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Helmuth Rilling - J.S. Bach: Complete Works [172 CD Box Set] (2010) [Part 1] MP3
MP3 320 Kbps | Classical | 12.2 Gb
Contains CDs:
MP3 320 Kbps | Classical | 12.2 Gb
Contains CDs:
Vol. 01 – Cantatas nr. 01 (4CDs)
CD 1
1. Kantate BWV 1 „Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern“ 22:55
2. Kantate BWV 2 „Ach Gott, vom Himmel sieh darein“ 18:08
3. Kantate BWV 3 „Ach Gott, wie manches Herzeleid“ 24:53
CD 2
1. Kantate BWV 4 „Christ lag in Todesbanden“ 19:44
2. Kantate BWV 5 „Wo soll ich fliehen hin“ 20:20
3. Kantate BWV 6 „Bleib bei uns, denn es will Abend werden“ 18:57
CD 3
1. Kantate BWV 7 „Christ unser Herr zum Jordan kam“ 21:57
2. Kantate BWV 8 „Liebster Gott, wann werd ich sterben“ 16:55
3. Kantate BWV 9 „Es ist das Heil uns kommen her“ 20:26
CD 4
1. Kantate BWV 10 „Meine Seel erhebt den Herrn“ 21:39
2. Kantate BWV 12 „Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen“ 26:24
3. Kantate BWV 13 „Meine Seufzer, meine Tränen“ 19:50
Vol. 02 – Cantatas nr. 02 (4CDs)
CD 5
1. Kantate BWV 14 „Wär Gott nicht mit uns diese “ 15:21
2. Kantate BWV 16 „Herr Gott, dich loben wir“ 17:28
3. Kantate BWV 17 „Wer Dank opfert, der preiset mich“ 17:16
4. Kantate BWV 18 „Gleichwie der Regen und Schnee vom Himmel fällt“ 15:46
CD 6
1. Kantate BWV 19 „Es erhub sich ein Streit“ 20:39
2. Kantate BWV 20 „O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort“ 33:04
CD 7
1. Kantate BWV 21 „Ich hatte viel Bekümmernis“ 44:32
2. Kantate BWV 22 „Jesus nahm zu sich die Zwölfe“ 18:42
CD 8
1. Kantate BWV 23 „Du wahrer Gott und Davids Sohn“ 18:47
2. Kantate BWV 24 „Ein ungefärbt Gemüte“ 17:50
3. Kantate BWV 25 „Es ist nichts Gesundes an meinem Leibe“ 18:58
4. Kantate BWV 26 „Ach wie flüchtig, ach wie nichtig“ 15:04
Vol. 03 – Cantatas nr. 03 (4CDs)
CD 9
1. Kantate BWV 27 „Wer weiß, wie nahe mir mein Ende“ 17:05
2. Kantate BWV 28 „Gottlob, nun geht das Jahr zu Ende“ 16:48
3. Kantate BWV 29 „Wir danken dir, Gott, wir danken dir“ 21:16
CD 10
1. Kantate BWV 30 „Freue dich, erlöste Schar“ 35:37
2. Kantate BWV 31 „Der Himmel lacht, die Erde jubilieret“ 22:38
CD 11
1. Kantate BWV 32 „Liebster Jesu, mein Verlangen“ 23:00
2. Kantate BWV 33 „Allein zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ“ 21:01
3. Kantate BWV 34 „O ewiges Feuer, o Ursprung der Liebe“ 18:51
CD 12
1. Kantate BWV 35 „Geist und Seele wird verwirret“ 26:25
2. Kantate BWV 36 „Schwingt freudig euch empor“ 28:45
3. Kantate BWV 37 „Wer da gläubet und getauft wird“ 16:28
Vol. 04 – Cantatas nr. 04 (4CDs)
CD 13
1. Kantate BWV 38 „Aus tiefer Not schrei ich zu dir“ 18:43
2. Kantate BWV 39 „Brich dem Hungrigen dein Brot“ 21:19
3. Kantate BWV 40 „Dazu ist erschienen der Sohn Gottes“ 17:13
CD 14
1. Kantate BWV 41 „Jesu, nun sei gepreiset“ 29:11
2. Kantate BWV 42 „Am Abend aber desselbigen Sabbats“ 27:38
CD 15
1. Kantate BWV 43 „Gott fähret auf mit Jauchzen“ 23:07
2. Kantate BWV 44 „Sie werden euch in den Bann tun“ 17:02
3. Kantate BWV 45 „Es ist dir gesagt, Mensch, was gut ist“ 21:04
CD 16
1. Kantate BWV 46 „Schauet doch und sehet, ob irgendein Schmerz sei“ 18:52
2. Kantate BWV 47 „Wer sich selbst erhöhet, der soll erniedriget werden“ 23:32
3. Kantate BWV 48 „Ich elender Mensch“ 15:01
Vol. 05 – Cantatas nr. 05 (4CDs)
CD 17
1. Kantate BWV 49 „Ich geh und suche mit Verlangen“ 25:51
2. Kantate[Fragment] BWV 50 „Nun ist das Heil und die Kraft“ 3:35
3. Kantate BWV 51 „Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen“ 17:43
4. Kantate BWV 52 „Falsche Welt, dir trau ich nicht“ 15:02
CD 18
1. Kantate BWV 54 „Widerstehe doch der Sünde“ 11:53
2. Kantate BWV 55 „Ich armer Mensch, ich Sündenknecht“ 13:01
3. Kantate BWV 56 „Ich will den Kreuzstab gerne tragen“ 20:37
4. Kantate BWV 57 „Selig ist der Mann“ 27:14
CD 19
1. Kantate BWV 58 „Ach Gott, wie manches Herzeleid“ 14:47
2. Kantate BWV 59 „Wer mich liebet, der wird mein Wort halten“ 10:48
3. Kantate BWV 60 „O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort“ 17:29
4. Kantate BWV 61 „Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland“ 18:07
CD 20
1. Kantate BWV 62 „Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland“ 19:34
2. Kantate BWV 63 „Christen, ätzet diesen Tag“ 28:29
3. Kantate BWV 64 „Sehet, welch eine Liebe hat uns der Vater erzeiget“ 20:49
Vol. 06 – Cantatas nr. 06 (4CDs)
CD 21
1. Kantate BWV 65 „Sie werden aus Saba alle kommen“ 16:03
2. Kantate BWV 66 „Erfreut euch, ihr Herzen“ 29:57
