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Johann Sebastian BACH (1685 - 1750): "Luther Kantaten, Vol. 1"
Lydia Teuscherac, Sarah Wegenerb, soprano;
Charlotte Quadt, contraltoc;
Benno Schachtner, altoab;
Daniel Johannsena, Sebastian Kohlheppbc, tenor;
Thomas E. Bauerb, Rafael Fingerlosc, Daniel Ochoaa, bass
Chorus Musicus Köln; Das Neue Orchester
Dir: Christoph Spering
rec: April 21 - 24, 2015c, Feb 2 - 6b/June 6 - 8a, 2016, Cologne-Zollstock, Melanchthon-Kirche
deutsche harmonia mundi - 88985320832-1 (© 2016) (63'31")
Liner-notes: E/D; lyrics - translations: E
Cover, track-list & booklet
Scores
Gelobet seist du, Jesu Christ (BWV 91)a;
Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland (BWV 62)b;
Schwingt freudig euch empor (BWV 36)c
At the occasion of the commemoration of 500 years Reformation deutsche
harmonia mundi released four discs with cantatas by Johann Sebastian
Bach, in which hymns by Martin Luther play a key role. They were put
together in a box, but are also available separately. This gives me the
opportunity to review them at different stages, and taking into account
the time of the year. I focus here on the first volume, which includes
three cantatas for Advent and Christmas.
The programme opens with Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland (BWV 62),
one of two cantatas for the first Sunday of Advent, which are based on
one of Luther's best-known and most-beloved hymns for this time of the
year. It is based on the Christmas hymn Veni redemptor gentium by
Ambrose of Milan (c340-397). The melody is first documented as a Roman
Catholic Latin hymn based upon Gregorian chant in manuscript form in
Einsiedeln around 1120. Luther's hymn comprises eight stanzas; the first
and the last are included unaltered in this cantata, whereas the other
stanzas are paraphrased in the intermediate sections: two recitatives
and two arias. The opening chorus is a brilliant piece, in which the
sopranos sing the cantus firmus, supported by a horn, whereas the
other voices provide the counterpoint, with an ensemble of two oboes,
strings and basso continuo. In the instrumental prelude the chorale
melody is quoted in the basso continuo, which in this recording is
clearly audible thanks to the use of a larger organ than is mostly used.
Next comes the tenor aria, 'Bewundert, o Menschen, dies große
Geheimnis', with two oboes and strings. The tempo is notably fast, and
this is one of the features of these performances. The same goes for the
aria 'Streite, siege, starker Held', in which the bass is accompanied
by strings, playing in unison. In the liner-notes the musical director,
Christoph Spering, and the musicologist Norbert Bolín, state: "The tempi
of these arias emerge from the basic pulse that already permeates the
opening chorus." Despite the tempo, the diction of Sebastian Kohlhepp
and Thomas E. Bauer is remarkably good. Unfortunately both use too much
vibrato. Bauer's coloratura is excellent, but the strings, although
playing well, are a bit too restrained, considering the belligerent
character of this aria. The closing chorale is slow, almost without
marked dynamic accents, and with a pause after each line. This is based
on Spering's view on this part of Bach's chorales, as he states in the
booklet: "It seems to me to make total sense to perform the simple
four-part cantional movements in a completely undramatic way divorced
from any Biblical action. They are an expression and a reflection on the
part of a Christian believer, even if, in the case of Leipzig, we must
assume that the congregation was not actively involved but merely
listened to the chorales while these were being sung by the choir. The
fermatas at the end of each line of the chorales are points of repose
when the congregation can 'pause and reflect on the words', a point
spelled out by contemporary writers on music theory". Whether the
chorales were sung this way under Bach's direction is probably hard to
prove, and personally I tend to disagree with the way Spering performs
them. It seems to me that reflection is perfectly possible with a more
dramatic way of singing, in which key moments in the text are expressed.
The fermates after every line seem unnatural to me.
Whereas BWV 62 was performed in 1724, at a time when Bach was writing cantatas based on chorales, Schwingt freudig euch empor (BWV 36),
also for the first Sunday of Advent, dates from 1731. Most of it was
first conceived as a secular cantata, which Bach performed in 1725 at
the occasion of the birthday of a teacher. Its sacred version, which
also exists in two versions (the later one is recorded here) comprises
two parts, performed before and after the sermon respectively. Two
chorales are included in this cantata: Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland and Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern.
The last stanza of the latter is heard in a four-part harmonization at
the end of the first part. The former chorale is included three times: a
harmonization of the last stanza closes the second part, but two other
stanzas are set in concertato manner. The opening stanza is a duet for
soprano and alto, both accompanied by an oboe d'amore, in the first
part. The oboi d'amore also accompany the tenor in the aria on the sixth
stanza, 'Der du bist dem Vater gleich', in the second part. It has the
tempo indication molt'Allegro, and that results in a very fast
tempo. In the liner-notes we read that the ensuing aria for soprano,
'Auch mit gedämpften, schwachen Stimmen', is "a special point of repose,
its slow tempo proportionate to the pulse of the molt'Allegro in
the preceding chorale". It is probably one of the slowest performances I
have heard, but the chosen tempo works wonderfully well, also thanks to
the fine performance by Lydia Teuscher. The tenor part is again sung by
Kohlhepp, and although he is not free of vibrato here, his performance
is considerably better than in the previous cantata. The second part
opens with the bass aria 'Willkommen, werter Schatz', which is nicely
sung by Rafael Fingerlos, a new name to me. I like his relaxed manner of
singing; his diction and articulation are excellent, but there could
have been more marked dynamic accents.
