Rondeau's reissue of
Karl-Friedrich Beringer's 1994 recording of the B minor Mass is a welcome release. The recording has many elements that make it a standout performance.
Beringer's adherence to authentic performance practice makes for a reading notable for its clarity, transparency, and light touch, but one that never lacks gravity. One of the things that makes this performance exceptional is the use of a youth choir, the
Windsbacher Knabenchor, rather than a standard choir entirely made up of mature voices. The combination of the purity and straight tone of the trebles with the fresh sound of the young men taking the tenor and bass parts makes for a clean, attractive choral blend. The young singers, rigorously trained in the tradition of German youth choirs, are more than up to the daunting technical demands of Bach's contrapuntally complex writing, and they perform fearlessly. The Crucifixus, in particular, is a model of secure and focused choral singing. There is some disconnect between the youthfulness of the chorus and the maturity of the soloists.
Beringer employs only one soprano soloist, rather than the traditional two, apportioning the three solo women's parts between a soprano and an alto. The result is a preponderance of movements with
Ingeborg Danz's very secure, but weighty alto, which in contrast to the choir sounds inappropriately matronly, where in a more traditional performance with five soloists and an adult choir she would sound marvelous. With tenor
Markus Schäfer and baritone
Thomas Quasthoff, the contrast is less pronounced because of the freshness and unmannered quality of their singing and the athleticism of
Quasthoff's voice. Rondeau's sound is well balanced and clear, with an appropriate amount of resonance.