The Netherland Bach society - St. Matthew passion

[Tangband]

I cant think of a better performance than this - Marvelous sound and performance . What do you think ?

 

[Keith_W]

I have this on SACD. It came in a lovely flock lined box. I think I have 5-6 complete performances of St Matthews Passion ... which IMO is the greatest choral work ever written.

Better performance - Klemperer (controversial choice, I know), and Niklaus Harnoncourt. Both have inferior sound quality. The SQ of the Harnoncourt is not bad, but it's not clean and modern either. I am also quite taken by the new recording by Rudolf Lutz / JS Bach-Stiftung. THAT is a reference quality recording, with an excellent performance to boot. IMO it easily beats the Netherlands Bach Society.

 

[AdamG]

I cant think of a better performance than this - Marvelous sound and performance . What do you think ?

Beautiful performances. Also available on Apple Music Hi-Res Lossless.

Also available on Tidal in 24-BIT 192KHZ FLAC

The Netherlands Bach Society - Bach: St. Matthew Passion, BWV 244

Listen to Bach: St. Matthew Passion, BWV 244 on TIDAL

tidal.com

 

[Shorty]

All of Bach​

All of Bach is a project of the Netherlands Bach Society with the aim to perform and record all of Bach's works and share them online with the world for free. With the finest recordings, performed at special locations and with great attention to image and sound. Don't want to miss a recording of All of Bach? Then subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you would like to help us complete All of Bach, please consider a donation.

All of Bach – Bach

www.bachvereniging.nl

 

[Rednaxela]

Tim Mead is just incredible.

 

[Rednaxela]

Without wanting to compare the two, I remember enjoying this performance a lot too.

 

[Rednaxela]

From the Concertgebouworkest performance:

Love this aria and especially the way Gijsbertsen sings it here.

 

[Curvature]

This is my favorite.

 

[Rednaxela]

An incredible performance indeed.

Do you like it better than Mead’s version?

 

[AdamG]

This is my favorite.

That is incredibly beautiful and detailed. Soothing and serene. Just what I needed this morning.

 

[Rednaxela]

One other highlight for me is Komm, süsses Kreuz.

While browsing YT for interpretations I stumbled upon this wonderful discussion of the viola da gamba part.

Some of the sections can go a bit unnoticed because of the singing so it’s nice to hear them played in isolation.

Among the interpretations I watched last night I particularly loved this one. What a beautiful voice.

 

[Nitreb]

Heard the Van Veldhoven version a few weeks ago, great interpretation and excellent sound.

 

[Curvature]

An incredible performance indeed.

Do you like it better than Mead’s version?

If you meant that question for me, yes, I like it better. Definitely my favorite of the recordings I've heard.

 

[MickeyBoy]

I cant think of a better performance than this - Marvelous sound and performance . What do you think ?

Thanks for starting this thread. Here is a link to a not-too-long discussion of the Matthew Passion, originally sung for Good-Friday Vespers: https://brightmorningstar.org/saint-matthew-passion/

I would like to point out an historic performance by the Bruno-Kittel-Chor and the Berliner Phil from August-September 1942, just as the German war effort started to appear lost and prayers from the German people gained in intensity. The highpoint for me is the evangelist, the tenor Walther Ludwig. He follows all the conventions yet manages to bring a remarkable height of spiritual intensity. For all the worth of HIP performances, there is still a warm place for 19th c. German performance practice. Gerhardt Musikvertrieb (now out of business?) published a two-CD version JGCD 0053-2 in 2004. The Internet Archive has a few snippets of choral pieces.

 

[MickeyBoy]

I cant think of a better performance than this - Marvelous sound and performance . What do you think ?

How about the Saint John Passion by the same forces? Plus a theological intro to the piece:

Bach's St. John's Passion, A Quick-Start Guide - Wolfmueller

Bach’s St. John’s Passion is a musical setting of John 18-19 (with two verses from Matthew inserted), interspersed with chorales (Lutheran Hymns) and original arias (original poetic reflections). It is absolutely...

wolfmueller.co

 

[MarnixM]

I stick to the "old" John Eliot Gardiner.

Bach, J S: St Matthew Passion, BWV244

Bach, J S: St Matthew Passion, BWV244. DG Archiv: 4276482. Buy download online. Anthony Rolfe Johnson, Andreas Schmidt, Barbara Bonney, Michael Chance, Cornelius Hauptman The English Baroque Soloists, The Monteverdi Choir, The London Oratory Junior Choir, John Eliot Gardiner

www.prestomusic.com