For me, the best reason for a complete Bach Cantata cycle is the opportunity
to own and enjoy Bach's rarely performed and recorded sacred choral works.
With Volume 13, Suzuki gives us an entire disc of the infrequently recorded
cantatas.  The contents are BWV 64, 25, 69a, 77, and 50 which is a fragment.

I am using Koopman's series on Erato for each comparison, with Andrew
Parrott on EMI added for the BWV 50 fragment.  The catalog number of
Suzuki's new disc is 1041.

BWV 64, 25, 69a, and 77 were written in 1723 during Bach's first year
in Leipzig as Cantor of St. Thomas.  Starting with BWV 64, this cantata
was composed for the 3rd day of Christmas, and the first two movements
correspond in text to the Christmas season.  Matters change greatly
thereafter as the text concerns giving up the fleeting rewards of the world
for God and heaven.  The vocal soloists in BWV 64 are soprano Yukari
Nonoshita, alto Robin Blaze, and bass Peter Kooij.

BWV 64 opens with a powerful chorus.  There's nothing joyous about it
either.  Its pervasive quality is a current of concern and distress - not
bleak music, but far from festive.  Suzuki gives the slower performance,
and it's very powerful and inevitable; he has matters tightly controlled
and is even elegant compared to Koopman.  For his part, Koopman is wild in
the sense that the distress is causing panic and it is escalating as the
movement progresses.  This is a hard choice to make.  It's like choosing
between a classic woman of elegance and a wild woman with danger on her
mind; I'll take both.  They are each great performances.

A short chorale, a recitative for alto, and another short chorale follow.
The first chorale is stately with a subtle majesty, the recitative begins
the theme of rejection of this world, and without pause, the second chorale
enters with a heroism of irresistable proportion.  This chorale is magical
in impact.  Both Suzuki and Koopman are superb, but Suzuki's Robin Blaze
can not match the blend of beauty and depth in the voice of Koopman's Bogna
Bartosz; I have heard Bartosz with Koopman before and consider her a major
discovery.

The next movement is a soprano aria, and Koopman has the incomparable
Dorothea Roschmann.  However, various factors combine to lessen the quality
of the performance.  This aria has strong uplifting qualities, and Koopman
is rather slow and heavy.  Add in Roschmann's very deep voice, and the
result is a reading which never takes flight.  Switch to Suzuki and we get
a finely paced reading of quicker tempo with Nonoshita providing a young
and innocent allure which has excellent lift to it.  Her voice is
definitely not as good as Roschmann's, but her match with Suzuki's
interpretation is perfect.

A bass recitative, alto aria, and chorale conclude the cantata.  Aside
from preferring Klaus Mertens to Peter Kooij, both versions are equally
outstanding.  The aria has a great bounce to it, and both conductors well
convey it.  I was very impressed with Robin Blaze who, this time, is the
equal of Bogna Bartosz and that's a high compliment.  The chorale gives the
final kiss-off to the significance of this world with the best line in the
cantata - "Fare thee well, thou empty shell".

BWV 64 is wonderful music, and both Suzuki and Koopman are very rewarding.
I have to go with Suzuki primarily because of the soprano aria.  He and
Nonoshita are outstanding; Koopman drags the aria down.

BWV 25 was written in August 1723.  It begins in darkness and ends in
light.  Mankind is darkness; Jesus and Heaven are the light.  Suzuki's
vocal soloists are Nonoshita, Kooij, and tenor Gerd Turk.

The opening chorus, a double fugue, gets to the dark heart of the matter
- " There is no health in my body because of your threats and there is
no peace in my bones because of my sins".  The music has a seamless and
inexorable quality with subtle intensity provided by the brass that's a joy
to listen to.  Suzuki's tempo is a little slower than Koopman's, and it
pays dividends; the inexorable effect is appreciably stronger.

Three continuo movements follow in the form of a tenor recitative, bass
aria, and soprano recitative.  The tenor gives us a litany of terrible
results of living in the world, but in a relatively mild manner.  The text
begins with a knock-out punch, at least in the Suzuki translation -"The
whole world is but a hospital".  I love that phrase.  Gerd Turk is the
tenor in both versions; his voice is richer with Suzuki, but just as
effective with Koopman.  The music in the bass aria starts to display
some lifting of the human spirit as the Bass questions where he will find
salvation, then answers his own question, "Jesus".  I prefer Koopman in
this aria; the continuo playing has more impact and Klaus Mertens has a
more positive attitude than Peter Kooij.  The soprano offers her soul and
mind to Jesus in her recitative.

Next is a soprano aria with the phrase "I will sing with the angels".
It's a very uplifting aria in text and music.  Looking for an angel?
Nonoshita is a fine candidate; as in her aria in BWV 64, she sings like
an angel with beautifully blended support from Suzuki.  They are simply on
the same wavelength, and I'm there with them.  Koopman's Lisa Larsson has
a technically better voice than Nonoshita, but it isn't an angel's and her
connection with Koopman isn't strong.