3. Kantate BWV 67 „Halt im Gedächtnis Jesum Christ“ 14:44
CD 22
1. Kantate BWV 68 „Also hat Gott die Welt geliebt“ 17:06
2. Kantate BWV 69 „Lobe den Herrn, meine Seele“ 22:14
3. Kantate BWV 70 „Wachet, betet! Betet, wachet!“ 24:45
CD 23
1. Kantate BWV 71 „Gott ist mein König“ 17:55
2. Kantate BWV 72 „Alles nur nach Gottes Willen“ 18:10
3. Kantate BWV 73 „Herr, wie du willt, so schicks mit mir“ 16:27
4. Kantate BWV 74 „Wer mich liebet, der wird mein Wort halten“ 23:08
CD 24
1. Kantate BWV 75 „Die Elenden sollen essen“ 33:54
2. Kantate BWV 76 „Die Himmel erzählen die Ehre Gottes“ 32:36
Vol. 07 – Cantatas nr. 07 (4CDs)
CD 25
1. Kantate BWV 77 „Du sollst Gott, deinen Herren, lieben“ 16:28
2. Kantate BWV 78 „Jesu, der du meine Seele“ 21:10
3. Kantate BWV 79 „Gott der Herr ist Sonn' und Schild“ 15:30
CD 26
1. Kantate BWV 80 „Ein' feste Burg ist unser Gott“ 25:05
2. Kantate BWV 81 „Jesus schläft, was soll ich hoffen“ 18:18
3. Kantate BWV 82 „Ich habe genung“ 23:19
CD 27
1. Kantate BWV 83 „Erfreute im neuen Bunde“ 18:49
2. Kantate BWV 84 „Ich bin vergnügt mit meinem Glücke“ 14:33
3. Kantate BWV 85 „Ich bin ein guter Hirt“ 18:51
4. Kantate BWV 86 „Wahrlich, wahrlich, ich sage euch“ 15:51
CD 28
1. Kantate BWV 87 „Bisher habt ihr nichts gebeten in meinem Namen“ 20:15
2. Kantate BWV 88 „Siehe, ich will viel Fischer aussenden“ 22:36
3. Kantate BWV 89 „Was soll ich aus dir machen, Ephraim?“ 12:18
4. Kantate BWV 90 „Es reißet euch ein schrecklich Ende“ 13:06
Vol. 08 – Cantatas nr. 08 (4CDs)
CD 29
1. Kantate BWV 91 „Gelobet seist du, Jesu Christ“ 18:37
2. Kantate BWV 92 „Ich hab in Gottes Herz und Sinn“ 30:38
3. Kantate BWV 93 „Wer nur den lieben Gott lässt walten“ 19:54
CD 30
1. Kantate BWV 94 „Was frag ich nach der Welt“ 28:51
2. Kantate BWV 95 „Christus, der ist mein Leben“ 21:49
3. Kantate BWV 96 „Herr Christ, der einig Gottessohn“ 20:24
CD 31
1. Kantate BWV 97 „In allen meinen Taten“ 30:14
2. Kantate BWV 98 „Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan“ 14:26
3. Kantate BWV 99 „Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan“ 16:52
CD 32
1. Kantate BWV 100 „Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan“ 22:12
2. Kantate BWV 101 „Nimm von uns, Herr, du treuer Gott“ 23:50
3. Kantate BWV 102 „Herr, deine Augen sehen nach dem Glauben“ 23:35
Vol. 09 – Cantatas nr. 09 (4CDs)
CD 33
1. Kantate BWV 103 „Ihr werdet weinen und heulen“ 16:20
2. Kantate BWV 104 „Du Hirte Israel, höre“ 16:45
3. Kantate BWV 105 „Herr, gehe nicht ins Gericht mit deinem Knecht“ 25:20
CD 34
1. Kantate BWV 106 „Gottes ist die allerbeste “ (Actus tragicus) 21:34
2. Kantate BWV 107 „Was willst du dich betrüben“ 17:02
3. Kantate BWV 108 „Es ist euch gut, dass ich hingehe“ 16:39
CD 35
1. Kantate BWV 109 „Ich glaube, lieber Herr“ 25:12
2. Kantate BWV 110 „Unser Mund sei voll Lachens“ 26:33
3. Kantate BWV 111 „Was mein Gott will, das g'scheh all“ 19:54
CD 36
1. Kantate BWV 112 „Der Herr ist mein getreuer Hirt“ 13:47
2. Kantate BWV 113 „Herr Jesu Christ, du höchstes Gut“ 26:11
3. Kantate BWV 114 „Ach lieben Christen, seid getrost“ 26:47
Vol. 10 – Cantatas nr. 10 (4CDs)
CD 37
1. Kantate BWV 115 „Mache dich, mein Geist, bereit“ 20:19
2. Kantate BWV 116 „Du Friedefürst, Herr Jesu Christ“ 17:58
3. Kantate BWV 117 „Sei Lob und Ehr dem höchsten Gut“ 21:43
CD 38
1. Kantate BWV 119 „Preise, Jerusalem, den Herrn“ 25:25
2. Kantate BWV 120 „Gott, man lobet dich in der Stille“ 21:24
3. Kantate BWV 121 „Christum wir sollen loben schon“ 20:45
CD 39
1. Kantate BWV 122 „Das neugeborne Kindelein“ 16:31
2. Kantate BWV 123 „Liebster Immanuel, Herzog der Frommen“ 19:51
3. Kantate BWV 124 „Meinen Jesum lass ich nicht“ 14:08
4. Kantate BWV 125 „Mit Fried und Freud ich fahr dahin“ 24:28
CD 40
1. Kantate BWV 126 „Erhalt uns, Herr, bei deinem Wort“ 17:45
2. Kantate BWV 127 „Herr Jesu Christ, wahr' Mensch und Gott“ 20:08
3. Kantate BWV 128 „Auf Christi Himmelfahrt allein“ 16:22
4. Kantate BWV 129 „Gelobet sei der Herr, mein Gott“ 18:36
Vol. 11 – Cantatas nr. 11 (4CDs)
CD 41
1. Kantate BWV 130 „Herr Gott, dich loben alle wir“ 16:23
2. Kantate BWV 131 „Aus der Tiefen rufe ich, Herr, zu dir“ 22:18
3. Kantate BWV 132 „Bereitet die Wege, bereitet die Bahn“ 21:02
CD 42
1. Kantate BWV 133 „Ich freue mich in dir“ 20:26
2. Kantate BWV 134 „Ein Herz, das seinen Jesum lebend weiß“ 31:20
3. Kantate BWV 135 „Ach Herr, mich armen Sünder“ 14:41
CD 43
1. Kantate BWV 136 „Erforsche mich, Gott, und erfahre mein Herz“ 16:06
