Stephen Midgley
5.0 out of 5 stars B minor Mass of outstanding musicianship
Reviewed in the United Kingdom
on June 27, 2022René Jacobs has recorded the B minor Mass before ; however, as one of the leading early music directors of our times a new recording under Jacobs of any significant work, whether familiar or obscure, is always worthy of attention. And so it proves here, aided by the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, RIAS Kammerchor and an excellent team of vocal soloists. These latter are soprano Robin Johannsen, mezzo Marie-Claude Chappuis, alto Helena Rasker, tenor Sebastian Kohlhepp and bass-baritone Christian Immler.
In the context of the seemingly endless one-voice/multi-voice-per-part controversy in early music, Jacobs clarifies his own choice of approach in the accompanying notes, citing in his support both the work of the distinguished mid-20th-century scholar Wilhelm Ehmann and the centuries-old writings of Michael Praetorius: namely for the choral movements to be sung variously by two levels of choir, one a full or ‘ripieno’ choir - in this case of about six voices per part - and the other a smaller ‘concertino’ choir of three voices per part. Depending on the character and function of the passage or movement, the choral music is sung by one or both of these groups. The result is an agreeable variety of scale and texture that successfully moderates the weight of the larger choral movements - which, in the case of more traditional performances, can become overwhelming and even oppressive at times.
The opening Kyrie offers a good demonstration of Jacobs’ choral approach with a lively, well-paced movement of genuine cumulative power but at the same time with clear textures allowing the instrumental parts to shine through the choral lines. The following ‘Christe eleison’ duet introduces us to one of the great assets of this recording, namely the very high standard of solo vocal work; here, Robin Johannsen and Marie-Claude Chappuis deliver a really beautiful and expressive rendition of this lovely movement. Similar comments apply to all the solo and duet items throughout, including a ‘Domine Deus’ soprano-tenor duet graced by beautiful flute accompaniment; a lovely ‘Qui sedes’ from Helena Rasker’s alto; an ‘Et in unum Dominum’ duet beautifully rendered by soprano and alto; a very successful ‘Quoniam tu solus sanctus’ from baritone Christian Immler, triumphing over its eccentric scoring with excellent horn accompaniment; a wonderful duet between tenor and flute in the ‘Benedictus’; and again a lovely ‘Agnus Dei’ from Helena Rasker.
Returning to the choral movements, the Gloria is again taken at an ideal tempo, joyful but not rushed, and is followed by an ‘et in terra pax’ section taken slower than is usual in historically informed performances, but here sounding just right and building up to a fine climax. I particularly appreciate the initially understated ‘Credo’, gently paced and delivered by concertino choir, and later on the delicacy of the ‘Confiteor’ section. The only choral movement I find hard to take is the exceptionally rapid ‘Sanctus’; however, Jacobs’ lilting, dance-like tempo does make sense in this movement’s triple-time rhythm. The choir sections, both concertino and ripieno, sing beautifully throughout with clear, steady voices, and the mid-sized Berlin period instrument band also do an excellent and stylish job.
To pick a single, ‘best’ recording of the B minor Mass would be virtually impossible. In addition to formidable competition from the likes of Gardiner, Christie, Herreweghe, Stephan MacLeod, Robert Layton’s Choir of Trinity College Cambridge and many others, my own personal favourites include the Dresdner Frauenkirche recording with modern instruments under Matthias Grünert, and the wonderful period performance, issued in 2009 and reissued in 2015, by La Petite Bande directed by Sigiswald Kuijken. I also still have a strong attachment to Harnoncourt's 1968 recording with the Vienna Boys' Choir and Concentus Musicus Wien. The Grünert recording, at the time of writing, is available via streaming services, and on CD from amazon.com as well as amazon.fr, amazon.de and other European mail order sources. But to return to the present Jacobs recording, I have found this a most interesting and enjoyable version of the Mass. Its best features, for me, are the outstanding solo vocal and instrumental contributions, well-balanced textures, variety of pace, and overall coherence and conviction.