Vox Luminis, with their director, Lionel Meunier, are rapidly becoming a leading period music ensemble. They have an impressive résumé of recordings attracting attention for their intrinsic sense of style, authentic sound and ability to make the music come to life in new and exciting ways. This new release is no exception; “Kantaten” focuses on the Bach family, carefully curating the development of the “Geistliche Konzert” (church concert) by composers all related to Johann Sebastian Bach by family ties.
As with some of their previous recordings, Vox Luminis show an affinity to German composers (previous albums included composers such as Buxtehude, Schütz and Keiser), bringing listeners new interpretations of unfamiliar and intriguing repertoire. Much of the music on this album shows the influence of Venetian composers in bringing a sense theatricality to the puritan nature of the Lutheran church.
The instrumental ensemble accompanying the choir uses one-to-a-part. The playing throughout is exquisite, beaming with color and flawlessly executed. The choir, of modest proportions, creates a cultured sound with clear, natural diction. Each voice is perfectly balanced and blending with ease, yet still allowing every vocal line to have its own clarity and sense of purpose. And indeed, one can distinguish individual members from the choir and his or her contribution and sense of authority.
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The strength of this choir comes from the singer’s ability to act both as choristers and as soloists, as is aptly demonstrated in Johann Michael Bach’s “Herr, der König freuet sich” (track 4). Their director ensures the instrumental and vocal lines are phrased with the same unity, resulting in music which breaths naturally.
The works are not placed in chronological order, but in one that makes sense musically, creating a diversified listening experience. The opening track, for instance, begins with a quote from the choral chorale “O haupt voll blut und wunden”, so often used by Johann Sebastian, making the listener appreciate the historical context of combining these family of composers. There are naturalness, spontaneity and freshness in every piece, most significantly conveyed in Johann Christoph Bach’s “Herr, wende dich und sei mir gnädig” (track 5), in which the sense of drama is theatricality intensified.
Intriguing Directness
The penultimate work is left to the most famous composer of the family, with a complete performance of Johann Sebastian’s Cantata, “Christ lag in Todesbaden” (BWV. 4, tracks 6-13). There is an intriguing directness to this performance, almost rawness. The closing chorale has an endearing reverence, something not always present elsewhere in the album. This would have made for a reflective ending. Meunier, however, returns with Johann Christian’s “Es erhub sich ein Streit”, scored for six-part strings, four trumpets, timpani and two five-part choirs and continuo, augmented with a bassoon adding an earthy, reedy sound. Despite the scoring, this recording doesn’t separate the choirs sufficiently to get the full sense of antiphony, but what one does get is the most radiant sounds of heaven, which more than compensates.
The acoustic of the Notre Dame church in Gedinne, Belgium is captured well; whilst atmospheric, it’s also unintrusive. The solo and choral sessions are handled sensitively and the balance between voices and instruments is excellent. The booklet is extremely detailed and Includes, besides the mandatory texts and background information of each piece, the names of all the musicians participating in each track.
This is not the first attempt at placing Bach’s relatives on a single album — Cantus Cölln & Concerto Palatino under Konrad Junghänel and Musica Antiqua Köln under Reinhard Goebel with Magdalena Kožená, have both comparative albums with different repertoire. But this release is a must for anyone with a curiosity about the Bach dynasty and their role in developing the Lutheran church music. Some pieces may be considered ‘specialist interest’, but Vox Luminis’ performance ensures this music is accessible and engaging, with an infectious vibrancy.
“Kantaten” – Cantatas By Composers Of The Bach family
Vol Luminis
Lionel Meunier – Conductor
Ricercar, CD RIC 401
Vox Luminis: Further Listening
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