Koor & Orkest Collegium Vocale Gent . Philippe Herreweghe

There are very few Baroque composers who were as deeply conscious of their historical position as Bach. While most of his colleagues and contemporaries wrote exclusively on commission, 'der alte Bach' chose to devote the last decade of his life to the past and the future. Bach was steadfast about choosing to commit 'definitive' versions of some of his largest works to paper in order for them to be preserved for posterity. He did however choose to direct his attention one final time to a specific genre that was of particular interest to him: 'The Art of the Fugue'. At the same time he was also composing a large, all-encompassing mass, made up of parts from previous cantatas, joined into a completely new work. In the B minor Mass, Bach synthesises two centuries of church music in his inimitable style. Passages in archaically stern counterpoint sit alongside the most modern, even chivalrous arias. In all honesty, who better could present such a compendium of Baroque music than the Collegium Vocale Gent, an ensemble that couples experience and enthusiasm like no other.