Ron Chaplin reports: > Britten: War Requiem > Robert Shafer, conductor; Joan McFarland, choir director; Betty > Scott, choir director (Richard Clement, tenor; Christine Goerke, > soprano; Richard Stilwell, baritone; Maryland Boy Cho.; Shenandoah > Conservatory Cho.; The Washington Cho.; The Washington Orch.) Holy namedropping, Batman! I went to school with Richard Stilwell (or *a* Richard Stilwell). In fact, I sang with him in the college choir. > Schmidt: Book Of The Seven Seals > Franz Welser-Most, conductor; Michael Glaser, chorus master (Stig > Andersen, tenor; Rene Pape, bass; Various Artists; Bavarian Radio > Cho.; Bavarian Radio Sym. Orch.) [EMI Classics] That gets my vote. Too bad I'm not a member of the Academy. An astonishing performance of an astonishing work. Steve Schwartz