Masaaki Suzuki takes his time in his project of recording all
cantatas by Johann Sebastian Bach. It started in 1995, and with
this disc about three-quarters of Bach's sacred cantatas have
been covered.
"Cantatas from Leipzig 1726", the reverse of the tray says.
But that isn't quite correct as Cantata 146 could have been
written some years later. Some scholars suggest 1727 or 1728
as the year of composition. It was written for Sunday Jubilate,
the third Sunday after Easter. It is inspired by the reading
of that Sunday, John 16, 16-23. Here Jesus announces his ascension,
and says that his disciples shall be sorrowful, "but your sorrow
shall be turned into joy". This contrast is worked out in the
various recitatives and arias of the cantata. It begins with
two movements which are arrangements of a lost violin concerto
which is only known in a later arrangement for harpsichord and
strings: the Concerto BWV 1052. The Sinfonia is for organ solo
with two oboes, taille, strings and bc. The slow movement of
the same concerto has turned into the chorus 'Wir müssen
durch viel Trübsal in das Reich Gottes eingehen' (We must
through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God), a quotation
from Acts 14, vs 22. The strong dissonances are an eloquent
expression of the content of this phrase. The element of sorrow
is then depicted by an accompanied recitative and an aria. The
latter is in two sections, the second of which represents the
change of mood: "And yet my heart's sorrow will grow into glory
for me upon the day of the heavenly harvest". This accounts
for this aria departing from dacapo structure as it wouldn't
be logical to return to the sorrow of the first section. The
instrumental scoring is remarkable with transverse flute and
two oboi d'amore. The next recitative continues the thought
of sorrow turning into joy, and this leads to a joyful duet
for tenor and bass with the character of a passepied. The closing
chorale has come down to us without a text. Several suggestions
have been made. Here the proposal of the German scholar Martin
Petzoldt has been followed: the opening stanza of 'Freu dich
sehr, o meine Seele'. Textwise that seems convincing; musically
less so: this chorale was originally set to another melody,
and it seems to me that the accents in text and music don't
quite match.
Only a couple of weeks later Ascension Day is celebrated. What
is more logical than Cantata 146 being followed by Cantata 43,
written for Ascension Day 1726? This was probably originally
planned, as in the liner-notes this cantata is analysed immediately
after Cantata 146. On the disc it comes third, which is quite
odd. This cantata is in two sections, to be performed before
and after the sermon. It begins with a dictum, a quotation
from the Bible. It is from Psalm 47, traditionally considered
a prefiguration of the ascension of Jesus, interpreted as his
accession to the throne, at the right hand of his Father. With
this his work as Saviour is completed, as is expressed by the
soprano aria which closes the first section: "My Jesus has now
completed his saviour's work". The structure of this cantata
is notable: the opening chorus is followed by a recitative and
aria for tenor and a recitative for soprano. Then follow six
stanzas from a poem in form of recitatives and arias. Bach has
used here a text from a collection of librettos by an anonymous
author, published in Meiningen in 1704. Texts from this collection
had also been used by Bach's cousin Johann Ludwig, who was Kapellmeister
in Meiningen since 1706. During 1726 Bach copied and performed
18 of Johann Ludwig's cantatas. This source explains the absence
of any dacapo arias: these were very uncommon around 1700.
The soprano recitative is another quotation from the Bible,
here vs 19 from Mark 16: "So then, after the Lord had spoken
unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right
hand of God". The ascension and its effects are then reflected
upon from the viewpoint of the faithful. They end with an expression
of the expectation of eternal life. The cantata closes with
two stanzas from a chorale, and here Bach also turns to the
past. It is a setting by Christoph Peter (1626-1689), who from
1655 until his death was Kantor in Guben. Bach made only
minor alterations in this setting. Remarkable as far as the
scoring is concerned is the bass aria 'Er ist's, der ganz allein',
with trumpet and basso continuo. The natural trumpet - without
fingerholes - was one of the most complicated instruments to
play. Therefore it comes as no surprise that Bach indicated
the violin as an alternative. Here we hear the trumpet, with
finger-holes - a common practice these days, unfortunately.