2. Kantate BWV 137 „Lobe den Herren, den mächtigen König der Ehren“ 14:53
3. Kantate BWV 138 „Warum betrübst du dich, mein Herz“ 19:00
4. Kantate BWV 139 „Wohl dem, der sich auf seinen Gott“ 19:21
CD 44
1. Kantate BWV 140 „Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme“ 24:12
2. Kantate BWV 143 „Lobe den Herrn, meine Seele“ 13:03
3. Kantate BWV 144 „Nimm, was dein ist, und gehe hin“ 13:57
4. Kantate BWV 145 „Ich lebe, mein Herz, zu deinem Ergötzen“ 9:37
Vol. 12 – Cantatas nr. 12 (4CDs)
CD 45
1. Kantate BWV 146 „Wir müssen durch viel Trübsal“ 40:12
2. Kantate BWV 147 „Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben“ 31:25
CD 46
1. Kantate BWV 148 „Bringet dem Herrn Ehre seines Namens“ 18:22
2. Kantate BWV 149 „Man singet mit Freuden vom Sieg“ 19:06
3. Kantate BWV 150 „Nach dir, Herr, verlanget mich“ 15:21
4. Kantate BWV 151 „Süßer Trost, mein Jesus kömmt“ 18:09
CD 47
1. Kantate BWV 152 „Tritt auf die Glaubensbahn“ 18:45
2. Kantate BWV 153 „Schau, lieber Gott, wie meine Feind“ 15:01
3. Kantate BWV 154 „Mein liebster Jesus ist verloren“ 15:49
4. Kantate BWV 155 „Mein Gott, wie lang, ach lange“ 13:03
CD 48
1. Kantate BWV 156 „Ich steh mit einem Fuß im Grabe“ 17:10
2. Kantate BWV 157 „Ich lasse dich nicht, du segnest mich denn“ 19:00
3. Kantate BWV 158 „Der Friede sei mit dir“ 10:10
4. Kantate BWV 159 „Sehet, wir gehn hinauf nach Jerusalem“ 16:22
Vol. 13 – Cantatas nr. 13 (4CDs)
CD 49 – MM 4049-2
1. Kantate BWV 161 „Komm, du süße Todesstunde“ 20:37
2. Kantate BWV 162 „Ach ich sehe, itzt, da ich zur Hoch gehe“ 16:36
3. Kantate BWV 163 „Nur jedem das Seine“ 16:53
4. Kantate BWV 164 „Ihr, die ihr euch von Christo nennet“ 17:54
CD 50
1. Kantate BWV 165 „O heilges Geist- und Wasserbad“ 12:58
2. Kantate BWV 166 „Wo gehest du hin“ 16:44
3. Kantate BWV 167 „Ihr Menschen, rühmet Gottes Liebe“ 18:00
4. Kantate BWV 168 „Tue Rechnung! Donnerwort“ 16:29
CD 51
1. Kantate BWV 169 „Gott soll allein mein Herze haben“ 23:37
2. Kantate BWV 170 „Vergnügte Ruh, beliebte Seelenlust!“ 23:12
3. Kantate BWV 171 „Gott, wie dein Name, so ist auch dein Ruhm“ 15:40
CD 52
1. Kantate BWV 172 „Erschallet, ihr Lieder“ 16:41
2. Kantate BWV 173 „Erhöhtes Fleisch und Blut“ 15:43
3. Kantate BWV 174 „Ich liebe den Höchsten von ganzem Gemüte“ 22:14
4. Kantate BWV 175 „Er rufet seinen Schafen mit Namen“ 15:34
Vol. 14 – Cantatas nr. 14 (4CDs)
CD 53
1. Kantate BWV 176 „Es ist ein trotzig und verzagt Ding“ 13:04
2. Kantate BWV 177 „Ich ruf zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ“ 26:22
3. Kantate BWV 178 „Wo Gott der Herr nicht bei uns hält“ 22:36
CD 54
1. Kantate BWV 179 „Siehe zu, dass deine Gottesfurcht nicht Heuchelei sei“ 16:50
2. Kantate BWV 180 „Schmücke dich, o liebe Seele“ 23:35
3. Kantate BWV 181 „Leichtgesinnte Flattergeister“ 13:44
CD 55
1. Kantate BWV 182 „Himmelskönig, sei willkommen“ 29:19
2. Kantate BWV 183 „Sie werden euch in den Bann tun“ 14:33
3. Kantate BWV 184 „Erwünschtes Freudenlicht“ 23:45
CD 56
1. Kantate BWV 185 „Barmherziges Herze“ 15:45
2. Kantate BWV 186 „Ärgre dich, o Seele, nicht“ 33:55
3. Kantate BWV 187 „Es wartet alles auf dich“ 24:20
Vol. 15 – Cantatas nr. 15 (4CDs)
CD 57
1. Kantate BWV 188 „Ich habe meine Zuversicht“ 23:48
2. Kantate BWV 190 „Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied“ 17:58
3. Kantate BWV 191 „Gloria in excelsis Deo“ 16:40
4. Kantate BWV 192 „Nun danket alle Gott“ 14:49
CD 58
1. Kantate BWV 193 „Ihr Tore zu Zion“ 20:47
2. Kantate BWV 194 „Höchsterwünschtes Freudenfest“ 47:12
CD 59
1. Kantate BWV 195 „Dem Gerechten muss das Licht“ 19:20
2. Kantate BWV 196 „Der Herr denket an uns“ 12:39
3. Kantate BWV 197 „Gott ist unsre Zuversicht“ 26:32
CD 60
1. Kantate BWV 198 „Lass, Fürstin, las noch einen Strahl“ (Trauer-Ode) 35:19
2. Kantate BWV 199 „Mein Herze schwimmt im Blut“ 26:06
3. Kantate[Fragment] BWV 200 „Bekennen will ich seinen Namen“ 3:05
Reseña del editor
Globally recognized as the only authoritative edition of Bach's works celebrating a lifetime's work and sought-after throughout the world. Hanssler Classic's Edition Backakademie set the standard for Bach interpretation! After tens of thousands of copies of the original box set sold globally, Hanssler Classic makes the epic Bach Edition available once again completely redesigned, streamlined and updated and Includes 172 CDs in black paper sleeves, in a very attractive, elegant looking, light and handy box a 5000 pages text material on CD-ROM and two books with BWV and CD number listing.
