I read some of those reviews about the complaints of DR, but I hope they are really about DR that I don't mind and actually prefer, as long that is the real reason. I was waiting for price drop of the Telarc one in SACD just for curiosity, knowing full well I wouldn't hear the difference. I will likely buy the Multi version (already in cart) despite the high shipping costs as it is not available from Amazon.ca. As some reviewers said, if you like this piece, you can't just ownn one version.
You can buy it at Amazon.ca from third party sellers:
Carmina Burana: Amazon.ca: Music
As I type this, you can pay CDN$4.42 + CDN$3.49 shipping for a new copy of it.
And if there is a problem with the seller, you can get a refund from Amazon (at least, that is how it works in the U.S.; see their policies for the Canadian website).
As for owning more than one recording, I have no need of anything more than the Muti version. I happen to also own the highly regarded Jochum version, but, in my opinion, the Muti version is better in just about every way. Overall, Jochum isn't bad, and might have been the best on record before Muti, but we are not now in the pre-Muti era, so that need not concern us. (The fact that Orff himself endorsed that version is only important for the recordings available at the time he endorsed it, not for anything that was recorded after he made the endorsement. That Orff liked it best at the time of his endorsement tells us nothing about how Orff would feel about future recordings.) The little bits that I have heard of the piece from other people have not impressed me either, so I am inclined to think that the Muti version is all one needs. And compared with Arleen Augér singing the Dulcissime (on the Muti version), pretty much everyone else who sings it sounds like a cat being tortured. Arleen Augér is the standout among a group of great musicians, all performing as well as you are likely to find anywhere. For example, in the Circa mea pectora, Jonathan Summers sings with the power and
passion that is exactly right for what he is singing. According to Wikipedia:
Carl Orff, who later became a close friend, would write to people anywhere in the world planning to perform
Carmina Burana saying that John van Kesteren was his favourite "Roasted Swan".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_van_Kesteren
John van Kesteren is the tenor on the Muti recording. Really, the Muti recording is almost perfect in every possible way. I just wish they had current state of the art recording capability then, but the fidelity is still quite good, being (I think) a 1979 analog recording (released in 1980; hence, the 1980 copyright date).
When listening to the Muti version, sit in your music listening room, which must be quiet other than the sound from your audio system. The very soft portions should be very soft indeed, and the loud portions will be quite loud. Don't even think about using the disc as background music or in your car, unless you have the world's quietest car.
Having attended many classical concerts, I can tell you that at a live performance, it is not uncommon for them to play so softly that one can barely hear them, and so loud that one can barely stand it. I have no other disc that really gives that sort of impression as well the Muti
Carmina Burana.
