Koopman Cantatas 13

Though only one cantata gets to bear the nickname, Bach actually wrote many works that could be described as wedding cantatas. Some of them are lost, others are of debatable authorship, but of those that remain, four are collected on this 2008 disc. The performances by Ton Koopman leading the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir are taken from their set of the complete extant cantatas with the four works here recorded in 1994, 1996, and 2002. Though Koopman has shown himself to be a master Bach conductor, one sometimes got the sense in listening to his sacred cantatas that the composer's Lutheran ethos sat less well with his naturally ebullient personality than did the far more cheerful secular cantatas.

The 18th set of Bach's cantatas contains exclusively works of the third yearly cycle from Leipzig. Unlike the first two Leipzig yearly cycles, this one extends over a longer period: from June 1725 until 1727. The works in this set belong essentially to the years 1725-26 and are in some cases chronologically contiguous (BWV 187 and 45; BWV 98, 55, 52), with the result that the original sequence can be easily grasped.

You might not expect the figure of Mary to have called forth exceptional music from the Protestant Bach, but the Marian feast days survived the Lutheran paring of the Catholic calendar, and at least the first two of these three cantatas are imposing works. Best of all is the opening chorale of the Cantata No. 1, "Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern," BWV 1 (How brightly shines the morning star). This work, despite its numbering, was actually the last in the series of cyclical chorale cantatas Bach wrote in 1724 and 1725. The eight-minute opening chorale, a gloriously broad design for chorus, horns, strings, and a pair of oboes da caccia, bears affinities with the warm, generous chorales of the contemporaneous St. John Passion.

Sometime in late 1705 or 1706 Georg Friedrich Händel, like many German composers before him, travelled to Italy, then the fountainhead of European music. During the next three years he paid extended visits to Rome and also spent time in Florence, Venice and Naples. In 1709-10, perhaps after a year back in Hamburg, he returned once again to Florence and Venice. Rather than studying with some Italian master, as others had done, he quickly established himself as a virtuoso performer and composer, enjoying the support of leading patrons and composing numerous cantatas.

This is vintage, classic Koopman: Tempi that never linger, orchestral textures that accord privilege to clarity and insight over effect and superb, beautifully articulated, solo vocal lines. Koopman's lucidity might appear a little too detached or cool for some listeners who are used to responding to the emotional charge of Bach's Passions. One of Koopman's greatest strengths is his grasp of architecture: of the unfolding of the passion events; of the relative roles and interactions of the soloists and 'crowds'; of the inevitability of events in a musical - as opposed to a Biblical - sense.

Most of the Cantatas in this this last but one issue of the complete Cantata work has been composed between 1730 and 1740. This volume contains - among others - the famous cantata "Wachet auf ruft uns die Stimme" BWV 140, with the famous chorale "Zion hört die Wächter singen".

Four of J.S. Bach's more sorrowful cantatas featuring solo bass voice are featured here. The first two, Ich habe genug, BWV 82, and Ich will den Kreuzstab gerne tragen, BWV 56, have doleful, slow-opening arias balanced by consoling central arias, and both close with morbid sentiments – "Ich freue mich auf meinen Tod" (I Look Forward to my Death) in the former, and "Komm, o Tod" (Come, oh Death) in the latter. The third cantata, Der Friede sei mit dir, BWV 158, has a tender opening aria offset by a mournful closing chorale. Only the fourth cantata, Amore traditore, BWV 203, with its dance-like opening aria and bravura closing relieves the mood.

Between 1999 and 2006, the legendary baroque music specialist Ton Koopman brought together a stunning array of singers to record the complete cantatas of J.S. Bach alongside his own Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra and Choir. Released originally mostly in 3-CD sets, this wonderful cycle is available in its entirety. The 67 separate CDs have now been gathered together in a box with a booklet that includes a complete tracklisting and information about each recording.