For Martin Luther,
the making of music and the writing
of poetry were vehicles for the praises
of God. Thus, the creation of hymns
for the congregations and the composition
of more florid music for the edification
and education of same were of paramount
importance to him. Luther regarded the
musical portions of a church service
to be second only to the sermon in order
of significance. It was this bent toward
music that gave rise to the wealth of
German church music; a direct result
and byproduct of Luther’s reformation.
This musical expression
reached its apex in the person of Johann
Sebastian Bach and his vast output of
church cantatas, just over two hundred
of which remain extant. Strangely, these
were some of the last of his works to
gain recognition as the great works
of art that they are. With the exception
of the "occasional" cantatas
- works for birthdays, town events,
etc - Bach’s cantatas have a direct
tie-in with Scripture. They were composed
to coincide with the Sundays for which
specific verses were used. Those texts
that are not direct biblical quotes
are poetic exhortations, elaborations
or commentaries on the biblical texts.
The works presented
in this disc cover a broad span of Bach’s
career, beginning with his time in Weimar
all the way through to late in his Leipzig
years. There is an alternation between
aria and recitative, and in typical
Bach fashion, the music is most descriptive
of the texts. The vocal writing requires
considerable virtuosity.
What utter joy it is
to hear this music sung by a true female
alto instead of one of the barrage of
under-skilled and over-rated counter-tenors
that litter the current playing field.
Vergnügte Ruh, beliebte Seelenlust,
is a tour de force of vocal requirements,
from the astoundingly beautiful and
lyrical opening aria to the rather florid
closing. Widerstehe doch der Sünde,
is another dramatic work, quite
serious in nature with a demanding opening
aria. The closing aria, with its sin
and hell subject matter is brutally
low in vocal range, a tactic oft used
by Bach to depict such dark material.
Gott soll allein
mein Herze haben is particularly
interesting as it makes use of music
from a lost concerto that was not only
to be resurrected here, but also in
the Concerto for Harpsichord in E major,
BWV 1053. The program closes with two
arias from cantatas not otherwise designated
for solo voice.
Marianne Beate Kielland
has a rich voice, filled with deep amber
and cobalt hues that evoke the mental
image of the colors in fine stained
glass. She has an exceptional command
of her entire range, and in particular,
sings her lowest register with conviction
and beauty of tone. There is no evidence
that she is struggling with the low
tessitura that might be the bane of
lesser singers. She sings with pristine
enunciation and spot-on intonation.
Her attention to the nuance of the texts
makes for immediately engaging listening.
Hers is a soothing, motherly voice that
has instant appeal.
She is ably accompanied
by the Cologne Chamber Orchestra, a
period-sensitive modern instrument ensemble
that plays with great sensitivity and
aplomb. I must confess that I rather
enjoyed the richer tone produced by
modern strings.
Naxos as usual has
produced a fine sounding recording with
good and informative notes, but must
be chastised for the inexcusable omission
of texts and translations. Come now,
being on a budget is all fine and good,
but there can be no justification for
producing a program of such text-dependent
music without including said texts!
Except for that glaring
issue, this is first rate music-making
and well deserving of your attention.
Kevin Sutton
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Marianne Beate Kielland (alto) 
