It took far too long for me to acquire volume 10 of the Suzuki/Bach cantata
series on BIS, but the wait was well worth it.  The three cantatas on the
disc, BWV 105, 179, and 186, were composed By Bach in his first year at
Leipzig.  BWV 105 is one of my favorite cantatas - two outstanding arias
framed by beautiful choral pieces.  BWV 186 is one of Bach's better works,
although # 179 is a little less stirring.

I think that Suzuki and his Bach Collegium Japan really hit their stride
with this volume.  The orchestral contributions are sterling with great
pacing and dramatic unfolding.  Recorded sound is close to perfect.

My only reservation, one that seems to be consistent in this series,
concerns the vocal soloists:  Miah Persson (soprano), Robin Blaze (alto),
Makoto Sakurada (tenor), and Peter Kooij (bass).  Each one is acceptable
with Kooij substantially better than the others who just did not display
vocal beauty in abundance.  They did not detract from the performances
however.

Overall, those who have been collecting the Suzuki volumes will be very
pleased with volume 10 - I was.  I don't think that anyone has directed
these cantatas better than Suzuki.  An upgrading of the vocal soloists
would easily place this disc in the must-buy category.  As it is, Volume
10 is very worthy of purchase.

Don Satz
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