Bach: St. John Passion / The Scholars Baroque Ensemble- 2CD

Bach: St. John Passion / The Scholars Baroque Ensemble

Christopher G. Forbes

5.0 out of 5 stars Bach as He Should Be Done!
Reviewed in the United States on April 6, 2004
Of Bach's two surviving passion settings, the St. John Passion is the one that tends to be treated as an also-ran. It lives in the shadow of its larger and more famous sibling, the St. Matthew Passion. This is quite a shame, because the St. John Passion has charms that are every bit as wonderful as any in the other score. And, clocking in at just less than two hours, the dramatic passing of this Passion setting is perhaps greater than the other work.
Traditionally sung on Good Friday, when the Passion story according to St. John is required in the liturgy, this work follows the form that had become standard by the 18th century. The story of the Passion was sung by an evangelist soloist, with the words of the characters and crowd were taken by other members of the ensemble. Early in German settings of the Passion consisted of just this bare skeleton, but by Bach's time, the settings were fleshed out with meditative arias and duets sung by soloists, and with hymns for choral forces, and possibly even for congregational singing. This is the pattern Bach inherited, and he did nothing innovative with the form. Bach's genius in this work is not in innovation, but in the perfection of its details. From the driving counterpoint of the opening chorus, to the beautiful meditations after the descent from the cross, this is a work of supreme spirituality and deep emotion.
There are many excellent versions of this work on CD, but none can beat this Naxos CD for quality at an excellent price point. The work is performed by the Scholars Baroque Ensemble. This group is small in numbers and performs the work in an historically informed performance. The eight member choir doubles as soloists as well, as would be most likely in Bach's own time. The orchestra is of similar small dimensions. But what the work looses is overwhelming sound it more than makes up for in clarity, transparency and emotion. I for one, think the jury is no longer out on HIP of Bach. I still have old recordings of Bach with casts of thousands, that I certainly love dearly, but the HIP performances are vastly superior now to my ears. The vocal style and transparency of instrumentation point out what a marvelous orchestrator Bach really was, something that gets lost with the large ensembles of the past.
The hallmark of the Scholars Baroque Ensemble is that they are conductorless, as an ensemble of Bach's time would be. Performances are coordinated by one of the members, but all members are free to work together in a chamber music fashion. This serves the music very well. The quiet moments are possessed of an intimacy that I've rarely heard in this work, and even the larger sections seem to gain power. The pacing of the group is outstanding. It would be fascinating to hear the work live to see if they can duplicate this extremely difficult feat in performance. But on CD it is certainly impressive and makes for a wonderful experience of this most eloquent of Bach's sacred works.



Tracks:
CD 1
- 1e deel:
1. Herr, unser Herrscher
2. Jesus ging mit seinen Jüngern
3. O große Lieb', o Lieb' ohn' alle Maße
4. Auf daß das Wort erfüllet würde
5. Dein Will' gescheh', Herr Gott
6. Die Schar aber und der Oberhauptmann
7. Von den Stricken meiner Sünden
8. Simon Petrus aber folgete Jesu nach
9. Ich folge dir gleichfalls mit freudigen Schritten
10. Derselbige Jünger war dem Hohenpriester bekannt
11. Wer hat dich so geschlagen
12. Und Hannas sandte ihn gebunden
13. Ach, mein Sinn, wo willst du endlich hin
14. Petrus der nicht denkt zurück
CD 2
- 2e Deel:
1. Christus, der uns selig macht
2. Da führeten sie Jesum von Kaiphas
3. Ach großer König, groß zu allen Zeiten
4. Da sprach Pilatus zu ihm: "So bist du dennoch ein König?
5. Betrachte meine Seel
6. Erwäge wie sein blutgefärbter Rücken
7. Und die Kiregsknechte flochten eine Krone
8. Durch dein Gefängnis, Gottes Sohn
9. Die Jüden aber schrieen
10. Eilt, ihr angefochtnen Seelen
11. Allda kreuzigten sie ihn
12. In meines Herzens Grunde
13. Die Kriegsknechte aber, da sie Jesum
14. Er nahm alles wohl in acht
15. Und von Stund' an nahm sie der Jünger zu sich
16. Es ist vollbracht!
17. Und neiget das Haupt und verschied
18. Mein teurer Heiland
19. Und siehe da, der Vorhang in Tempel zerriß
20. Mein Herz, indem die ganze Welt
21. Zerfließe, mein Herze
22. Die Jüden aber, dieweil es der Rüsttag war
23. O hilf Christe Gottes Sohn
24. Darnach bat Pilatum Joseph von Arimathia
25. Ruht wohl ihr heiligen Gebeine
26. Ach Herr laß dein lieb Engelein