Music

Dunedin Consort

Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh

Keith Bruce, four stars

WILL the days of big choral concerts of Bach’s B Minor Mass ever return to revival the chamber approach of historically-informed performance? Not if conductors like John Butt continue to produce revelatory recitals like this one.

With six world-class soloists stepping out of a choir of ten, and double that number of instrumentalists (the two bassoons and some magnificent horn playing by Anneke Scott featuring only at the conclusion of the Gloria), this was a compact reading by the Dunedin Consort, but Butt found infinite variety within those ingredients.

Bach’s setting of the Latin text of the Nicene Creed produces some of the best moments of the work, and the subtle gradations from quintet to quartet of voices with the assurance of the resurrection expressed by the full forces was superbly realised. The Mass may be a mix of re-purposed music from the composer’s huge catalogue of cantatas and original composition for this work alone, but there was no sense of it being a musical jigsaw as every combination of vocals and continuo playing flowed in seemingly effortless sequence.

If soloists tenor Nicholas Mulroy and contralto Jess Dandy had been lost in the mix a little at the start of the evening, both produced performances that will remain long in the memory with their Benedictus and Agnus Dei arias towards the end. Mulroy shared tenor duties with Thomas Hobbs, with Matthias Helm the baritone, while Dandy’s was the lower voice in a trio with mezzo Ciara Hendrick and soprano Anna Dennis, each of whom shone in their solo outings.

A slight rhythmic wobble at the start of the Creed apart, the instrumental ensemble was superb throughout, and as soulful a period band as you are ever likely to hear, especially the oboes and flautist Katy Bircher.