Hard on the heels of the recent stylish but highly idiosyncratic Brandenburgs from Philip Pickett and the New London Consort comes this release from the Canadian ensemble, Tafelmusik. This is their first release devoted entirely to Bach and one therefore, which I eagerly anticipated. It is, indeed, a fine achievement and if, perhaps, the playing does not always match the technical excellence which by-and-large features in the New London Consort set, then I'm not sure, in the presence of musicianship of this calibre, that it really matters. There are no startling novelties here and nothing which attempts to impede the natural course of musical flow. Tempos are sensibly chosen and once chosen, consistently adhered to. That is not to say that there is an absence of affective gesture or a lack of rhetorical awareness. Everything in fact is punctuated in a way that allows the listener to follow the subtly shaded nuances of Bach's dialogue.
Some readers may feel that these interpretations lack the stamp of a strong personality at the helm—I remember sensing that in the recording by the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment some years back, but in Tafelmusik's defence I would say that any such fears of interpretative neutrality are largely dispelled by the sensibility of the players and their hitherto proven skill at reaching the heart of the music without the assistance either of pretension or muddled intellectual clutter. To my ears these are Brandenburgs straight from the heart and as such they are performances which invite repeated listening and are furthermore both easy and enjoyable to live with.
Such reservations as I have chiefly concern minutiae of tuning and to a much lesser extent, ensemble. Neither these weaknesses, nor the occasional blip or thwack, hindering the production of clean notes from oboe (Concerto No. 1: Trio I, oboe II), horns or trumpet, spoilt my enjoyment of Tafelmusik's playing of Nos. 1 and 2, though the New London Consort's No. 2 is, on balance, a happier affair than the present one. It is a pity that the first movement of No. 3 is marred by indifferent tuning in the lower strands of the texture and, more disturbingly, by a marked acceleration in speed beginning at bar 84 (3'26''); but the second Allegro of the work is so well done that I'm inclined to forgive them. Tafelmusik's account of this brilliant binary movement—a unique example of the form among Bach's concertos as Malcolm Boyd remarks in an excellent accompanying essay—is not to be missed.
Concerto No. 4 comes over well, above all for the effectively articulated and warmly coloured violin playing by Jeanne Lamon, the leader and director of Tafelmusik; but I'm not sure that the trills at bars 367–71 and 401–06 of the first movement, initiated by recorder I and taken up by the solo violin either come off convincingly or indeed are necessary. The chief delight for me in the Concerto No. 5 is the admirably poised and lucid harpsichord solo in the first movement, played by Charlotte Nediger. No exaggerated showmanship but a wonderfully rhythmic sand musicianly account. Concerto No. 6 is gracefully shaped and in its outer movements appealingly animated, if at times a shade gruff, in spite of the substitution of a violone for the double-bass which features in the remaining five concertos. I found its presence too assertive in the lyrical Adagio, indeed, I'm not sure that it is even needed in this movement.
In summary, I found this set a rewarding experience, notwithstanding minor reservations, the causes of which, at least in one or two instances, might have been picked up at an earlier stage. Where does this set belong in the Brandenburg league table? Difficult to say but, taken as a whole I would place it in an elevated position both for the calibre of the interpretations and for the absence of intrusive, musically irrelevant mannerisms.'