Search - Johann Sebastian Bach, Reinhard Goebel, Christine Schafer :: Christine Schafer Bach - Wedding Cantatas / Musica Antiqua Koln / Reinhard Goebel

Sorry Schäfer...

D. Gammelgard | Falun, Sweden | 12/18/1999

(2 out of 5 stars)

"This is how it is. Christine Schäfer should not sing early music. Bach is not her thing (neither is Mozart by the way). There is a huge contrast between the oustanding ensemble and the actual solo artist of the record. Her constant and sometimes hysteric vibrato is not really appropriate and she has no sense of phrasing. Christine Schäfer is a great singer but she should focus more on romantic music and leave the earlier works to those who understands how to perform it."

Not to my taste!

Izolda | North Haven, CT United States | 03/05/2000

(2 out of 5 stars)

"I do not know Schaefer's other Bach recordings (mostly with Rilling), but this disc does not encourage me to further explorations. I was enchanted with her Schumann recital for Hyperion and her small contribution to the Hyperion Schubert Edition was also quite memorable, but Bach is a different matter. I can agree with the reviewer from Israel that this is Bach for experienced listeners, but I am afraid that it is not this kind of listeners that Deutsche Grammophon had in mind while preparing this release. It seems to be designed as a wedding present, a small, symbolic wedding present that anybody can afford. I won't comment on the silly pictures inside, but happily the juicy green cover hides a little more than that and an attentive listener/reader can find a decent essay by Goebel himself. As to the music as performed by Schaefer, I totally agree with the reviewer from Sweden - this music is not suited for this singer. I listened to this disc many times, trying to convince myself that I am probably missing something, that if I listen more carefuly, I will find everything that makes an unforgettable intepretation. I did not find much, though in some of the recitativi there was a lot to enjoy in her clear and simple narration. But her singing is too earthbound! It lacks gentleness and the voice itself seems to me too strong, to "operatic". To sum up - do not buy this disc as a wedding present only because it was designed and advertised as such. There are many recordings of these cantatas, maybe not as effectively packaged, but with more approachable and lovable interpretations (try Emma Kirkby). If you want to buy it for yourself, listen to the audio-samples first. This is Bach's singing not to everybody's taste!"

Bach is alive and well in this lively recording!

Ivan A. Velasquez | Los Angeles, CA USA | 12/08/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"What a delight it has been to listen to this recording after fortuitously seeing part of its contents cleverly and imaginatively made into a short video shown in the Classic Arts Showcase cable network. The clip is only the aria Sich üben im Lieben, from the Kantata BWV202. Bach was German, the lyrics are in German, and Musica Antiqua Köln plays in original instruments from the epoque. The result is a perfect diction of the work, both, lyrically speaking by Christine Schäfer, and musically speaking by Musica Antiqua Köln. I was first introduced to BWV202 by Karl Richter and Maria Stader, which was the standard for this work in my mind. At first I thought Reinhard Goebel had accelerated the tempo a little bit, but this is Bach, a man so busy that it would take a full time transcriber to hand write his known musical work 78 years by today's standards! So, yes, perhaps his tempo deserves to be a little fast. Music lovers end up with several versions of the same works, it helps us to keep out of frames, to be open, and, what worth would it be if new works were only copies of a previous one? So, if you are new to these works, or to Bach Kantaten at all, go and buy this recording. It's a great introduction, and this will be your standard to measure all other versions. I happily foresee a continued collaboration between Christine Schäfer and Reinhard Goebel, I am only hoping they will put out more Bach Kantaten soon. Also, I found nothing wrong with the package, it's very informative, and the lyrics are printed in French, German and English, so you can sing along with your mind's voice. Its lime color made it very easy to find at the record store, as well as in my CD library, though it has not spent much time there... Thanks."