Bach, J S: St John Passion, BWV245
Sigiswald Kuijken (direction & violin, gamba, viola d’amore), Christoph Genz (Evangelist/tenor arias), Jens Hamann (Jesus/baritone arias), Gerlinde Samann (soprano), Petra Noskaiová (mezzo)
La Petite Bande, Sigiswald Kuijken
This 'choir' provides heartfelt congregational ardour in chorales, the hysterical ferocity of a crowd thirsting for blood, and objective commentary as onlookers in the opening and closing choruses....
Bach, J S: St John Passion, BWV245
Sigiswald Kuijken (direction & violin, gamba, viola d’amore), Christoph Genz (Evangelist/tenor arias), Jens Hamann (Jesus/baritone arias), Gerlinde Samann (soprano), Petra Noskaiová (mezzo)
La Petite Bande, Sigiswald Kuijken
Purchase product
This 'choir' provides heartfelt congregational ardour in chorales, the hysterical ferocity of a crowd thirsting for blood, and objective commentary as onlookers in the opening and closing choruses....
About
This new Hybrid SACD recording of JS Bach’s St John’s Passion has been produced by one of the great early music partnerships of recent times, the vocal and orchestral ensemble La Petite Band and its artistic director Sigiswald Kuijken. As with their previous recordings of the composer’s Mass in B Minor (CC72316) and St Matthew Passion (CC72357), the approach to the score is based on recent scholarship, and the music is performed with a small number of soloists and instrumentalists.
La Petite Bande was founded in 1972 by Sigiswald Kuijken, and although it was not meant to become a permanent orchestra, the success of several recordings by the group under the direction of Gustav Leonhardt was such that it began to give concerts regularly. All its members are internationally renowned early music specialists.
During J.S. Bach’s lifetime there were four different performances of his St. John’s Passion. Each of these took place with modifications. Some were in response to the circumstances at the time, others influenced by which musicians and instruments Bach had at his disposal at a particular time. This new recording is a version based on research by one of the leading experts in the composer’s work, the eminent Dutch musical director and early music specialist Sigiswald Kuijken.
Contents and tracklist
- La Petite Bande, Sigiswald Kuijken, Jens Hamann, Christoph Genz, Petra Noskaiova, Gerlinde Sämann, Knut Schoch, Walter Testolin
- La Petite Bande, Sigiswald Kuijken, Christoph Genz, Walter Testolin, Jens Hamann, Gerlinde Sämann, Petra Noskaiová, Marie Kuijken, Patricia Handt, Knut Schoch
Awards and reviews
September 2012
This 'choir' provides heartfelt congregational ardour in chorales, the hysterical ferocity of a crowd thirsting for blood, and objective commentary as onlookers in the opening and closing choruses. They characterise splendidly...Christoph Genz is an outstanding Evangelist, his natural speech-rhythm carrying forward this most dramatic - operatic - of Bach's works.
September 2012
The distinctiveness of Kuijken's Johannine vision in this recent glut of recordings lies in the patient attention to rhetorical detail and the refinement of its evolution...there is no doubting the validity of this almost theological approach, where the narrative drama is effectively consumed by the underlying message.
July/August 2012
Genz takes the tenor arias and ariosos, as did Bach's own soloist: the ambiguity of the Evangelist's role is essential to preserving the special nature of the Passion settings, which are no operas manques with clearly allocated roles...listeners seeking a more contemplative view of the work will find this recording probably the most satisfying yet - and listeners seeking a version with one voice per part should on no account hesitate.
July 2012
the crowd scenes have bite and ample venom...The obbligato playing is expert throughout...I don’t think that Kuijken puts a foot wrong; he seems to pace everything unerringly and his long experience of performing Bach pays dividends as the Passion drama unfolds.
