Bach's Mass in B-Minor & Mattheus Passion
Jul 22, 2007 at 2:39 AM Thread Starter Post #1 of 15
Agent Kang

Agent Kang

500+ Head-Fier
Joined
Oct 10, 2006
Posts
739
Likes
13
Hi,

Please share your favorite recordings of these wonderful works by Bach. I currently have;

Mass in B minor: Scherchen/VSO(1959) and Fasolis(1997)
Mattheus Passion: Herreweghe(1984) and Somary/ECO(1977)

I'm in the process of broadening my collection of these works and some helpful advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks. Happy listening.
 
Jul 22, 2007 at 2:44 AM Post #2 of 15
A lot of people don't like it, but I find Paul McCreesh/Gabriel Players St. Matthew to be a fun recording. The accents are wild and the tempo is the fastest I've heard.

Cantus Cölln is generally the reference for diction and performance.
 
Jul 22, 2007 at 3:22 AM Post #3 of 15
Quote:

Originally Posted by Assorted /img/forum/go_quote.gif
A lot of people don't like it, but I find Paul McCreesh/Gabriel Players St. Matthew to be a fun recording. The accents are wild and the tempo is the fastest I've heard.

Cantus Cölln is generally the reference for diction and performance.


I almost really like McCreesh's Matthäus-Passion, but I don't so much like the way he handles the entrance of the soprano "O Lamm Gottes" in the opening chorus ("Kommt, ihr Töchter"). To my mind, Gardiner and Peter Schreier (Philips '85) nail this part perfectly. It's probably silly to make such a big deal over a secondary part in the opening chorus, but that moment is - for me - one of the most beautiful in the whole of Western music. Of the four I have, I'd rank them Gardiner, McCreesh, Schreier, and Klemperer in that order. Gardiner and Schreier steer two different sides of the middle course, being neither as extreme in the HIP direction as McCreesh nor as Romanticized as Klemperer. I would not, though, want to be without any of those versions for various reasons. Klemperer, for example, has my favorite reading of "O Mensch, bewein dein Sunde groß." For whatever reason, I find the HIP versions a bit too chipper for the subject matter.

In any event: it's Bach, you should have as many favorite versions as possible.
 
Jul 23, 2007 at 1:13 PM Post #6 of 15
Quote:

Originally Posted by Assorted /img/forum/go_quote.gif
A lot of people don't like it, but I find Paul McCreesh/Gabriel Players St. Matthew to be a fun recording. The accents are wild and the tempo is the fastest I've heard.

Cantus Cölln is generally the reference for diction and performance.


I second that - the McCreesh recording is 1st class and isn't afraid to be different.

And as an added bonus, the recording sounds superb on good headphones.
lambda.gif
 
Jul 23, 2007 at 7:02 PM Post #7 of 15
Quote:

Originally Posted by lwd /img/forum/go_quote.gif
I second that - the McCreesh recording is 1st class and isn't afraid to be different.

And as an added bonus, the recording sounds superb on good headphones.
lambda.gif



Totally agree with you. Everytime I hear a review about this recording that states something like "must we be confined to period performance" is like an atheist talking about religion. They aren't forcing you to listen; they're following a scholarly proposal of what music might've sounded back then.

Except for the organ replacing every children's part. But like McCreesh said, children nowadays aren't as good as what they used to be "back then". It would be nice to find a recording with a good performance of the children choir.
 
Jul 23, 2007 at 10:05 PM Post #8 of 15
I would definitely get an original instrument version of Mass in B Minor to go with your older Scherchen version, have not heard Fasolis.......the Gardiner/Archiv is very fine sound and performance and very reasonable used, for little more money you can also get Herreweghe/HM used.

I have not heard the McCreesh's St Matthew, but I really like his Handel Messiah

Caveat......I do not collect many masses so I must defer to others expertise here
 
Jul 24, 2007 at 5:32 AM Post #10 of 15
Quote:

Originally Posted by wower /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Do these pieces have harpsichord? (It's just a personal preference.) I need to pick up some more Bach.


They have either organ or harpsichord, or a combination. Most (mostly Romantic interpretations) in both passions use the basso harpsichord continuo, while some period performances use the organ as the sole continuo. It even covers the children's chorus in the Matthew passion.

I absolutely love McCreesh' Messiah recordings too. Except for the lovely duets like "O death" I prefer the more moderate version by Pinnock-English Concert.
 
Jul 24, 2007 at 7:24 AM Post #13 of 15
Jul 24, 2007 at 5:58 PM Post #15 of 15
Quote:

Originally Posted by Advil /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Didn't Neville Marriner do Mass in B minor? With Academy of St. Martin In the Fields?

I believe thats the version i have. It's wonderful!


I don't have their recording but I assume it's great, I find their performance the most articulate with modern instruments.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 2 (members: 0, guests: 2)
Back
Top