Musical Heaven Bach up aloft, with BASIL RAMSEY harmonia mundi    HMX 2951365

There's much sense in gathering Bach's solo bass cantatas for a single CD. The celebrated Ich habe genung (Cantata 82) comes first, followed by Cantatas 56 and 158.

Most musicians know -- even by default -- that Bach's 200 or so cantatas are a treasure trove of gems, given that he occasionally nodded over his desk with a musical lapse. It is very hard to accept that Bach was human like us. But there we are, recipients of his inheritance, often overlooking the very fact that all his worthwhile music is on CD, and we so often simply too 'preoccupied' to allow ourselves the privilege of acquaintance with a musical heaven.

Peter Kooy has a vocal quality that's a touch edgy, yet is plentifully musical. He moves through the taxing vocal lines with apparent ease. A noble aria such as Welt, ade (Cantata 158) haunts one with three melodic strands interweaving: bass solo, soprano chorale, and violin obbligato [listen -- track 12, 5:20-6:18].

The chorus and orchestra of La Chapelle Royale directed by Philippe Herreweghe reveal the intrinsic delight of dedicated performers.

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Record Box is Music & Vision's regular Wednesday series of shorter CD reviews