!!!

  • My favorite Erbarme dich - not just for the rich, dark sound of her voice and the perfect legato, but mostly for the deep feeling and intensity. Doesn't get better than this.

  • Ferrier's was a true and sublime alto voice. A tragic early loss to the vocal world.

  • hi! i would like to know what people mean when they say "alto" , women are either sopranos, mezzos or contraltos, so i wonder if people use "alto" as an abbreviation for "contralto" which is Ms Ferrier's voice type

  • Nope, look at wikipedia at "fach" and you will learn more

  • i am not the president of all wisdom, but wikipedia is not thaaat reliable, you have to be careful not to believe everything you read there, i just referred to the article and it spoke about contraltos, and sometimes misused the word "alto". Still, a woman with a low voice is a CONTRALTO voice, not an alto voice

  • Hello, in German it's Alt for the low female voice, in English it's Contr'Alto. I think Alto in English usually denotes a male singer (boy or falsetto adult)

    Cheers

  • The falsetto is usually called countertenor to distinguish it from the female alto. Most alto arias are sung by mezzo-sopranos.

  • Contr'alto??? you are not being serious, did you type an apostrophe accidentally or do you really really think Contr'alto is a word?

  • But of course, since it is an Italian term.

    Etymologically and historically correct orthography.

    Etymology:Italian, from contra- + alto

    Date:1740

    Cheers

  • If you ever saw Johann Ernst Galliard's 1742 translation of Pier Francesco Tosi's Opinioni de' cantori antichi e moderni, you would have known that contr'alto once was a legitimate form of spelling for this word.

  • Actually, no - this piece was written for a woman who was a contralto. :)

  • hello: according to Schmieder the original instructions for BWV 244 No 47 is:

    Aria. Viol concert, due Viol. e Vla, col Alto Ch. 1, Cont., Org.

    Aparantly the Herreweghe recording uses male altos: Whether Bach used boys or men for his altos has been the subject of some dispute; surely some of the more mature students at the Thomasschule were altos, and his son Carl Philipp Emanuel was apparently a gifted falsettist

  • Well, it might have been, but it wouldn't have been sung by one in any of the original performances. Women were not permitted to sing in church at Bach's time.

  • So do we start a movement to outlaw the singing of any Bach arias by women???!!!

  • Did I say that?! I don't think I did. Kindly do not put words in my mouth (or whatever the typed equivalent is). Besides which, I'm sure there is such a movement somewhere. All I said was that Bach may well have written the aria with a woman's voice in mind, but he would not have had the luxury of hearing it this way.

  • Such resignation beyond all despair - and what a voice ! Beyond words, really.......

    Beautiful!

  • I agree with you.

  • Yes. It gets to me every time. Quite incredible.

    Blessings.....

  • As far as I know Karajan was Armenian; even his last name is Armenian

  • Maybe your referring to his being of Greek descent... Karajan comes from Karajannis--

  • No,

    Herbert von Karajan, one of the best conductors ever...

  • not greek, not armenian. aromanian.

  • Don't want to be stupid or anything but...what is an Aromanian?

  • This is excellent stuff. Awesome. I love Kathleen Ferrier. A great musician.

  • As I said, karajan was indeed influenced by the philosophy behind Buddhism, but I think it a bit of an overstatement to suggest that he self-identified as a Buddhist. As far as his approach to Bach, he was not at all interested in baroque performance practice and apparently disliked the sound of old instruments. I'd compare his Bach to that of someone like Mengelberg, whose 1939 recording of the St. Matthew Passion is not at all stylistically correct, but still has moments of great beauty.

  • What a magnificent voice. In my dreams I sing like this.

  • well, he was a german and his name was Haendel, later when he moved to england he anglicized his name as Handel..

  • Pardon me, but Karajan most definitely was NOT zen Buddhist. He did yoga and was intrigued by the philosophy behind it, but he was not affiliated with the Buddhist religion. In fact, there is a crucifix planted above his grave. He was born a Catholic and was probably buried as one.

  • He was both. He was a lapsed catholic & he was family was catholic, but in interviews with Osborne, Vaughan etc, Karajan went into extensive details in re: to Zen Buddhism, the fact that he subscribed to the precepts. He certainly was thoroughly versed in the Diamond Sutra & many of his recordings, Mahler 9th etc , bear this out. He was not officially affiliated, but then neither was Guaguin or Thomas Merton. He also flat out stated his belief in reincarnation.However, his Bach is atrocious.

  • why?

  • Kath sings with such passion - wonderful voice of course, but you really feel this one... wish I could have heard her.

  • Wonderful! Thanks. Dorothea :)

  • I think we may agree that, in this context, such considerations are pretty irrelevant. Apart from the fact that, in my humble opinion (and experience) most people only think they know where they belong and what they believe...

  • a voice filled with tears

  • @ ScriptureBuster

    thanks for sharing, people like you bring warmth and culture into daily life.

  • thanks for sharing Coco...very beautiful. When I first heard her voice I was reminded of Jan De Gaetani. Quite a leap from Leo Kottke ;)

  • Thanks Craig - well you seem to enjoy various types of musical expression yourself!

    Couldn´t find anything on Jan De Gaetani on YouTube.

    :) Evelyn

  • What do you mean, Scipturebuster, by your 'not believing in the Christian God'? Are you suggesting that there are lots of gods and you happen to believe in an another one? But be that as it may, your beliefs or lack thereof are indeed fairly irrelevant in this context, for we are here to enjoy the music and not to analyse the motives behind it. So, thank you for sharing this very precious gem of a recording!

  • haha, but it's fine. karajan himself was a zen buddhist, yet he still did recordings of works like these...as well as a fantastic recording of haydn's oratario "the creation".

  • Karajan Zen Buddhist?

    You have just knocked me off my perch.

  • Its so so beautiful to feel and observe such a response, mental and even physical one.....while listening.....

  • What an eternal voice - the vibrato sends you shivers down the spine. A singer so totally comitted to his music - do we have anything like her today? (I just bought a CD of Bach arias sung by Magdalena Kozena, she is also good at it, I wonder how she will be when she "matured" even more - she could get there!)

  • It happens that, back when god was god and the word bore meaning, something within people, probably fervour, made them build the most solemn, truthfully transparent, painful creations. I don't suppose it was really a god that gave them the talent, but rather their own desire and passion.

  • thanks a million, scripturebuster! heart-breaking. is this available on cd? I've never seen it for sale.

  • Wish I could put a full version of 'Der abschied' on this website! Thats sooooo great!

  • .. great! .. Kathleen Ferrier at this music..

  • Weeping buckets.......I had forgotten how wonderful this was.