With Gelobet seist du, Jesu Christ (BWV 91) we are at the first
day of Christmas in 1724. The instrumental scoring fits the festive
nature of this day: two horns, timpani, three oboes, strings and bc. The
horns play a concertante role in the opening chorus, a setting of the
first stanza of the hymn, written by Luther in 1524. Again it is
(loosely) based on older material from pre-Reformation times. Bach has
used it in several compositions, for instance his Christmas Oratorio. "The highly virtuosic opening chorus contains parts for two concertante horns and, clearly marked alla breve,
is intended to be conducted in minims. At first the tempo seems almost
insanely fast, but, interestingly, it is easier for the horn players to
perform it at this speed than at a slower tempo" (booklet). The tempo is
indeed very fast, and that is something one probably has to get used
to. It is done brilliantly, though, and the performances of the horn
players are very impressive. The tenor aria, 'Gott, dem Erden Kreis zu
klein', is performed at almost breackneck speed; Daniel Johannsen deals
bravely with this tempo. It is preceded by a recitative which alternates
with the second stanza from Luther's hymn. The aria is followed by an
accompanied recitative for bass, which turns to an adagio towards the
end on the text "He comes to you to lead you before his throne through
this vale of tears". The latter words are set to marked dissonances. The
soloist, Daniel Ochoa, is also new to me. He tends to be a little too
operatic, and his performance here is a bit too pathetic. The recitative
is followed by a wonderful duet for soprano and alto, with two violins
and bc, exquisitely sung by Lydia Teuscher and Benno Schachtner, whose
voices blend perfectly.
I have already mentioned several features of these performances. In the
booklet several aspects of performance practice are discussed. Among
them, almost inevitably, the issue of the size of the vocal ensemble.
Andreas Glöckner takes a clear stand in that he does not believe in the
theory of 'one voice per part'. However, he adds that "the question as
to exactly how Bach performed his music must for the most part remain
unanswered. The evidence is too slender for us to make any definitive
pronouncements, and it is unlikely that any new and spectacular
documents will come to light that might tell us more about Bach's
performing practice. In short, it would be wrong to be dogmatic in the
debate over the forces that Bach used, a debate that has occasionally
generated a good deal of heat".
In these performances the choir comprises sixteen voices, which more or
less has been established as the standard since the early days of
historical performance practice. The soloists are part of the choir and
take part in the tutti. That is in line with the practice in Bach's
days, when there was no formal separation between soli and tutti. The
size of the orchestra matches that of the choir: it includes six violins
and one or two violas. I already referred to the organ. Unfortunately
that instrument is not specified in the booklet. It only says that it is
"more or less the size of the Brustwerk available to Bach in his
years in Leipzig." We are still far away from the restoration of Bach's
performance practice in this department, but that is not easy to
realise, for several reasons I won't discuss here. The fact that the
organ is more clearly audible here than in other recordings is also due
to its positioning in the centre of the ensemble.
An interesting issue is that of the performance of the secco
recitatives. Here we have to do with another convention, which has come
into existence in the early days of historical performance practie.
Today there is little discussion about the question whether the
recitatives should be performed with short or long note-values. The
former has become the standard, but Spering questions whether that is
correct. "Even today there is still no detailed account of the sources
relating to the continuo praxis of Bach's day, but these sources have
prompted our decision to perform the secco recitatives in the present
recording either consistently long of consistenly short within a single
cantata". I am all in favour of performances which challenge the habits
which have established themselves in historical performance practice.
That is in line with the very foundation of that approach to music:
taking nothing for granted, but going back to the sources. That said, I
find it unsatisfying that some decisions seem to be rather arbitrary.
The arguments in favour of long notes in the first recitative from
Cantata BWV 91, for instance, don't sound very convincing to me.
As the reader will have noticed, these performances offer plenty
opportunities for debate about the performance of Bach's cantatas. This
disc is more than just another performance of cantatas which are very
well known. From that angle it deserves the attention of any Bach lover.
I have already mentioned the good and not so good things in these
performances. There is certainly much to enjoy, and for me the pros
outweigh the cons. In due course I am going to review the following
volumes. I wonder what they have in store.
Johan van Veen (© 2018)
Relevant links:
Rafael Fingerlos
Daniel Johannsen
Sebastian Kohlhepp
Daniel Ochoa
Charlotte Quadt
Benno Schachtner
Sarah Wegener
Chorus Musicus Köln & Das Neue Orchester