This 2-CD set with The Purcell Quartet and a distinguished group of soloists is the third in a series devoted to Bach’s early cantatas and the second focussing on the Weimar period. On an earlier release, International Record Review wrote, ‘The Purcell Quartet and guests are most welcome: even the most distinguished of period performers with larger ensembles can’t achieve the intimacy that the forces here have at their disposal’.

The Purcell Quartet - two violins, cello and continuo, augmented by two violas, recorders, oboe, bassoon, and trumpet - reflect the meagre forces available to Bach. The four solo singers combine in a one-to-a-part chorus… With no designated 'conductor', this is chamber music, warmed by the acoustic environment of a London church. The resulting clarity is delightful, more subtle that the similarly scaled Ricercar Consort (Mirare)

"…rhythmically supple performances with generally effective tempos and which demonstrate an awareness of the antecedent styles of Buxtehude and others."