While his close contemporary, Respighi, was luxuriating in orchestral colour, Ildebrando Pizzetti was following an increasingly austere path largely divorced from the musical world of his contemporaries. He had an almost naive respect for tradition with a particular interest in Renaissance polyphony and Gregorian chant: although the only movement from the Requiem which uses plainchant is the Dies irae. So it seems only natural that from the Requiem, written in 1922-3, to Due composizioni corali of 1961, Pizzetti produced his most inspired music for a cappella choirs.
In a companion disc to this ((CD) CHAN8963, 12/91) the Danish National Radio Chamber Choir showed their remarkable ability to handle the most extreme technical demands in unaccompanied choral singing. Here, in repertoire which places far fewer technical obstacles in their way, their weaknesses become a little more apparent. Despite being called a chamber choir they produce the kind of rich, full-bodied tone which I would guess must come from a group of around 30 voices. In music as intimate as this such a hefty choral sound seems unwieldy and lacks the necessary flexibility to bring off the more delicate passages; as in the wonderfully translucent Sanctus. I also detect some intonation problems from the sopranos here and elsewhere. There is no doubting Stefan Parkman's profound understanding of Pizzetti's intentions, but the choir responds rather sluggishly. Yes, they produce the infinite subtleties of dynamic and phrasing which the music needs to prevent it sounding bland, but the big climaxes, as in the Dies irae, never arrive—the choir are certainly working up to something but seem caught out when the big moment arrives.
These are small niggles, though, and for the most part the singing is of the highest quality. There are moments of indescribable beauty, and an atmosphere of real musical commitment permeates the entire disc, all of which is greatly enhanced by Chandos's warm recording.'