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Fanfare Magazine: 36:5 (05-06/2013)
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The Prelude and Fugue in E Minor forms a frame, as it did in Bach’s time, around this program, designed to fit the liturgical format that gave Bach’s music its purpose; the Fantasia precedes the motet on which it is based and follows Cantata BWV 64, which quotes the fifth stanza of Johann Franck’s poem “Jesu, meine Freude.” The recording was made in the Arnstadt church where Bach served from 1703 to 1707 (the 1699 organ has recently been restored), but the two cantatas and the motet date from his first year in Leipzig. This impressive presentation, the first in a series called Bach in Context, is a hardbound book of 84 pages. The notes favor Joshua Rifkin’s understanding of one voice to a part in Bach’s vocal/choral music, the use of a harpsichord as well as the church organ (not the more versatile chest organ), and the liturgical context in which the music was originally sung.
The Gesualdo Consort of Amsterdam consists of five singers, the bass Harry van der Kamp being the artistic director. Musica Amphion is a period-instrument ensemble of 16 players, the keyboard player Pieter-Jan Belder being the artistic director along with the first violinist Rémy Baudet. The singers and players capture the spirit of Bach’s church service exquisitely, a task that is made easier by the unified program built around Franck’s poem. If anything is missing, it would be the choral conclusion of each of the major works, which lack weight in these renditions. Bach must have expected the congregation to join in on the familiar chorales. For buyers who appreciate deluxe merchandise, the premium price is not unreasonable, and it makes a more impressive gift than an ordinary CD. The close-up photo of the Arnstadt organ is stunning. “Elegant” is the word for this production, equally worthy to give or to keep.
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