MusicWeb International One of the most grown-up review sites around 2024
60,000 reviews
... and still writing ...

Search MusicWeb Here Acte Prealable Polish CDs
 

Presto Music CD retailer
 
Founder: Len Mullenger                                    Editor in Chief:John Quinn             


REVIEW

Some items
to consider

new MWI
Current reviews

old MWI
pre-2023 reviews

paid for
advertisements

Acte Prealable Polish recordings

Forgotten Recordings
Forgotten Recordings
All Forgotten Records Reviews

TROUBADISC
Troubadisc Weinberg- TROCD01450

All Troubadisc reviews


FOGHORN Classics

Alexandra-Quartet
Brahms String Quartets

All Foghorn Reviews


All HDTT reviews


Songs to Harp from
the Old and New World


all Nimbus reviews



all tudor reviews


Follow us on Twitter


Editorial Board
MusicWeb International
Founding Editor
   
Rob Barnett
Editor in Chief
John Quinn
Contributing Editor
Ralph Moore
Webmaster
   David Barker
Postmaster
Jonathan Woolf
MusicWeb Founder
   Len Mullenger

alternatively
CD: AmazonUK AmazonUS
Download: Classicsonline


Heinrich SCHÜTZ (1585-1672)
Lukas-Passion, SWV 480 (1666) [52:41]
Johann Linderoth (tenor), Evangelist; Jacob Bloch Jespersen (bass baritone), Jesus
Ars Nova Copenhagen/Paul Hillier
rec. 10-11 April 2007, St Paul's Church, Copenhagen, Denmark DDD
DACAPO 8.226019 [52:41]

Experience Classicsonline


It's hard to listen to, think about, understand the (Baroque) passion without reference to the two extant examples by Bach. But we must: the Luke Passion by Schütz (1585 - 1672, from the generation before Bach, and completed less than 20 years before Bach's birth) is very different from the latter's St Matthew (BWV 244) and St John (BWV 245) Passions. To appreciate Schütz's conception of the form we really need to set aside all preconceptions about the sound of such music. After all, it was an established 'genre' long before Bach.Though we must remember the liturgical and musical purposes of the genre: the practice of narrating the events immediately before the crucifixion of Christ dates from at least the fourth century CE. It was a thousand more years before essentially 'through-composed' passions became a popular way of treating the story. Schütz' Luke Passion is in this - also known as the motet passion - tradition.

Writing for the Dresden court at the time, Schütz's Luke Passion respects the practice there of silencing instruments during Holy Week. That may be the first surprise on listening to this CD… no instruments. Just two soloists and the dozen-strong Ars Nova Copenhagen choir, half of whom also take minor solo roles - Poul Emborg (tenor) the Petrus for example.The Evangelist is persuasively sung by Johann Linderoth (tenor) in a kind of chant close to the rhythms and intonations of speech. Unlike Bach's, this Passion tightly focuses all our attention on the story rather than on embellished reflection. There is commentary in the Schütz work; but it's much more limited: very short ensembles at the start and end. The rest is all from the Gospel itself.This has the effect not so much of neutralising the impact as might be expected; but of heightening it. When Pilate finally utters in response to the goading: "Ich finde keine Ursache an diesem Menschen" (I can find no fault with this man), it has tremendous effect. Nor is this due to our knowing how well Schütz did write richer textures… his Sieben Worte unsers lieben Erlösers (SWV 478) is in the very same vein, for example. It's because the tension has been built up from the opening of the work by carefully-articulated, precisely-phrased and elegantly-formed singing.Similarly, the fact that roles are assigned to performers, who sing them in character, confers  drama on our experience. It's nothing like Bach, though; while associating character with singer, there is little interaction as such. Schütz also uses distinctions of tessitura and dominant reciting note to indicate character.

