In 2020 Pygmalion and Raphaël Pichon released an excellent album of Bach’s motets, which interestingly included three motets by other composers. This provided an illuminating context through which to appreciate Bach’s music. This new release ventures into a far more competitive field, even within Harmonia Mundi’s own catalogue.
The ensemble’s playing and singing is faultless. In my review of their motets album, I admired the exceptional balances, superb intonation, clear articulation, and dynamic shading. Those same qualities are also present here, though there is a lack of bass weight to the sound that is not an issue of engineering, but the conductor’s aesthetic. Pichon’s sound seems built from top to bottom, whereas Gardiner, Herreweghe and Harnoncourt seem to build from the bottom up. Pichon’s choice undeniably contributes to great transparency and a nimble athleticism throughout the music’s contrapuntal writing, but the lack of weight often undermines the emotional affect.
For example, Pygmalion’s collective virtuosity in “Sind Blitze, sind Donner” (CD 1, track 27) is incredibly accurate, wonderfully shaped, and transparent. Yet it feels emotionally distant compared to other readings. Is such buoyancy and technical control appropriate when the words are “Open your fiery pit, O Hell, Wreck, Ruin, Engulf, Shatter.”? Gardiner, in his second (live) reading on SDG, pushes the tempo more than Pichon and even the normally unflappable Monteverdi Choir seems close to going off the rails. But isn’t that what the text demands? In Harnoncourt’s final recording (Teldec/Warner Classics) the tempo is slower than Pichon and Gardiner, but the weight of his (admittedly large) choir adds to the sense of horror. This lack of weight in the choral sound negatively impacts the many crowd scenes in the second part.
Julian Prégardien’s Evangelist is stunning, an articulate telling of the story that fully immerses the listener into action. Stéphane Degout’s Jesus is also highly accomplished, though his approach has an element of objectivity not heard in either of Suzuki’s two recordings (Peter Kooji/Suzuki 1 & Christian Immler/Suzuki 2), or Gardiner’s second recording (Stephan Loges). The difference may well be in how the singer perceives Christ position in the story – as God or man? Degout suggests Jesus as God, but the more convincing interpretations portray Christ as human.
Related Posts
- Review: Bach – St. Matthew Passion – Bach Collegium Japan – Suzuki (2020)
- Review: Bach St. Matthäus Passion – René Jacobs
- Review: Bach – St. Matthew Passion – Bachorchester and Choir Mainz – Ralf Otto
The soprano solos, performed by two of this generation’s finest singers (Hana Blažiková and Sabine Devieilhe) are incredibly accomplished and emotionally satisfying. Devieilhe’ “Aus Liebe will mein Heiland sterben,” deeply touching and fragile, though Carolyn Sampson’s performance (Suzuki 2) has a purity of tone that is finer still. And despite the beauty of Lucile Richardot’s “Erbarme dich” (CD2, track 10), Bernarda Fink finds a much deeper emotion in her performance with Harnoncourt.
It is notable that the second recordings of both Herreweghe and Suzuki reveal a more overt intensity and sense of emotional involvement than their first efforts. The music is complicated on so many levels, and one of the most difficult aspects of interpretation is finding the right balance between drama and contemplation, action versus stillness. Pichon’s reading is like the first recordings of Herreweghe and Suzuki, focused more on contemplation. There is, of course, nothing wrong with such an approach. Indeed, the Matthew Passion is considered the more contemplative of Bach’s two. Yet it is fascinating that two of the most experienced Bach conductors adopted a more extrovert and dramatic approach in their second recordings.
Harmonia Mundi’s ancillary materials are absolutely first rate, and the liner notes offer a thoroughly engaging and perceptive discussion with Pichon and Prégardien. The recording, made in the Salle Pierre Boulez, Philharmonie de Paris in April 2021, is clear with a wide and deep soundstage.
Bach – Matthäus Passion
Julian Prégardien- Evangelist
Soloists
Maîtrise de Radio France
Ensemble Pygmalion
Raphaël Picon – Conductor
Harmonia Mundi, CD HMM90269193
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