Johann Sebastian BACH
St. Matthew Passion arr. Mendelssohn
Wilfried Jochens (tenor), Peter Lika (bass), Angela Kazimierczuk (soprano),
Alison Browner (Alto) Markus Schaefer (tenor) and Franz-Joseph Selig,
(bass).
Chorus Musicus and Das Neue Orchester - Christoph Spering
OPUS111 OPS 2022-23 [132.25] recorded digitally in
1993
Crotchet
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UK
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USA
(now mid-price)
We now have the opportunity to purchase a recording of Mendelssohn's arrangement
of J. S. Bach's St. Matthew Passion. This OPUS111 recording is apparently
the first time this arrangement has been made available to the collector
and it is a strange experience listening to it.
Mendelssohn actually did relatively little to the work itself apart from
deleting about a third of it, plus, by rephrasing certain parts particularly
the chorales and significantly shortening the Evangelist's texts, he made
it much more immediate and strengthened up the plot. To some, this shortening
may be something of a bonus as it allows us to hear the significant portions
of the work with a must reduced investment in listening time.
Christoph Spering has made a very good attempt on this shortened masterpiece,
and has not only taken Mendelssohn's reworking, but has also used contemporaneous
numbers of players and singers. He has also used instruments similar to those
used at the first version in 1829, and its final re-working in 1841. It was
this work which started the renaissance in the appreciation of the choral
works of J. S. Bach, the 1829 performance being the first since the death
of the composer in 1750. To the specialist collector therefore, this issue
is of major importance as it gives the opportunity to hear the recreation
of a work which was instrumental in us re-discovering Bach's major choral
works.
The soloists are extremely good, particularly the Evangelist of Peter Lika
who brings the story closer to our consciousness with admirable support from
the others. The chorus and orchestra are similarly expert, and the whole
is rounded off with a very lifelike recording quality.
This 1993 re-issue, now released at mid-price should appeal to all collectors
who love the St. Matthew Passion. The issue has also very comprehensive notes
with multi-lingual translations, together with copious detail on the variations
between Bach's original creation, and Mendelssohn's modifications. In spite
of the extent of the detail in the documents, there is one serious omission
- the location of the recording - there is no information about the location
apart from an untitled photograph of the artists at work in a concert, to
judge from the dress. The only problem with the photograph is that there
is no choir, so it looks as though the photo was taken at another venue -
sloppy production work by OPUS111. On my copy, one of the discs was labelled
incorrectly - Matthew Passion by Khandoshkin!
Reviewer
John Phillips