To overlay further focus on the unfolding of the story, Hillier and his soloists have insisted on heightened attention to every syllable. One can imagine the impact of the Luke Passion as akin to a barely-furnished stage with single spotlights on a minimum of plainly-dressed singers, grouped together - as opposed to a relaxed string quartet, fully lit and spreading to occupy an indeterminate space.This also has the effect of throwing those few brief moments when the presence of others (the disciples, the crowd) is heard into even greater relief: for a moment there is a change in atmosphere. A brief interjection reminds us of the import of the rest of the narrative. As a result there is rarely a moment to relax. Everyone is concentrating fully on the events. Hillier and his performers have achieved - and maintain - this hothouse atmosphere extremely well.However familiar Schütz' contemporary audiences - or we - may be with the story, the development and pressure never let up. Emotion comes from within, and does not need to be imposed by otherwise unnecessary singing style. Not that Linderoth or Jacob Bloch Jespersen (bass baritone, Jesus), are in any way flat or lacklustre. Their rounded and persistently-pointed articulation and attachment to such restricted melody is necessary. They are more than up to the attention which their every syllable, sound and sentence draw. In other words, they really make (and not break) this performance and recording.

Lasting well under an hour, this CD is nicely presented with a useful introductory essay and the text in German and English. The acoustic is immediate, vibrant and appropriately resonant. So set aside preconceptions and listen to Schütz' direct, honest, calm and altogether tidily persuasive Passion.

Mark Sealey


 


Advertising on
Musicweb


Donate and keep us afloat

 

New Releases

Naxos Classical
All Naxos reviews

Hyperion recordings
All Hyperion reviews

Foghorn recordings
All Foghorn reviews

Troubadisc recordings
All Troubadisc reviews



all Bridge reviews


all cpo reviews

Divine Art recordings
Click to see New Releases
Get 10% off using code musicweb10
All Divine Art reviews


All Eloquence reviews

Lyrita recordings
All Lyrita Reviews

 

Wyastone New Releases
Obtain 10% discount

Subscribe to our free weekly review listing

 

 


EXPLORE MUSICWEB INTERNATIONAL

Making a Donation to MusicWeb

Writing CD reviews for MWI

About MWI
Who we are, where we have come from and how we do it.

Site Map

How to find a review

How to find articles on MusicWeb
Listed in date order

Review Indexes
   By Label
      Select a label and all reviews are listed in Catalogue order
   By Masterwork
            Links from composer names (eg Sibelius) are to resource pages with links to the review indexes for the individual works as well as other resources.

Themed Review pages

Jazz reviews

 

Discographies
   Composer
      Composer surveys
   National
      Unique to MusicWeb -
a comprehensive listing of all LP and CD recordings of given works
.
Prepared by Michael Herman

The Collector’s Guide to Gramophone Company Record Labels 1898 - 1925
Howard Friedman

Book Reviews

Complete Books
We have a number of out of print complete books on-line

Interviews
With Composers, Conductors, Singers, Instumentalists and others
Includes those on the Seen and Heard site

Nostalgia

Nostalgia CD reviews

Records Of The Year
Each reviewer is given the opportunity to select the best of the releases

Monthly Best Buys
Recordings of the Month and Bargains of the Month

Comment
Arthur Butterworth Writes

An occasional column

Phil Scowcroft's Garlands
British Light Music articles

Classical blogs
A listing of Classical Music Blogs external to MusicWeb International

Reviewers Logs
What they have been listening to for pleasure

Announcements

 

Community
Bulletin Board

Give your opinions or seek answers

Reviewers
Past and present

Helpers invited!

Resources
How Did I Miss That?

Currently suspended but there are a lot there with sound clips


Composer Resources

British Composers

British Light Music Composers

Other composers

Film Music (Archive)
Film Music on the Web (Closed in December 2006)

Programme Notes
For concert organizers

External sites
British Music Society
The BBC Proms
Orchestra Sites
Recording Companies & Retailers
Online Music
Agents & Marketing
Publishers
Other links
Newsgroups
Web News sites etc

PotPourri
A pot-pourri of articles

MW Listening Room
MW Office

Advice to Windows Vista users  
Questionnaire    
Site History  
What they say about us
What we say about us!
Where to get help on the Internet
CD orders By Special Request
Graphics archive
Currency Converter
Dictionary
Magazines
Newsfeed  
Web Ring
Translation Service

Rules for potential reviewers :-)
Do Not Go Here!
April Fools




Return to Review Index

Untitled Document


Reviews from previous months
Join the mailing list and receive a hyperlinked weekly update on the discs reviewed. details
We welcome feedback on our reviews. Please use the Bulletin Board
Please paste in the first line of your comments the URL of the review to which you refer.