The libretto of Cantata 88 is taken from the same source, and
was also used by Johann Ludwig Bach. It was composed for the
5th Sunday after Trinity, and first performed on 21 July 1726.
The text is closely related to the Gospel reading of that Sunday,
Luke 5, vs 1-11. It is about the fishing expedition of Peter,
who is then called by Jesus to become his disciple. He tells
him: "Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men". The cantata
is again in two sections, and begins with another quotation
from the Old Testament: "Behold, I will send for many fishers,
saith the Lord, and they shall fish them; and after will I send
for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain
and from every hill, and out of all the holes of the rocks".
These verses refer to God collecting his people from the Babylonian
exile which is compared here to Jesus catching the people who
have turned away from him and are spiritually scattered. The
opening movement is a forceful and penetrating depiction of
the text. Bach has divided the biblical quotation in a fishing
and a hunting scene for bass solo. In the first part the strings
with added oboes represent the waves of the sea whereas in the
second half the horns enter in a vivid representation of a hunt.
Notable is the tenor aria which begins with the voice rather
with an instrumental ritornello. This can be explained by the
fact that the preceding recitative ends with a question: "Will
he (...) abandon us to our enemies' cunning and rancour?' The
aria immediately provides the answer: "No, no!" The second section
begins with the verse from Luke 5 quoted above. It is followed
by a lively duet for soprano and alto, and after a soprano recitative
the cantata ends with a chorale.
The volumes of the ongoing series of recordings of Bach's cantatas
by the Bach Collegium Japan are usually received with almost
unanimous enthusiasm. And indeed they are impressive in various
respects. Masaaki Suzuki can count on his singers in the solo
parts. They are all excellent and have a good understanding
of the style and the content of Bach's cantatas. They also participate
in the tutti sections, bringing the total of 12. This small
size and the transparency of sound guarantees that the text
of the tutti is clearly understandable. The playing of the ensemble
is impeccable and the obbligato parts are well executed.
That said, I don't join the chorus of staunch admirers of Suzuki's
approach. It is just too smooth, too nice, too polished. I sorely
miss the sharp edges. The texts of many cantatas contain passages
which are not meant to go down that well with the audience.
That doesn't come off sharply enough in Suzuki's performances.
The pictorial elements in Bach's music are also not fully explored.
The opening of the Cantata 88 is a good example: the depicting
of the waves in the strings in the first section isn't eloquent
enough, and the horns in the second part don't have enough presence.
The impression of smoothness is also created by the too small
dynamic accents. That is the case in the hunting scene from
Cantata 88, but also in the opening Sinfonia from Cantata 146.
This should have had stronger dynamic accents, and a better
exposition of the rhythm. Some tempi should have been swifter,
in particular the duet 'Wie will ich mich freuen' from the same
cantata. On the whole Cantata 43 comes off best, although Gerd
Türk's low notes are too weak in his aria 'Ja tausend mal
tausend begleiten den Wagen'.
Even so, there is much to enjoy here. Most singers are well-known
quantities and are regulars in Suzuki's recordings. Robin Blaze,
Gerd Türk and Peter Kooy all bring fine performances of
their solo parts. I can't remember whether I have heard Rachel
Nicholls before, but certainly not in Bach. I am delighted to
say that her contributions are very good. Her pronunciation
and diction are immaculate, and she communicates the content
of her recitatives and arias very well.
Admirers of the project of the Bach Collegium Japan will not
be disappointed about this volume. They won't - and shouldn't
- hesitate to purchase this disc. I suspect most of them already
have. It seems unlikely that these performances will make sceptics
change their mind, though.
Johan van Veen
http://www.musica-dei-donum.org
https://twitter.com/johanvanveen
Reviews
of the Bach cantata project on BIS
Masterwork Index: Bach's
cantatas
Rachel Nicholls (soprano), Robin Blaze (alto), Gerd Türk (tenor),
Peter Kooy (bass) 
[75:48] 
