Rheinische Kantorei, Das Kleine Konzert & Hermann Max - Franz Tunder: Concerti (2004)

Although his name might not rate very highly on the recognition meter even of classical music buffs, Franz Tunder was a consequential entity in the early history of the German Baroque. Tunder served as organist at the Marienkirche in Lübeck from 1641 to his death in 1667, and during that time instituted the Abendmusiken, the first series of public concerts to take place in Germany. Seventeen vocal "concertos" exist from Tunder's pen and they were created for these special events; little more than half of them appear on this generous and well-performed CPO disc, Franz Tunder: Concerti.

Conductor Hermann Max leads Das Kleine Konzert and the singing group Rheinische Kantorei in 10 concerti, which uses a variety of singers in frontline combinations. Tunder must have had some good basses in his chorus, as they have most of the hardest music in the Concerti, and five of these ten works are sung by bass or basses alone. Both men used here, Ekkehard Abele and Yoshitaka Ogasawara, do an excellent job. The string parts are crisp and do not dawdle, and Max never allows the music to get too grandiose, wisely keeping it within the boundaries of the chamber idiom to which it belongs. The music is never ornately busy and has a relaxed, soothing effect.

If one is already fond of the vocal music of Johann Rosenmüller or Dietrich Buxtehude, then Franz Tunder: Concerti will be of immediate appeal. The opportunities to imbibe at Tunder's particular spring are unfortunately quite limited, and the performances here are completely satisfactory. Therefore, if the interest is there, one should not let this one get away. -- Dave Lewis