Dorothee Mields, Johannette Zomer, Patrick van Goethem, Jan Kobow, Peter Kooij, Cappella Amsterdam, Orchestra of the 18th Century, Frans Brüggen - Bach: Mass in B minor, BWV232 (2010)

Tracklist

CD1
01. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Kyrie eleison (Chorus)
02. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Duet: Christe eleison (Soprano 1, Soprano 2)
03. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Kyrie eleison (Chorus)
04. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Gloria in excelsis Deo (Chorus)
05. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Et in terra pax (Chorus)
06. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Aria: Laudamus te (Soprano 2)
07. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Gratias agimus tibi (Chorus)
08. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Domine Deus (Soprano 1, Tenor)
09. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Qui tollis peccata mundi (Chorus)
10. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Aria: Qui sedes ad dextram Patris (Alto)
11. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Aria: Quoniam tu solus Sanctus (Bass)
12. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Cum Sancto Spiritu (Chorus)

CD2
01. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Credo in unum Deum (Chorus)
02. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Credo in unum Deum, Patrem omnipotentem (Chorus)
03. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Duet: Et in unum Dominum (Soprano 1, Alto)
04. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Et incarnatus est (Chorus)
05. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Crucifixus (Chorus)
06. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Et resurrexit (Chorus)
07. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Aria: Et in Spiritum Sanctum Dominum (Bass)
08. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Confiteor unum baptisma (Chorus)
09. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Et expecto resurrectionem mortuorum (Chorus)
10. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Sanctus (Chorus)
11. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Osanna in excerlsis (Chorus)
12. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Aria: Benedictus (Tenor)
13. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Osanna in excerlsis (Chorus da capo)
14. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Aria: Agnus Dei (Alto)
15. Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Dona nobis pacem (Chorus)



Recorded in March 2009, this is a magical, mystical, and altogether magnificent performance of Bach's B minor Mass. Twenty years after their first appearance in Warsaw performing this work, Frans Brüggen and the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century have returned to it, and the sense of occasion and affection is palpable. With sopranos Dorothee Mields and Johannette Zomer, alto Patrick van Goethem, tenor Jan Kobow, and bass Peter Kooij, and with the Cappella Amsterdam choir, Brüggen delivers a truly great B minor Mass. One could take his performance apart, pointing to his deft handling of the work's color, textural, emotional contrasts, and discussing his lines' clarity, his harmonies' lucidity, and his forms' balances. But as with any great art, Brüggen's B minor Mass is far more than the sum of its parts, and any technical discussions would fall far short of describing the performances' many and manifold glories. Suffice it to say that his account is both deeply human and highly spiritual, and anyone who loves the work should hear it. Recorded live in Warsaw's Lutoslawski Radio Studio, the digital sound is big, bold, direct, and very, very vivid. For some listeners, it may be too vivid, but others may find the immediacy bracing and exciting.

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