Críticas
Do you need 172 CDs of Bach's music? Well, some of us do; some of us need even more. This Bach-itis has led me to collect more than 1,000 discs of Bach, and, while I've slowed down on purchases in recent years, I do pick up some new Bach recordings every now and then, notably the recently concluded set of cantatas recorded by John Eliot Gardiner (review). But do you really need all this music? Perhaps you're a casual fan of Bach's music and you want more. You could buy individual CDs, filling your collection slowly, looking for the best versions of each work. This is time-consuming and expensive. Or you could buy a complete set of Bach's music, offering you the ability to sample all of this great composer's works, then, if you find affinities with specific works and want to seek out other versions, do so. I've long been a fan of the latter approach, especially since Brilliant Classics has shaken up the classical music business with their very low priced box sets of complete (or collected) works of various composers. In fact, the first big Brilliant Classics box I got was their set of Bach recordings, released back in 2001. (review). This is a mixed bag, with some excellent recordings, but quite a few mediocre discs. While I initially felt the cantata recordings to be good, more recent recordings (by Gardiner, Suzuki and others) have put them near the back of the pack. This brings me to the subject at hand:, the Hänssler set of Bach recordings, which the label organized around 2000, during the celebrations for the 250th anniversary of Bach's death. At first, Hänssler set out to fill out their Bach recordings, which were built around Helmuth Rilling's set of the sacred cantatas. They enlisted Rilling to oversee the set, and came up with a wonderful collection of 172 CDs in 140 volumes (a number of the volumes contain 2 or 3 discs). After releasing them individually, they then sold a box set, at what was then considered a normal price, but since the advent of Brilliant Classics pricing, seemed expensive. Hänssler has now re-issued this set in a space-saving box at a "nice" price, or 299. The set is currently available for around $300 in the US, less than £200 in the UK, and around 225 elsewhere in the EU. Let's start by looking at what you get in the box. It's a big box, sleek and well-designed, and, as you can see in the illustration to this review, opens to show the CDs in three sections. Each CD is in a paper and glassine sleeve, and is well labelled. The CDs have colour coding for the different types of works (cantatas, sacred music, organ, keyboard, instrumental), and each bears a large volume number and a title. The discs are therefore easy to find and choose from the box. There are also two booklets: one is a full catalogue of the set, by disc, with track-listings; this runs to nearly 300 pages. The second is an index by BWV number, which then points you to specific discs. Finally, there is a CD-ROM with complete texts of the vocal music, extensive notes and detailed track and artist information. These are provided in 14 PDF files that you can view on any computer. They contain the full notes that you would expect to receive with CDs, in German, English, French and Spanish, and total some 5,000 CD-sized pages. Hänssler has clearly not scrimped on the documentation, and one should actually expect this with any big box set. In reality such high-quality documentation is, alas, rare. There are nearly 178 hours of music in this box, which is a daunting prospect for anyone. Even fans of Bach will find some works that don't interest them much - perhaps the eight discs of chorale settings, which have not been recorded often, yet contain some gems - but choosing either to traverse the set in order, or at random, yields many excellent recordings. Back in 2000, during the wonderful Bach year, I bought a number of the individual Hänssler discs to fill out my collection. This was in part because, at the time, there were not a lot of choices for some of the less common works, but also because of the excellent quality of these recordings. I notably purchased many of the keyboard recordings, and some of them have become my favourites. I'd note especially Trevor Pinnock's superlative recording of the Partitas; Peter Watchorn's great Toccatas disc; and the Well-Tempered Clavier recorded by Robert Levin in a unique manner, with different works played on harpsichord, clavichord, organ and fortepiano. Naturally, at nearly one-third of the box, the sacred cantatas are form the biggest chunk here. They are arguably Bach's finest works, together with the secular cantatas (eight discs) and the other sacred vocal works (passions, masses, motets and oratorios) which cover 16 discs. This is where this box is simply a bargain. Helmuth Rilling is an excellent conductor and interpreter of Bach's sacred music. While I have a preference for John Eliot Gardiner's cantata recordings, because of his forces and his more HIP choices, there is no doubt that Rilling's recordings are excellent. Recorded from 1969 to 1985, over a longer period of time than most other sets, there is a lot of change throughout the series. Rilling's recordings are more dense and lush than others, and his tempi are often slower than HIP recordings - no "original instruments" for Rilling. But he creates such a detailed sound-world that any fan of these works should want to hear Rilling's versions to compare with others. This said, Rilling often uses a technique that I find a bit disturbing. He'll have one instrument or group of instruments sequestered to one track, and others on the other track, giving a sound similar to that of early Beatles' stereo mixes, where vocals were