Customer Reviews

Bach: Cantatas

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Much of vocal pedagogy today focuses on how to make loud singers. Opera is everything and beauty and intonation are sometimes left at the wayside for the sake of power. But the music of Bach is certainly not about volume.

Nancy Argenta sings these cantatas with a clear, warm lyric tone that gives me shivers. The line, the clarity of the intonation, and the musicality surpasses almost any singer I know, especially most of today's opera stars.

If you have ever been frustrated with singers like Cecilia Bartoli because you can't even tell what note they're singing, there is hope.
I highly recommend this recording.

Some years ago I discovered BWV 51. Although I was already a Bach fanatic I was totally amazed ...but what a dreadfull singer it was (someone in the 50s..). Then I started collecting BWV 51...For much time I was told that you couldn't get better than Emma Kirkby. I still find her very good, but I couldn't find that feeling of amazement anymore. I ended up thinking.."Well that is as good as a human can get it...". A couple of months ago I bought this Cd, more because of BWV 82a as I already owned versions of the other cantatas, and...WOW...WOW...WOW... And after many listenings still WOW!!! I gave Emma Kirkby 6 stars in one of my listmanias, but this one should have 10!

In this Bach tercentenary year we're hearing lots of cantatas -- a very welcome development for those of us who've spent years looking for high-quality recordings of any cantatas (let alone some of the less commonly performed ones) and wincing at the singers who tackle Bach as if he were Puccini. Nancy Argenta's contribution is a welcome addition to this growing discography. The program is well-conceived and pleasantly paced, and Argenta's vocal agility rivals that of any soprano out there. The one qualification I would express is that her voice is very light -- even a trifle bird-like -- and the sound is somewhat chirpy and lacking in colour for my own taste: a darker sound and more "bottom" in some of the arias would, to me, carry more conviction and authority, as well as allowing for greater interpretive range. The 2-CD set is definitely a bargain, though -- and a good buy for voice students and Bach-lovers alike. (Too bad the budget didn't run to printing the texts of the arias in the accompanying leaflet, however.)

Nancy Argenta sings beautifully on these two discs and the instrumental playing is well done. These contatas make for very enjoyable listening. The notes are scant and do not include the words of the pieces although these can be easily found in various published sources or even on-line (see J.S. Bach home page or cantatas page for links). The set is a good bargain.

I wish I was more of a technical vocal expert. Then I could describe in more detail the nature of the tone and how wonderfully it works for Bach here. But all I can say is that, among the over fifty Bach cantata recordings I own, this is the finest. It just seems to me that among the plethora of great singers of our time, Argenta is unquestionably the finest Bach soprano, including her work with Gardiner (strangely, in Handel, where Argenta has received much praise, I don't enjoy the voice as much). And, as others have pointed out, with two discs, this set is a tremendous bargain. (It also helps that the Rogier van der Weyden cover is beautifully appropriate).

This 2-CD set contains 3 of my favorite Bach cantata arias: "Wie freudig ist mein Herz", "Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen!" and "Ricetti gramezza e pavento". The instrumental music is played with great precision, clarity and verve. More importantly, the soprano Nancy Argenta truly sings with a silver tongue befitting her surname. Her voice is pleasant and agile and entrancingly feminine, unlike the ponderous shreiking and bellowing of certain other sopranoes. This is a great CD which should be heard by every lover of Bach's cantatas.

I love Argenta's voice which is perfect for this music - light but with presence and she floats above the music in a magic fashion. The Canatata'as on this disk are easy to get into (you can hum most of them) and Huggett/Sonnerie are in good form. As another reviewer notes the base is mixed a bit light and the harpsicord gets lost but maybe that is a limitation of the authentic instruments as much as anything else. A great value two disk set you can't go wrong with.

Bach's orchestral compositions are my absolute favorite music but I thought I'd try some of his cantatas for a change. They're pretty darn good, too.