Search - Johann Sebastian Bach, Ton Koopman, Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir :: J.S. Bach: Cantatas, Vol. 1

Erato Now Gone, Let's Begin Again with Koopman's Cantatas

terse (and to the point) reviews | Arkansas, USA | 01/17/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Anyone interested in these cantatas has likely discovered that they had been begun under the Erato label in the early 90's and were discontinued after volume 12, disconcerting some. Ton Koopman, unabashed, obtained his own label, continuing the series (which is planned to finish at volume 22), even returning to the early volumes in re-issues under the new Challenge Classics covering. This volume is the first re-issue and parallels the new releases in the series.



A side note for those who want only the sacred cantatas: volumes 4 & 5 are composed entirely of the secular cantatas.



The tempi have been slowed slightly from the original Erato releases, but, have no fear, Koopman knows what he is doing. "Ich hatte viel Bekummernis" alone is worth the money, and Kai Wessel's counter-tenor is a treat throughout. Reformed Protestant theology, the counterpoint of Bach, and the wonder of the Baroque era, all contribute to a series to which the initiate will turn often for pleasure."

Sam the Bach nut.

Samuel S. Murray | Saugus, CA | 07/09/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Sam the Bach nut says that the Koopman collection is the best of the sets of all the cantatas."