on one track and instruments on the other. This is something you never hear in live performance; while one instrument may be on one side, you still hear it on the other side. This tends to make some of the movements sound as though there's no blend among the singers and musicians. It's worth noting that, in some cases, re-takes were made months after initial recordings of some movements of the cantatas, and the sound can vary from one part of a cantata to another. But this doesn't detract from the overall tone. One more point: the actual recording quality of these works varies, and is generally not as clean as that of more recent cantata recordings using newer technology. While this is a minor detail, it can be obvious if you compare different recordings of a given cantata. Rilling notably has an excellent collection of singers in the sacred works. To name but a few that stand out: Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Arleen Augér, Helen Watts, Edith Wiens, Peter Schreier, Philipp Huttenlocher, Matthias Goerne, Juliane Banse, Thomas Quasthoff, Christoph Prégardien and many more. And Rilling's choirs are always top-notch. The same can be said for the other sacred works, the passions, oratorios and masses. So far I've barely scratched the surface, even though the sacred vocal works are the heart of the collection. The organ works fill 20 CDs, the keyboard works 32, 11 discs of chamber music, 11 discs of orchestral music, and 4 discs of alternate versions of cantatas. There's a very attractive recording of the Musical Offering, on a variety of instruments: fortepiano, harpsichord, viola da gamba, flute and violin. Robert Hill's recording of The Art of Fugue on harpsichord is brilliant, and includes early versions of some of the fugues; the notes explain the different versions, and tell you how you can program the tracks in such a way as to listen to the two different versions of the work. One disc contains reconstructed violin concertos performed by Isabelle Faust. Another fine recording, again by Robert Hill, shows off the rarely recorded lute-harpsichord. Hille Perl and Michael Beringer play the sonatas for viola da gamba and harpsichord. And the Oregon Bach Festival Chamber Orchestra, led by Helmuth Rilling, plays the Brandenburg Concertos and Orchestral Suites; certainly not my favourite versions, but fine ones nevertheless. One of the only elements I find missing is versions of The Art of Fugue for organ and for chamber orchestra. Some criticisms are in order, though. Boris Pergamenschikow's cello suites are ponderous; Dmitry Sitkovetsky's solo violin recordings are a bit better, but not up to the competition. These are two of my favourite groups of Bach's works, and I turn to other recordings when I want to listen to them. The organ works are performed by seven different organists, playing in different locations. Organ recordings often try to vary their sound by using different organs, and the sound is different from one to another, as is the style. In some ways I would have preferred a single organist, even at different locations, but this isn't a deal-breaker. So, back to my initial question: do you need this set? It depends on how Bach-obsessed you are. If you're familiar with Rilling's cantata recordings, and appreciate them, then this set is worth getting if only for those discs - which do make up more than a third of the set. If you have a lot of Bach and want more, then the answer is obvious. And if you don't have a lot of Bach, and want to discover all of his works in recordings that range from very good to excellent you can't go wrong. Comparing this set to the Brilliant Classics box, I would certainly give higher grades to Hänssler. It is more expensive, but I think it's a much more worthwhile investment than the more uneven Brilliant Classics set. No matter what, at about $1.50, £1 or 1.30 a disc, if you care about Bach enough to want this much music, you owe it to yourself to get this set. Add it to your Christmas list, perhaps, or buy yourself a present. -- MusicWeb International, Kirk McElhearn, November 2010
CD 1
1. Kantate BWV 1 „Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern“ 22:55
2. Kantate BWV 2 „Ach Gott, vom Himmel sieh darein“ 18:08
3. Kantate BWV 3 „Ach Gott, wie manches Herzeleid“ 24:53
CD 2
1. Kantate BWV 4 „Christ lag in Todesbanden“ 19:44
2. Kantate BWV 5 „Wo soll ich fliehen hin“ 20:20
3. Kantate BWV 6 „Bleib bei uns, denn es will Abend werden“ 18:57
CD 3
1. Kantate BWV 7 „Christ unser Herr zum Jordan kam“ 21:57
2. Kantate BWV 8 „Liebster Gott, wann werd ich sterben“ 16:55
3. Kantate BWV 9 „Es ist das Heil uns kommen her“ 20:26
CD 4
1. Kantate BWV 10 „Meine Seel erhebt den Herrn“ 21:39
2. Kantate BWV 12 „Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen“ 26:24
3. Kantate BWV 13 „Meine Seufzer, meine Tränen“ 19:50
Vol. 02 – Cantatas nr. 02 (4CDs)
CD 5
1. Kantate BWV 14 „Wär Gott nicht mit uns diese “ 15:21
2. Kantate BWV 16 „Herr Gott, dich loben wir“ 17:28
3. Kantate BWV 17 „Wer Dank opfert, der preiset mich“ 17:16
4. Kantate BWV 18 „Gleichwie der Regen und Schnee vom Himmel fällt“ 15:46
CD 6
1. Kantate BWV 19 „Es erhub sich ein Streit“ 20:39
2. Kantate BWV 20 „O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort“ 33:04
CD 7
1. Kantate BWV 21 „Ich hatte viel Bekümmernis“ 44:32
2. Kantate BWV 22 „Jesus nahm zu sich die Zwölfe“ 18:42
CD 8
1. Kantate BWV 23 „Du wahrer Gott und Davids Sohn“ 18:47
2. Kantate BWV 24 „Ein ungefärbt Gemüte“ 17:50
3. Kantate BWV 25 „Es ist nichts Gesundes an meinem Leibe“ 18:58
4. Kantate BWV 26 „Ach wie flüchtig, ach wie nichtig“ 15:04
Vol. 03 – Cantatas nr. 03 (4CDs)
CD 9
1. Kantate BWV 27 „Wer weiß, wie nahe mir mein Ende“ 17:05
