1987—Robert Shaw-R

A—Ky—Solemn, reverent; gentle A—Ch—Edith Wiens; ethereal, angelic, with a couple of operatic flourishes B—Gl—Measured, majestic, on the slow side; lacks a little punch B—LT—Longest; Delores Ziegler; Vocalise, with subdued orchestra; a little lacking in energy …

1986—Gary Bertini-E

A—Ky—Stately, impassioned; good dialogue with orchestra A—Ch—Arleen Auger; tenderly operatic; sweet, clear voice A—Gl—Joyous, exuberant C—LT—Doris Soffel; Operatic, warbly; voice has an unpleasant edge; trouble with low notes near end C—Gr—Smooth, hymnlike, listless, restrained, draggy …

1986—John Eliot Gardiner-G

Best overall?  One of, surely A—Ky—Reverent, measured, stately A—Ch—Sylvia McNair; best gentle, unaffected, angelic, soaring; does she ever take a breath? A—Gl—Joyous, crisp; good brass A—LT—Diana Montague; Vocalise; great voice, flutelike sound; fast, fun orchestra …

1984—Nikolaus Harnoncourt-B

B—Ky—Smooth, listless B—Ch—Krisztina Láki; operatic, meaningful A—Gl—Hearty, broad, joyous; good brass B—LT—Zsuzsanna Dénes; Muddled, operatic, though orchestra is bright and bouncy and keeps trying to get her to lighten up A—Gr—Vigorous, assertive A—DD—More of a …

1981—Herbert von Karajan-?

Probably R B—Ky—Longest total movement, tied with Paumgartner); Mushy strings for intro, sounds muddy; serious, ponderous B—Ch—Longest; Barbara Hendricks; operatic, meaningful B—Gl—Draggy, lacking in energy B—LT—Janet Perry; Tender, sweetly distant; orchestra suppressed accordingly A—Gr—Smooth, subdued, …

1975—Johannes Somary-R

A—Ky—Stately, sober B—Ch—Carole Bogard; operatic, meaningful; sings flat B—Gl—A bit muddy; orchestra too much in background B—LT—Ann Murray; operatic, with lots of vibrato; the orchestra are having fun, but she’s not  A—Gr—Stately, sober A—DD—Good voices, …

1973—Raymond Leppard-R

B—Ky—Stately, slow, a little draggy and stodgy B—Ch—Ileana Cotrubas; operatic, meaningful C—Gl—Longest; dirgelike, no joy, listless; chorus sound bored; B—LT—Kiri Te Kanawa; operatic; little sense of interaction with orchestra A—Gr—Severe, churchy, serious B—DD—Sweet, smooth, no …

1971—Colin Davis-R

Best choruses? A—Ky—Serious, reverent; voices clear, assertive B—Ch—Helen Donath; tenderly operatic, not too meaningful A—Gl—Joyous, exuberant, all stops out B—LT—Heather Harper; tenderly distant; too much vibrato A—Gr—Reverent, assertive B—DD—Tender, smooth; no battle A—QT—Anguished, severe, painful; …