Koor & Orkest Collegium Vocale Gent olv. Philippe Herreweghe

Johann Sebastian Bach performed by Collegium Vocale Ghent, conducted by Philippe Herreweghe: this is Bach at his best. Since the seventies, the Ghent-based conductor and his ensemble have developed into first-rate Bach specialists, offering a highly detailed interpretation of his music. They focus on the text, the rhetoric and the content, but are positively averse to showmanship. "It's just not appropriate to show off with Bach", believes Herreweghe, "otherwise it becomes kitsch". Bach composed his 'Himmelfahrtsoratorium' in 1735, although 'compiled' is probably a more accurate description. The majority of the notes are borrowed from earlier cantatas. The work was first performed under the title 'Oratorium Festo Ascensionis Christi'. In his inimitable way, Bach expresses what could accurately be described as mixed feelings: the hurt and even bitter reaction of his disciples to the news that Christ is going to leave them, and simultaneously, the jubilant tone appropriate for an ascension. The 'Himmelfahrtsoratorium' is therefore a work of extremes, of heavenly joy and earthly sorrow. This is apparent in the festive flourish of brass in of the opening chord, and the painful chromatics of the aria 'Ach bleibe doch', which in turn provided the raw material for the 'Agnus Dei' from the 'Hohe Messe'.