Bach: Complete Cantatas, Vol 12
Bach: Complete Cantatas, Vol 12
|||Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Even after 12 three-disc volumes of their Bach cantata series, Ton Koopman and the Amsterdam Baroque collective still continue to show J.S. Bach's limitless musical invention in his treatment of the Lutheran texts. Bach's greatest output, the cantatas, highlight his ability to compose music of the highest standard under the greatest of pressures--often six movement works per week throughout the church year without letup in the quality. The cantatas on this set were written in 1724 and 1725 during Bach's time as cantor at the Thomaskirche, Leipzig. Koopman's soloists and orchestra are outstanding in their musicality and technique--the musical relationship between singer and instrumentalist particularly comes to the fore in the arias; these performances have been noticeably thought through. The choir, although sometimes a little lazy in its entries, responds well to the shape of the music with beautiful phrasing and dynamic control. Koopman also keeps a sure rein on any musical melodrama. As a result, he produces pleasantly understated approaches to these large-scale works without any of the all-too-clean interpretations you might expect from modern authentic performance. --Oliver Condy