It's a safe bet that very few listeners will buy just one volume of a series of the
Bach cantatas. Whether it's the
Helmuth Rilling, the
Masaaki Suzuki, or the
John Eliot Gardiner in single discs; the
Gustav Leonhardt and
Nikolaus Harnoncourt in double-disc sets; or the
Ton Koopman in triple-disc sets, once a listener determines which series of cantatas they're going to support, that'll be it for the foreseeable future. Because, after all, who aside from the extremely dedicated has the time for more than one cycle of
Bach's 200-plus cantatas? Given that this is the most significant body of sacred choral work composed after the Renaissance, the decision is, of course, crucial, and, given that there are good reasons for choosing one series over another, the decision is, of course, difficult.
Rilling's admirably devotional cycle is compromised by not always being all that well performed.
Suzuki's superbly performed cycle is compromised by being perhaps not expressive enough.
Gardiner's lovingly expressive cycle is compromised by being perhaps too individualistic for some tastes.
Leonhardt's deeply spiritual cycle is compromised by being mixed with the
Harnoncourt's profoundly superficial cycle. Arguably the best choice is the
Koopman cycle. It has all the advantages of the other cycles, but few of the drawbacks. As this, the ninth volume, demonstrates,
Koopman's performances are devotional and superbly played, lovingly expressive, and appropriately individualistic, profoundly spiritual but not at all superficial. Best of all,
Koopman's cycle is wonderfully musical. While
Bach's cantatas were intended to be the musical equivalent of sermons,
Koopman never loses sight of the beauty of the music in his quest to express the meaning of the texts. The result is a series of the
Bach cantatas one can live with, a not inconsiderable merit in a series of 200-plus works.