Johann Sebastian Bach
St. Matthew Passion
BWV 244
Thomanerchor Leipzig
Gewandhausorchester Leipzig
Georg Christoph Biller
Christina Landshamer, soprano
Stefan Kahle, alto
Wolfram Lattke, tenor
Martin Lattke, tenor
Klaus Mertens, bass
Gotthold Schwarz, bass
The renowned Thomanerchor Leipzig, which boasts J. S. Bach as a former cantor, celebrates its 800th anniversary with an extraordinary interpretation of the St. Matthew Passion. The Guardian praised how “the harmonic lines interwove with a transcendence that can only be achieved through living, eating and working together”. This Accentus Music production is the only audio-visual release of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, performed by the choir for which it was written, in St. Thomas Church, Leipzig, where the composer worked and is buried.
“Billers direction exudes profound integrity and commitment, the chorales in particular shaped by a deeply-felt inevitability, and the ethereal alto purity of recent Thomasschule graduate Stefan Kahle is deeply moving alongside the noble Christus of veteran Klaus Mertens and Christina Landshamer’s radiant sopran [..] a moving testament to a choir celebrating 800 years…” – BBC Music Magazine