2. Kantate BWV 28 „Gottlob, nun geht das Jahr zu Ende“ 16:48
3. Kantate BWV 29 „Wir danken dir, Gott, wir danken dir“ 21:16
CD 10
1. Kantate BWV 30 „Freue dich, erlöste Schar“ 35:37
2. Kantate BWV 31 „Der Himmel lacht, die Erde jubilieret“ 22:38
CD 11
1. Kantate BWV 32 „Liebster Jesu, mein Verlangen“ 23:00
2. Kantate BWV 33 „Allein zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ“ 21:01
3. Kantate BWV 34 „O ewiges Feuer, o Ursprung der Liebe“ 18:51
CD 12
1. Kantate BWV 35 „Geist und Seele wird verwirret“ 26:25
2. Kantate BWV 36 „Schwingt freudig euch empor“ 28:45
3. Kantate BWV 37 „Wer da gläubet und getauft wird“ 16:28
Vol. 04 – Cantatas nr. 04 (4CDs)
CD 13
1. Kantate BWV 38 „Aus tiefer Not schrei ich zu dir“ 18:43
2. Kantate BWV 39 „Brich dem Hungrigen dein Brot“ 21:19
3. Kantate BWV 40 „Dazu ist erschienen der Sohn Gottes“ 17:13
CD 14
1. Kantate BWV 41 „Jesu, nun sei gepreiset“ 29:11
2. Kantate BWV 42 „Am Abend aber desselbigen Sabbats“ 27:38
CD 15
1. Kantate BWV 43 „Gott fähret auf mit Jauchzen“ 23:07
2. Kantate BWV 44 „Sie werden euch in den Bann tun“ 17:02
3. Kantate BWV 45 „Es ist dir gesagt, Mensch, was gut ist“ 21:04
CD 16
1. Kantate BWV 46 „Schauet doch und sehet, ob irgendein Schmerz sei“ 18:52
2. Kantate BWV 47 „Wer sich selbst erhöhet, der soll erniedriget werden“ 23:32
3. Kantate BWV 48 „Ich elender Mensch“ 15:01
Vol. 05 – Cantatas nr. 05 (4CDs)
CD 17
1. Kantate BWV 49 „Ich geh und suche mit Verlangen“ 25:51
2. Kantate[Fragment] BWV 50 „Nun ist das Heil und die Kraft“ 3:35
3. Kantate BWV 51 „Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen“ 17:43
4. Kantate BWV 52 „Falsche Welt, dir trau ich nicht“ 15:02
CD 18
1. Kantate BWV 54 „Widerstehe doch der Sünde“ 11:53
2. Kantate BWV 55 „Ich armer Mensch, ich Sündenknecht“ 13:01
3. Kantate BWV 56 „Ich will den Kreuzstab gerne tragen“ 20:37
4. Kantate BWV 57 „Selig ist der Mann“ 27:14
CD 19
1. Kantate BWV 58 „Ach Gott, wie manches Herzeleid“ 14:47
2. Kantate BWV 59 „Wer mich liebet, der wird mein Wort halten“ 10:48
3. Kantate BWV 60 „O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort“ 17:29
4. Kantate BWV 61 „Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland“ 18:07
CD 20
1. Kantate BWV 62 „Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland“ 19:34
2. Kantate BWV 63 „Christen, ätzet diesen Tag“ 28:29
3. Kantate BWV 64 „Sehet, welch eine Liebe hat uns der Vater erzeiget“ 20:49
Vol. 06 – Cantatas nr. 06 (4CDs)
CD 21
1. Kantate BWV 65 „Sie werden aus Saba alle kommen“ 16:03
2. Kantate BWV 66 „Erfreut euch, ihr Herzen“ 29:57
3. Kantate BWV 67 „Halt im Gedächtnis Jesum Christ“ 14:44
CD 22
1. Kantate BWV 68 „Also hat Gott die Welt geliebt“ 17:06
2. Kantate BWV 69 „Lobe den Herrn, meine Seele“ 22:14
3. Kantate BWV 70 „Wachet, betet! Betet, wachet!“ 24:45
CD 23
1. Kantate BWV 71 „Gott ist mein König“ 17:55
2. Kantate BWV 72 „Alles nur nach Gottes Willen“ 18:10
3. Kantate BWV 73 „Herr, wie du willt, so schicks mit mir“ 16:27
4. Kantate BWV 74 „Wer mich liebet, der wird mein Wort halten“ 23:08
CD 24
1. Kantate BWV 75 „Die Elenden sollen essen“ 33:54
2. Kantate BWV 76 „Die Himmel erzählen die Ehre Gottes“ 32:36
Vol. 07 – Cantatas nr. 07 (4CDs)
CD 25
1. Kantate BWV 77 „Du sollst Gott, deinen Herren, lieben“ 16:28
2. Kantate BWV 78 „Jesu, der du meine Seele“ 21:10
3. Kantate BWV 79 „Gott der Herr ist Sonn' und Schild“ 15:30
CD 26
1. Kantate BWV 80 „Ein' feste Burg ist unser Gott“ 25:05
2. Kantate BWV 81 „Jesus schläft, was soll ich hoffen“ 18:18
3. Kantate BWV 82 „Ich habe genung“ 23:19
CD 27
1. Kantate BWV 83 „Erfreute im neuen Bunde“ 18:49
2. Kantate BWV 84 „Ich bin vergnügt mit meinem Glücke“ 14:33
3. Kantate BWV 85 „Ich bin ein guter Hirt“ 18:51
4. Kantate BWV 86 „Wahrlich, wahrlich, ich sage euch“ 15:51
CD 28
1. Kantate BWV 87 „Bisher habt ihr nichts gebeten in meinem Namen“ 20:15
2. Kantate BWV 88 „Siehe, ich will viel Fischer aussenden“ 22:36
3. Kantate BWV 89 „Was soll ich aus dir machen, Ephraim?“ 12:18
4. Kantate BWV 90 „Es reißet euch ein schrecklich Ende“ 13:06
Vol. 08 – Cantatas nr. 08 (4CDs)
CD 29
1. Kantate BWV 91 „Gelobet seist du, Jesu Christ“ 18:37
2. Kantate BWV 92 „Ich hab in Gottes Herz und Sinn“ 30:38
3. Kantate BWV 93 „Wer nur den lieben Gott lässt walten“ 19:54
CD 30
1. Kantate BWV 94 „Was frag ich nach der Welt“ 28:51
2. Kantate BWV 95 „Christus, der ist mein Leben“ 21:49
3. Kantate BWV 96 „Herr Christ, der einig Gottessohn“ 20:24
CD 31
1. Kantate BWV 97 „In allen meinen Taten“ 30:14
2. Kantate BWV 98 „Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan“ 14:26
3. Kantate BWV 99 „Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan“ 16:52
CD 32
1. Kantate BWV 100 „Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan“ 22:12
2. Kantate BWV 101 „Nimm von uns, Herr, du treuer Gott“ 23:50
3. Kantate BWV 102 „Herr, deine Augen sehen nach dem Glauben“ 23:35
Vol. 09 – Cantatas nr. 09 (4CDs)
CD 33
1. Kantate BWV 103 „Ihr werdet weinen und heulen“ 16:20
2. Kantate BWV 104 „Du Hirte Israel, höre“ 16:45
3. Kantate BWV 105 „Herr, gehe nicht ins Gericht mit deinem Knecht“ 25:20
CD 34
1. Kantate BWV 106 „Gottes ist die allerbeste “ (Actus tragicus) 21:34
2. Kantate BWV 107 „Was willst du dich betrüben“ 17:02
3. Kantate BWV 108 „Es ist euch gut, dass ich hingehe“ 16:39
CD 35
1. Kantate BWV 109 „Ich glaube, lieber Herr“ 25:12
2. Kantate BWV 110 „Unser Mund sei voll Lachens“ 26:33
3. Kantate BWV 111 „Was mein Gott will, das g'scheh all“ 19:54
CD 36
1. Kantate BWV 112 „Der Herr ist mein getreuer Hirt“ 13:47
2. Kantate BWV 113 „Herr Jesu Christ, du höchstes Gut“ 26:11
3. Kantate BWV 114 „Ach lieben Christen, seid getrost“ 26:47
Vol. 10 – Cantatas nr. 10 (4CDs)
CD 37
1. Kantate BWV 115 „Mache dich, mein Geist, bereit“ 20:19
