Johann Sebastian Bach composed hundreds of chorale settings for chorus.
About half of them are associated with chorales from his larger choral
works such as the Cantatas and Passions; the remainder are just independent
entities.  Also, Bach never grouped them into a 'book' or other
identifiable collection.  That hasn't stopped others from grouping them
together, and Helmut Rilling in connection with his Hanssler cycle of the
complete Bach works has done just that based on the liturgical year.  As
part of his cycle, Rilling has devoted a few discs to these choral pieces.
The two I am reviewing are:

Hanssler 92.081
Ein Choralbuch - German Mass
Gachinger Kantorei & Bach-Collegium Stuttgart
Gerhard Gnann, Organ Soloist
Helmuth Rilling, Director
TT 70:33

Hanssler 92.085(2 discs)
Ein Choralbuch - Trust in God, Cross, and Consolation
Justification and Penance
Dying, Death, and Eternity
In the Evening
Gachinger Kantorei & Bach-Collegium Stuttgart
Gerhard Gnann, Organ Soloist
Sibylla Rubens, Soprano
Ingeborg Danz, Alto
James Taylor and Christoph Pregardien, Tenors
Andreas Schmidt, Bass
Helmuth Rilling, Director
TT 2:19:43

Before getting into the actual performances, you might be wondering why
there's vocal soloists and an organ soloist on the programs.  On both
issues, Gnann performs organ chorale preludes which are interspersed among
the vocal chorales.  Then on the 2-cd set, Rilling also adds some of Bach's
sacred songs which call for vocal soloists.

Now to the performances.  The choral music is lovely although I don't
consider Rilling's chorus better than most others I've heard.  The main
problem with the chorale settings is that, with little exception, the
tempos are similar (slow) and the decibel level of the chorus is moderately
loud.  This repetition of tempo and loudness can get tiresome.  Also all
the singing is highly legato and of similar style.

The inclusion of sacred songs for soloists certainly enhances the
diversity of the 2-cd set, and the soloists are each excellent; I'm
particularly taken with Sibylla Rubens and the tenors.  But there's a
repetitive problem here as well which gets compounded with the choral
pieces.  These sacred songs tend to be of one style - warm and lyrical
ballads of rounded contours.  These rounded contours get added to the
rounded contours of the choral pieces.

Is anyone going to break through this cycle of monotony and lift the
recordings to a recommended level? Yes - Gerhard Gnann.  Mr.  Gnann is
another of the Hanssler 'muscular' organists enlisted by Hanssler to
present Bach's organ works for its complete edition.  They are quite a
group - Gnann, Marcon, Bryndorf, Zerer, and Lucker.  Each one keys on
strong projection and thrust whenever possible.  They also seem to know
just the right organs for their approach.  Each is also highly angular, and
some listeners would likely find them on the 'hard' or even 'harsh' side.

Harsh or not, Gerhard Gnann is just the remedy needed.  He brings the
angularity, vitality, and brashness which do not exist in the songs or
chorale settings.  Diversity becomes a reality.

One other consideration is that all these pieces bear little relationship
to one another.  We get a series of short works, and it's probably best to
listen to these recordings in short doses.

Don's Conclusions:  The contributions of Gerhard Gnann make the recordings
worthy of purchase.  They are not essential except perhaps for those who do
want the chorale settings available in a 'book' type form.  As for me, I'm
keeping my copies although I don't anticipate dipping into them often.

Don Satz
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