Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 1. Kyrie. Chorus. Kyrie eleison
2. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 1. Kyrie. Duet. Christe eleison
3. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 1. Kyrie. Chorus. Kyrie eleison
4. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 2. Gloria. Chorus. Gloria in excelsis Deo
5. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 2. Gloria. Aria. Laudamus te
6. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 2. Gloria. Chorus. Gratias agimus tibi
7. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 2. Gloria. Duet. Domine Deus
8. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 2. Gloria. Chorus. Qui tollis peccata mundi
9. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 2. Gloria. Aria. Qui sedes ad dexteram Patris
10. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 2. Gloria. Aria. Quoniam tu solus sanctus
11. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 2. Gloria. Chorus. Cum Sancto Spiritu

Disc 2:

1. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 3. Credo. Chorus. Credo in unum Deum
2. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 3. Credo. Chorus. Patrem omnipotentem
3. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 3. Credo. Duet. Et in unum Dominum
4. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 3. Credo. Chorus. Et incarnatus est
5. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 3. Credo. Chorus. Crucifixus
6. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 3. Credo. Chorus. Et resurrexit
7. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 3. Credo. Aria. Et in Spiritum Sanctum Dominum
8. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 3. Credo. Chorus. Confiteor unum baptisma -
9. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 3. Credo. Et exspecto resurrectionem mortuorum
10. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 4. Sanctus. Chorus. Sanctus
11. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 4. Sanctus. Double chorus. Osanna excelsis
12. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 4. Sanctus. Aria. Benedictus
13. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 4. Sanctus. Chorus. Osanna in excelsis
14. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 4. Sanctus. Aria. Agnus Dei
15. Mass in B minor, for soloists, chorus & orchestra, BWV 232 (BC E1): Part 4. Sanctus. Chorus. Dona nobis pacem

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #121495 in Music
• Brand: Bach
• Released on: 2005-09-13
• Number of discs: 2
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Dimensions: .39 pounds

Customer Reviews

The best I know
I knew and owned this recording when it was published in the sixties; I played it so much that the vinyl disc became unplayable... Ever since that time I was looking for a recording of the Mass in B Minor, but none of what I found could come close. This record is so full of life, of feelings... I used to say that for just about any human feelings one can find parts of this recording to match it.

It is also on this recording that I got to know the voice of Janet Baker, which is quite amazing. One can recognize the special timbre of her voice whenever she sings; it is a unique experience.

A great performance in an updated remastering
This is EMI's curent remastering of Klemperer's classic B minor Mass from 1967. Along with Klemperer's St. Matthew Passion, this recording was the summit of what he could do in Bach. The vocal soloists are wonderful, especially the women led by Janet Baker. In retrospect these were the best Bach singers in Europe, and the ones we hear on period performances from Gardiner and Herrenweghe, among others, are inferior by comparison. Over and over we get accomplished vocal technicians without spiritual involvement in Bach's passionate Protestantism (blessed exceptions being Lorraine Hunt Lieberson and Thomas Quasthoff).

The Philharmonia Chrous at this time was probably the best in the world. Klemperer's tempos are stately but full of life in their inward way, and the overall experience fills one with Bach's sense of joyful worship.

Dignified Bach
Though hardly a Baroque "specialist," Klemperer was one of the greatest Bach interpreters of his generation. Do not expect from him the brisk tempos, energetic rhythms and light textures of current period performance practice. If you are not used to more traditional Bach interpretations, patience may be called for. But patience will be rewarded, for Klemperer's dignified conception of the B-Minor Mass is little short of awe-inspiring.

Klemperer's success in this work hinges on his ability to convey a sense of mystery without introducing gratuitous expressive gestures such as sudden dynamic shifts or manipulation of tempo within a movement. For the most part, he maintains a rock-steady pulse and long-breathed lines, while managing effortlessly to highlight contrapuntal detail along the way. His subtle inflection of voice-leading even in the denser thickets of Bach's polyphonic textures is masterly. In fact, no conductor I have heard in this work clarifies texture and structure better than Klemperer.

There are some drawbacks. Klemperer is better at conveying majesty than rambustious joy and thus certain movements are wanting in vitality, particularly "Gloria in excelsis Deo," "Cum Sancto Spiritu," and "Osanna in excelsis." One does want more rhythmic spring, too, in movements such as "Laudamus Te" and "Et in unum Dominum." His chorus manages to articulate well for a relatively large group, though they don't achieve anything like the clarity and agility of which today's early-music ensembles are capable. I must also note that by this stage in his career, Klemperer was not always able to exert perfect control over his forces, so that there are moments of un-coordinated ensemble and a few other slips here and there.

In the end, however, these drawbacks recede to insignificance when compared with Klemperer's overall achievement in this work. Throughout, he has the benefit of superb vocal and instrumental soloists to assist him. Among the former, Janet Baker, Agnes Giebel, and Franz Crass are outstanding; for some, their contribution alone will be worth the price of admission. The recording, which was originally rather opaque on LP, has been transformed in this digital remastering, so that the sonics now convey a greater sense of presence and amplitude.

Adventurous listeners who enjoy exploring historic recordings, and who have an open mind when it comes to stylistic matters, will find that this is one to treasure. Bach with dignity is seldom encountered on the fast lane of the contemporary early-music scene, and for that reason Klemperer's version of the B-minor Mass provides an invaluable and refreshing supplement to whatever early-music renditions of the work you may already own.