2. Kantate BWV 116 „Du Friedefürst, Herr Jesu Christ“ 17:58
3. Kantate BWV 117 „Sei Lob und Ehr dem höchsten Gut“ 21:43
CD 38
1. Kantate BWV 119 „Preise, Jerusalem, den Herrn“ 25:25
2. Kantate BWV 120 „Gott, man lobet dich in der Stille“ 21:24
3. Kantate BWV 121 „Christum wir sollen loben schon“ 20:45
CD 39
1. Kantate BWV 122 „Das neugeborne Kindelein“ 16:31
2. Kantate BWV 123 „Liebster Immanuel, Herzog der Frommen“ 19:51
3. Kantate BWV 124 „Meinen Jesum lass ich nicht“ 14:08
4. Kantate BWV 125 „Mit Fried und Freud ich fahr dahin“ 24:28
CD 40
1. Kantate BWV 126 „Erhalt uns, Herr, bei deinem Wort“ 17:45
2. Kantate BWV 127 „Herr Jesu Christ, wahr' Mensch und Gott“ 20:08
3. Kantate BWV 128 „Auf Christi Himmelfahrt allein“ 16:22
4. Kantate BWV 129 „Gelobet sei der Herr, mein Gott“ 18:36
Vol. 11 – Cantatas nr. 11 (4CDs)
CD 41
1. Kantate BWV 130 „Herr Gott, dich loben alle wir“ 16:23
2. Kantate BWV 131 „Aus der Tiefen rufe ich, Herr, zu dir“ 22:18
3. Kantate BWV 132 „Bereitet die Wege, bereitet die Bahn“ 21:02
CD 42
1. Kantate BWV 133 „Ich freue mich in dir“ 20:26
2. Kantate BWV 134 „Ein Herz, das seinen Jesum lebend weiß“ 31:20
3. Kantate BWV 135 „Ach Herr, mich armen Sünder“ 14:41
CD 43
1. Kantate BWV 136 „Erforsche mich, Gott, und erfahre mein Herz“ 16:06
2. Kantate BWV 137 „Lobe den Herren, den mächtigen König der Ehren“ 14:53
3. Kantate BWV 138 „Warum betrübst du dich, mein Herz“ 19:00
4. Kantate BWV 139 „Wohl dem, der sich auf seinen Gott“ 19:21
CD 44
1. Kantate BWV 140 „Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme“ 24:12
2. Kantate BWV 143 „Lobe den Herrn, meine Seele“ 13:03
3. Kantate BWV 144 „Nimm, was dein ist, und gehe hin“ 13:57
4. Kantate BWV 145 „Ich lebe, mein Herz, zu deinem Ergötzen“ 9:37
Vol. 12 – Cantatas nr. 12 (4CDs)
CD 45
1. Kantate BWV 146 „Wir müssen durch viel Trübsal“ 40:12
2. Kantate BWV 147 „Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben“ 31:25
CD 46
1. Kantate BWV 148 „Bringet dem Herrn Ehre seines Namens“ 18:22
2. Kantate BWV 149 „Man singet mit Freuden vom Sieg“ 19:06
3. Kantate BWV 150 „Nach dir, Herr, verlanget mich“ 15:21
4. Kantate BWV 151 „Süßer Trost, mein Jesus kömmt“ 18:09
CD 47
1. Kantate BWV 152 „Tritt auf die Glaubensbahn“ 18:45
2. Kantate BWV 153 „Schau, lieber Gott, wie meine Feind“ 15:01
3. Kantate BWV 154 „Mein liebster Jesus ist verloren“ 15:49
4. Kantate BWV 155 „Mein Gott, wie lang, ach lange“ 13:03
CD 48
1. Kantate BWV 156 „Ich steh mit einem Fuß im Grabe“ 17:10
2. Kantate BWV 157 „Ich lasse dich nicht, du segnest mich denn“ 19:00
3. Kantate BWV 158 „Der Friede sei mit dir“ 10:10
4. Kantate BWV 159 „Sehet, wir gehn hinauf nach Jerusalem“ 16:22
Vol. 13 – Cantatas nr. 13 (4CDs)
CD 49 – MM 4049-2
1. Kantate BWV 161 „Komm, du süße Todesstunde“ 20:37
2. Kantate BWV 162 „Ach ich sehe, itzt, da ich zur Hoch gehe“ 16:36
3. Kantate BWV 163 „Nur jedem das Seine“ 16:53
4. Kantate BWV 164 „Ihr, die ihr euch von Christo nennet“ 17:54
CD 50
1. Kantate BWV 165 „O heilges Geist- und Wasserbad“ 12:58
2. Kantate BWV 166 „Wo gehest du hin“ 16:44
3. Kantate BWV 167 „Ihr Menschen, rühmet Gottes Liebe“ 18:00
4. Kantate BWV 168 „Tue Rechnung! Donnerwort“ 16:29
CD 51
1. Kantate BWV 169 „Gott soll allein mein Herze haben“ 23:37
2. Kantate BWV 170 „Vergnügte Ruh, beliebte Seelenlust!“ 23:12
3. Kantate BWV 171 „Gott, wie dein Name, so ist auch dein Ruhm“ 15:40
CD 52
1. Kantate BWV 172 „Erschallet, ihr Lieder“ 16:41
2. Kantate BWV 173 „Erhöhtes Fleisch und Blut“ 15:43
3. Kantate BWV 174 „Ich liebe den Höchsten von ganzem Gemüte“ 22:14
4. Kantate BWV 175 „Er rufet seinen Schafen mit Namen“ 15:34
Vol. 14 – Cantatas nr. 14 (4CDs)
CD 53
1. Kantate BWV 176 „Es ist ein trotzig und verzagt Ding“ 13:04
2. Kantate BWV 177 „Ich ruf zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ“ 26:22
3. Kantate BWV 178 „Wo Gott der Herr nicht bei uns hält“ 22:36
CD 54
1. Kantate BWV 179 „Siehe zu, dass deine Gottesfurcht nicht Heuchelei sei“ 16:50
2. Kantate BWV 180 „Schmücke dich, o liebe Seele“ 23:35
3. Kantate BWV 181 „Leichtgesinnte Flattergeister“ 13:44
CD 55
1. Kantate BWV 182 „Himmelskönig, sei willkommen“ 29:19
2. Kantate BWV 183 „Sie werden euch in den Bann tun“ 14:33
3. Kantate BWV 184 „Erwünschtes Freudenlicht“ 23:45
CD 56
1. Kantate BWV 185 „Barmherziges Herze“ 15:45
2. Kantate BWV 186 „Ärgre dich, o Seele, nicht“ 33:55
3. Kantate BWV 187 „Es wartet alles auf dich“ 24:20
Vol. 15 – Cantatas nr. 15 (4CDs)
CD 57
1. Kantate BWV 188 „Ich habe meine Zuversicht“ 23:48
2. Kantate BWV 190 „Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied“ 17:58
3. Kantate BWV 191 „Gloria in excelsis Deo“ 16:40
4. Kantate BWV 192 „Nun danket alle Gott“ 14:49
CD 58
1. Kantate BWV 193 „Ihr Tore zu Zion“ 20:47
2. Kantate BWV 194 „Höchsterwünschtes Freudenfest“ 47:12
CD 59
1. Kantate BWV 195 „Dem Gerechten muss das Licht“ 19:20
2. Kantate BWV 196 „Der Herr denket an uns“ 12:39
3. Kantate BWV 197 „Gott ist unsre Zuversicht“ 26:32
CD 60
1. Kantate BWV 198 „Lass, Fürstin, las noch einen Strahl“ (Trauer-Ode) 35:19
2. Kantate BWV 199 „Mein Herze schwimmt im Blut“ 26:06
3. Kantate[Fragment] BWV 200 „Bekennen will ich seinen Namen“ 3:05
Reseña del editor
Globally recognized as the only authoritative edition of Bach's works celebrating a lifetime's work and sought-after throughout the world. Hanssler Classic's Edition Backakademie set the standard for Bach interpretation! After tens of thousands of copies of the original box set sold globally, Hanssler Classic makes the epic Bach Edition available once again completely redesigned, streamlined and updated and Includes 172 CDs in black paper sleeves, in a very attractive, elegant looking, light and handy box a 5000 pages text material on CD-ROM and two books with BWV and CD number listing.
