Search - Bach J S, Munchinger, Stuttgart Chamber Orch :: Bach J S: Orchestral Suites No 1 - 4

Great music, great performances, great value

Johannes Climacus | Beverly, Massachusetts | 02/11/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In his day, Karl Münchinger was a formidable interpreter of Baroque music. Though that day is now long past, these delightful performances of Bach's evergreen Orchestral Suites deserve continued exposure. What Decca Eloquence has given us in this economical single-CD reissue are analog recordings from 1968, lovingly remastered (indeed, the sound is spectacularly clear and spacious), not Münchinger's later digital renditions of the Suites. The earlier set is superior on every count. The playing is warmer and, with one or two exceptions, conveys greater vitality. Despite the smooth phrasing produced by modern techniques and instruments, and tempos that are not as snappy as we would expect from PPP ensembles, the 1968 recordings are imbued with a spirit of the dance, whereas the 1985 versions are limp and listless.



Münchinger was a pioneer in performing Baroque music with small enembles with reasonably correct ornamentation. In this recording of the Suites, textures are not too ample and there is some attempt at supplying ornamentation, at cadences and elsewhere, even when unmarked. Some listeners might find the absence of "over-dotting" in the Ouvertures problematic. The over-dotting convention was well accepted by early-music ensembles and chamber orchestras even the 1960's (Harnoncourt's roughly contemporaneous version overdots with a vengeance); so Münchinger's decision to play the score as written seems puzzling, even if doing so imparts a certain majesty to the spacious opening sections of the ouvertures. if you don't care for jerkily hyperactive French ouvertures, then Münchinger is your man.



Münchinger unquestionably secures superb playing from his crack ensemble. The flautist in No. 2 is fetchingly nimble (especially in the celebrated Badinerie) and the high trumpet playing in nos. 3 & 4 is secure of pitch and firm of tone. The oboes and bassoon in no. 1 chatter engagingly. Münchinger avoids monotony by subtly varying repeats in the dance movements (though he could have done more in this regard).



Münchinger's overall approach is rather serious and "Germanic," though by no means square or rigid (as Karl Richter could be in this repertoire). There is some attempt at bonhomie but no frivolity. The famous Air from no. 3 is given sufficient room to breathe, so that its contemplative qualities tend to mask the restless inner parts. The result is undeniably beautiful, and by no means too sentimental, though I'm not sure it's what Bach had in mind. There are questionable interpretive decisions elsewhere, particularly in no. 4, where the Ouverture's fugal section stubbornly refuses to laugh (Bach later saw the suitability of this music for setting the text, "Unser Mund sei voll Lachens," in Cantata BWV 110), and some of the dance movements remain earthbound, due to some inordinately slow tempos.



In the end, however, there is far more to enjoy than to quibble about in this splendid one-CD edition of the Orchestral Suites. These are both warmly communicative and intellectually satisfying interpretations, and I would not hesitate to commend them to budget-conscious listeners or to those who enjoy a trip down memory lane. It is unlikely that anything like Münchinger's conception of Bach will be revived in our lifetime, so here is your chance to indulge an aesthetically ennobling, if musicologically incorrect, taste.



Please note, however, that Marriner's first traversal of the Suites with ASMF (from an Argo recording) is also on one CD and is still available. It, too, is vividly recorded, while Marriner offers more energetic and stylistically aware interpretations. If you incline toward a still more "traditional" approach to Bach, I cannot recommend too highly Klemperer's classic monaural recordings of the Suites. Belying his reputation, perhaps, Klemperer is consistently livelier, as well as more insightful, than Münchinger, and he secures stunning solo and ensemble playing by the Phlharmonia in its early prime."

A Most Definitive Interpretation...

Alan W. Craft | De Soto County, MS | 04/21/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"...of the Master's suites! I once had these on a two-disc set, but they were destroyed by fire. Imagine my delight in its rediscovery, this time technologically advanced upon one disc. The aethereal passages within will forbode, delight, inspire and enchant! Whilst listening, do keep in mind that "Baroque" and "ornamentation" are terms redundant, and savor those very brief moments when the strains, as I describe them, "leave the Earth!"

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