Johann Sebastian BACH (1685-1750)
Köthener Trauermusik (Cöthen funeral music), BWV 244a (1729)
[73.53]
Funeral Music for Prince Leopold of Anhalt-Cöthen
(Reconstructed by Morgan Jourdain in collaboration with Raphaël
Pichon)
Sabine Devieilhe (soprano), Damien Guillon (counter-tenor), Thomas Hobbs
(tenor), Christian Immler (bass)
Ensemble Pygmalion/Raphaël Pichon
rec. 2014, Chapelle Royal, Versailles, France
Full German texts with translations in French and English
HARMONIA MUNDI HMC902211 [73.53]
This review follows on from two substantial evaluations from
my colleagues, and I refer you to their fulsome descriptions and
background to the Cöthen funeral music. The completeness of these
reviews means that any further elaboration would amount to little more than
subtly adapted plagiarism. Having read these reports and being a massive fan
of J.S. Bach I was keen to get in on the act however, and this exhilarating
recording proved my instincts correct from the start.
This is the kind of work which, with its well-researched history and
scholarly reconstruction, offers something ‘new’ or at the very least ‘more
of’ for us souls who hold the Matthäus-Passion and other
substantial choral masterpieces close to our hearts. There will always be an
element of the speculative mashup in such a venture, but with the quality of
music and musicianship here who cares. The arguments outlined in the booklet
notes are convincing enough, and the likelihood that a hard-pressed
craftsman such as Bach would have recycled his musical material is more
likely than not.
Context is a strong factor in how one perceives or appreciates music, but
magically beautiful pieces such as the aria Erhalte mich will stand
out wherever you place them. The natural feel of the performances and the
sequence of arias and recitatives with their contrasting instrumental
accompaniments flows as does water through a tree-lined brook. Raphaël
Pichon’s fairly urgent tempi are at times more the delivery of the concert
hall than what I imagine would be respectfully funeral church performance,
but there is real repose in such numbers as the sparely instrumented aria
Mit Freuden sei die Welt verlassen, and there is no sense that we
are being hustled through the service with undue haste.
The large acoustic of the Chapelle Royal is as much a member of the
performing crew as any individual, but there is plenty of nicely captured
detail in the sound, the harpsichord continuo adding just enough sparkle but
not overly exposed, the choir a finely honed entity rather than a collection
of individuals, the soloists all very good indeed. This release is a genuine
J.S. Bach delight from beginning to end, and I wholeheartedly commend it to
any collector of and enthusiast for the old master’s vocal music.
Dominy Clements
Previous reviews: Michael Cookson and John Quinn
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