The concluding Chorale is a tribute to God, both in mortal life and
thereafter.  Koopman and Suzuki are excellent in paying tribute.

Once again I prefer the Suzuki performance, and as in BWV 64, the clincher
is the soprano aria.  The combination of an uplifiting aria, Suzuki, and
Nonoshita is something Koopman can not equal.

Given all the fine comments I've been making about Nonoshita and Suzuki, I
regretfully have to report that she's replaced in the last two cantatas by
Yoshie Hida who, based on the photographs, is younger than Nonoshita.  I do
hope she does as well.

BWV 69a was also composed in August 1723 and has the routine themes
involving tribute to God; frankly, I find the text rather boring and
shopworn.  The music is another story.  The opening Chorus is highly
celebratory and rousing, but Koopman is demure at times probably to provide
greater contrast.  Although very enjoyable, I prefer Suzuki's greater
consistency of celebration.

Next is a soprano recitative and tenor aria.  Hida, who replaces Nonoshita,
sings fairly well but is much less attractive than Koopman's Ruth Ziesak.
The tenor aria is joyous music which Koopman's Paul Agnew conveys
excellently with a very attractive voice.  Suzuki's Makoto Sakurada is
quite a let-down after Agnew - tonal beauty is lower as is joyous
expression.

A relatively long alto recitative precedes the bass aria.  The recitative
is a lovely one with fine singing by Suzuki's Kirsten Sollek-Avella.
Koopman's Elisabeth Von Magnus is rather dour in comparison.  I listened to
Koopman's bass aria first and found it quite heavy, although Klaus Mertens
performs excellently.  Suzuki has a quicker pace and better bounce, but
Kooij doesn't have Merten's voice.

The last movement, a Chorale, expresses the satisfaction of giving
oneself completely to God and does so beautifully.  As usual, both Suzuki
and Koopman provide outstanding choral work.  I have to rate the two
performances of BWV 69a fairly equal in quality, and I did miss Yukari
Nonoshita.

BWV 77 is another August 1723 cantata.  It deals with the difficulties and
rewards of completly giving onself to God.  The opening chorus is joyous
and robust music of intensity.  As usual with the choruses, Suzuki is
slower than Koopman to good advantage.  Koopman sounds rushed in comparison
to Suzuki's noble reading.

Koopman's Klaus Mertens is excellent in the bass aria, and Koopman and
Dorothea Roschmann are very poignant and lovely in the soprano aria.
Suzuki and Yoshie Hida provide those same qualities and add an uplifting
and outgoing element which is largely absent from Koopman's interpretation.

Next is a tenor recitative and an aria for alto.  I can't muster up much
enthusiasm for Suzuki's tenor Makoto Sakurada, but Suzuki himself provides
a rich and beautiful ending to the recitative.  The aria is lovely and sad
because the Alto knows she has "imperfections" and inabilities which may
make her unworthy of God's love.  Suzuki's Kirsten Sollek-Avella displays
great tenderness and an envious degree of sadness; Suzuki interprets
wonderfully.  Koopman's recitative has the advantage of Jorg Durmuller
who is in much better voice than Sakurada.  In the aria, Koopman is much
quicker than Suzuki, and that's not good.  There's little sadness in the
interpretation, and I don't think it gets to the heart of the Alto's
feelings.  Elisabeth von Magnus sings very well, but it's an uphill
struggle with Koopman's interpretation.

The concluding Chorale is masterful music which flows richly.  I prefer
the greater weight Koopman applies, but Suzuki's version isn't far behind.
Overall, I prefer Suzuki in BWV 77, and it's largely due to his much better
performances of the two arias.

The BWV 50 choral fragment *might* have been written in Bach's first year
at Leipzig.  This is powerful and exhilarating music with a text telling
us that this is the time for fruition of all we have hoped and sacrificed
for.  Suzuki and Koopman are both very good.  Andrew Parrott employs the
one-voice-per-part approach to good effect; power is lower but depth of
emotion is greater.

Suzuki's Volume 13 is one of his best to date.  His chorus is excellent,
orchestral support is very enjoyable, and the solo vocal work is better
than in any previous issue in the cycle.  Most important, Suzuki has a
great grasp of Bach's music, and he excels in the arias.  I do want to
emphasize that my rather consistent preference for Suzuki over Koopman
just applies to the recordings reviewed in this posting.

Don's Conclusion: Collectors of the Suzuki series should be very pleased
with Volume 13 and consider it an essential acquisition.  For others, the
disc represents a great way to become familiar with outstanding music which
is infrequently recorded.

Don Satz
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