Críticas
Do you need 172 CDs of Bach's music? Well, some of us do; some of us need even more. This Bach-itis has led me to collect more than 1,000 discs of Bach, and, while I've slowed down on purchases in recent years, I do pick up some new Bach recordings every now and then, notably the recently concluded set of cantatas recorded by John Eliot Gardiner (review). But do you really need all this music? Perhaps you're a casual fan of Bach's music and you want more. You could buy individual CDs, filling your collection slowly, looking for the best versions of each work. This is time-consuming and expensive. Or you could buy a complete set of Bach's music, offering you the ability to sample all of this great composer's works, then, if you find affinities with specific works and want to seek out other versions, do so. I've long been a fan of the latter approach, especially since Brilliant Classics has shaken up the classical music business with their very low priced box sets of complete (or collected) works of various composers. In fact, the first big Brilliant Classics box I got was their set of Bach recordings, released back in 2001. (review). This is a mixed bag, with some excellent recordings, but quite a few mediocre discs. While I initially felt the cantata recordings to be good, more recent recordings (by Gardiner, Suzuki and others) have put them near the back of the pack. This brings me to the subject at hand:, the Hänssler set of Bach recordings, which the label organized around 2000, during the celebrations for the 250th anniversary of Bach's death. At first, Hänssler set out to fill out their Bach recordings, which were built around Helmuth Rilling's set of the sacred cantatas. They enlisted Rilling to oversee the set, and came up with a wonderful collection of 172 CDs in 140 volumes (a number of the volumes contain 2 or 3 discs). After releasing them individually, they then sold a box set, at what was then considered a normal price, but since the advent of Brilliant Classics pricing, seemed expensive. Hänssler has now re-issued this set in a space-saving box at a "nice" price, or 299. The set is currently available for around $300 in the US, less than £200 in the UK, and around 225 elsewhere in the EU. Let's start by looking at what you get in the box. It's a big box, sleek and well-designed, and, as you can see in the illustration to this review, opens to show the CDs in three sections. Each CD is in a paper and glassine sleeve, and is well labelled. The CDs have colour coding for the different types of works (cantatas, sacred music, organ, keyboard, instrumental), and each bears a large volume number and a title. The discs are therefore easy to find and choose from the box. There are also two booklets: one is a full catalogue of the set, by disc, with track-listings; this runs to nearly 300 pages. The second is an index by BWV number, which then points you to specific discs. Finally, there is a CD-ROM with complete texts of the vocal music, extensive notes and detailed track and artist information. These are provided in 14 PDF files that you can view on any computer. They contain the full notes that you would expect to receive with CDs, in German, English, French and Spanish, and total some 5,000 CD-sized pages. Hänssler has clearly not scrimped on the documentation, and one should actually expect this with any big box set. In reality such high-quality documentation is, alas, rare. There are nearly 178 hours of music in this box, which is a daunting prospect for anyone. Even fans of Bach will find some works that don't interest them much - perhaps the eight discs of chorale settings, which have not been recorded often, yet contain some gems - but choosing either to traverse the set in order, or at random, yields many excellent recordings. Back in 2000, during the wonderful Bach year, I bought a number of the individual Hänssler discs to fill out my collection. This was in part because, at the time, there were not a lot of choices for some of the less common works, but also because of the excellent quality of these recordings. I notably purchased many of the keyboard recordings, and some of them have become my favourites. I'd note especially Trevor Pinnock's superlative recording of the Partitas; Peter Watchorn's great Toccatas disc; and the Well-Tempered Clavier recorded by Robert Levin in a unique manner, with different works played on harpsichord, clavichord, organ and fortepiano. Naturally, at nearly one-third of the box, the sacred cantatas are form the biggest chunk here. They are arguably Bach's finest works, together with the secular cantatas (eight discs) and the other sacred vocal works (passions, masses, motets and oratorios) which cover 16 discs. This is where this box is simply a bargain. Helmuth Rilling is an excellent conductor and interpreter of Bach's sacred music. While I have a preference for John Eliot Gardiner's cantata recordings, because of his forces and his more HIP choices, there is no doubt that Rilling's recordings are excellent. Recorded from 1969 to 1985, over a longer period of time than most other sets, there is a lot of change throughout the series. Rilling's recordings are more dense and lush than others, and his tempi are often slower than HIP recordings - no "original instruments" for Rilling. But he creates such a detailed sound-world that any fan of these works should want to hear Rilling's versions to compare with others. This said, Rilling often uses a technique that I find a bit disturbing. He'll have one instrument or group of instruments sequestered to one track, and others on the other track, giving a sound similar to that of early Beatles' stereo mixes, where vocals were on one track and instruments on the other. This is something you never hear in live performance; while one instrument may be on one side, you still hear it on the other side. This tends to make some of the movements sound as though there's no blend among the singers and musicians. It's worth noting that, in some cases, re-takes were made months after initial recordings of some movements of the cantatas, and the sound can vary from one part of a cantata to another. But this doesn't detract from the overall tone. One more point: the actual recording quality of these works varies, and is generally not as clean as that of more recent cantata recordings using newer technology. While this is a minor detail, it can be obvious if you compare different recordings of a given cantata. Rilling notably has an excellent collection of singers in the sacred works. To name but a few that stand out: Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Arleen Augér, Helen Watts, Edith Wiens, Peter Schreier, Philipp Huttenlocher, Matthias Goerne, Juliane Banse, Thomas Quasthoff, Christoph Prégardien and many more. And Rilling's choirs are always top-notch. The same can be said for the other sacred works, the passions, oratorios and masses. So far I've barely scratched the surface, even though the sacred vocal works are the heart of the collection. The organ works fill 20 CDs, the keyboard works 32, 11 discs of chamber music, 11 discs of orchestral music, and 4 discs of alternate versions of cantatas. There's a very attractive recording of the Musical Offering, on a variety of instruments: fortepiano, harpsichord, viola da gamba, flute and violin. Robert Hill's recording of The Art of Fugue on harpsichord is brilliant, and includes early versions of some of the fugues; the notes explain the different versions, and tell you how you can program the tracks in such a way as to listen to the two different versions of the work. One disc contains reconstructed violin concertos performed by Isabelle Faust. Another fine recording, again by Robert Hill, shows off the rarely recorded lute-harpsichord. Hille Perl and Michael Beringer play the sonatas for viola da gamba and harpsichord. And the Oregon Bach Festival Chamber Orchestra, led by Helmuth Rilling, plays the Brandenburg Concertos and Orchestral Suites; certainly not my favourite versions, but fine ones nevertheless. One of the only elements I find missing is versions of The Art of Fugue for organ and for chamber orchestra. Some criticisms are in order, though. Boris Pergamenschikow's cello suites are ponderous; Dmitry Sitkovetsky's solo violin recordings are a bit better, but not up to the competition. These are two of my favourite groups of Bach's works, and I turn to other recordings when I want to listen to them. The organ works are performed by seven different organists, playing in different locations. Organ recordings often try to vary their sound by using different organs, and the sound is different from one to another, as is the style. In some ways I would have preferred a single organist, even at different locations, but this isn't a deal-breaker. So, back to my initial question: do you need this set? It depends on how Bach-obsessed you are. If you're familiar with Rilling's cantata recordings, and appreciate them, then this set is worth getting if only for those discs - which do make up more than a third of the set. If you have a lot of Bach and want more, then the answer is obvious. And if you don't have a lot of Bach, and want to discover all of his works in recordings that range from very good to excellent you can't go wrong. Comparing this set to the Brilliant Classics box, I would certainly give higher grades to Hänssler. It is more expensive, but I think it's a much more worthwhile investment than the more uneven Brilliant Classics set. No matter what, at about $1.50, £1 or 1.30 a disc, if you care about Bach enough to want this much music, you owe it to yourself to get this set. Add it to your Christmas list, perhaps, or buy yourself a present. -- MusicWeb International, Kirk McElhearn, November 2010
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