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Mark Padmore – Evangelist
Georg Nigl – Jesus
Camilla Tilling (soprano)
Magdalena Kožená (mezzo-soprano)
Andrew Staples (tenor)
Roderick Williams (baritone)
Simona Brüninghaus, Diana Fischer – Maids
Barbara Fleckenstein – Pilate’s wife
Mareike Braun, Moon Yung Oh – Witnesses
Christof Hartkopf – Peter
Andreas Burkhart – Judas
Timo Janzen, Werner Rollenmüller – High priests
Three years before the end of the pandemic and the start of Sir Simon Rattle’s tenure, he came to Munich for two iconic programs: Mahler’s Ninth Symphony and Bach’s St Matthew Passion. While the Mahler program went off without a hitch, a case of Covid-19 emerged at the last minute among the musicians. The work was performed without an audience in the same hall, and the evening could be viewed on the orchestra’s website (click here). Rattle expressed his desire to quickly reunite the same soloists and again perform this work that is so special to him.
However, we still had to wait a bit longer to hear this St Matthew Passion. Half of the orchestra and chorus came onto the stage, wearing fluorescent yellow vests labelled ‘Music Emergency’, and performed the final pages of the work in reduced numbers before explaining that unlike other Munich ensembles, the salary negotiations for this season are still open. The Munich audience, attentive and respectful, listened to the two speakers without flinching. One might wonder if this would have been the case in other countries… The musicians returned to the stage a few moments later, in full number and without vests, to perform the Passion.
Rattle and his soloists are familiar with this work, having often performed it in Berlin and Salzburg in a staging by Peter Sellars. This probably explains why there was often a tendency to theatricalize the work. Even in such a hieratic role, Georg Nigl was a Jesus of flesh and blood, human, all too human… but with so much presence. Magdalena Kožená often displayed a great deal of expression. Sometimes one must allow the emotion to naturally emerge, yet her phrasing was superb throughout. However, the slightly feverish style with which the aria ‘Gebt mir meinen Jesum wieder’ for baritone with obligato violin was full of character and an example of where Rattle’s style was perfectly suited to the text and music.
The orchestra played with Baroque phrasing and without vibrato. The tempos were lively but did not detract from the clarity and articulation. Singing without a score, Mark Padmore as the Evangelist showed signs of fatigue towards the end with a few minor intonation problems, but these are trifles compared to the eloquence he demonstrated. Camilla Tilling has a superbly clear timbre and stylistic accuracy. There was much harmony with Henrik Wiese’s solo flute in the aria ‘Aus Liebe will mein Heiland sterben’ which was simply sublime. As always, the Bavarian Radio Chorus was superb in color and dynamics. Certain lively passages where they were quite powerful hinted at what a composer like Mendelssohn would later do in his ‘Lobgesang’ Symphony, or Weber in his Der Freischütz.
This was ultimately a profound performance of a very high level, and most importantly, with great integrity, making it a superb start to the new season. It promises to be an exciting one. Rattle will be very present with numerous programs. He will return to present an evening of Bach Cantatas on period instruments, Mozart’s last symphonies, programs of Brahms, Bruckner, Mahler but also Poulenc, Boulez… and in early November, all Wagnerians will be there to hear Lise Davidsen’s first Isolde in a concert version of the second act of Tristan und Isolde.
Antoine Lévy-Leboyer
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