Bach: Cantatas, Vol. 12 - BWV 147, 21
Many people will be interested in this title just forHerz und Mund  und Tat und Leben, cantata No. 147, the source of the much-loved chorale  arrangement "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring." The Bach Collegium Japan performs the  chorale very nicely indeed, as well as the cantata's four arias and jubilant  opening chorus. The other work on this disc is the great cantata No. 21,Ich  hatte viel Bekümmernis, which progresses from anguished repentance to  serene happiness and triumphant joy. The BCJ recorded Bach's first version of  this cantata (from 1714) onvolume  6of this series; volume 12 presents the revision Bach made in 1723. Some  differences aren't great (reassignment of a couple of arias and a lower pitch),  while others are striking, such as the explicit division of portions of some  choruses between soloists and choir, and the addition of trombones (considered  quite old-fashioned by 1723) to one chorus. Was it worth recording the work a  second time? With Masaaki Suzuki's superb chorus, orchestra, and four soloists  in top form--absolutely.--Matthew Westphal