Robin Blaze reviews
Bach: St Matthew Passion
Masaaki Suzuki brings to the St Matthew Passion the same devotional intensity that has characterised his Bach cantata recordings. This focus is immediately evident in the opening chorus/chorale, which he imbues with compelling power despite opting to use relatively small vocal and orchestral forces throughout. It is evident, too, in Bach Collegium Japan’s impeccable performances, which bespeak a score explored in meticulous detail and with profound affection.
Purcell: Dido and Aeneas
With a cast of singers such as the one chosen by René Jacobs for his new recording of Purcell’s opera Dido and Aeneas it would be hard to imagine anything short of a triumph. Nor, in the event, was I disappointed, though opinions will surely differ over the solution offered by Jacobs for the end of Act II. It has long been thought that music for a concluding scene of the act has been lost.