Sir John Eliot Gardiner releases complete Bach cantata set

29 October 2013, 10:59

The renowned Bach conductor's complete recordings of Bach's cantatas is now available for the first time in a limited edition 56 CD box set.

Recorded as part of the Bach Cantata Pilgirmage in 2000, the 250th anniversary of Bach's death, the box set features the Monteverdi Choir and the English Baroque Soloists, as well as solo singers Magdalena Kožená, Paul Agnew, Mark Padmore, Sara Mingardo, James Gilchrist and Peter Harvey.

The collection includes 28 volumes on the Soli Deo Gloria label, each corresponding to one of the Bach Cantata Pilgrimage’s concerts and including the cantatas Bach wrote for a specific liturgical feast. The individual discs feature portraits by photographer Steve McCurry, famous for his striking images which complement the music.

"I believe that Bach's music carries a universal message of hope and faith which can touch anybody, irrespective of their culture, religion or musical knowledge," explains Sir John Eliot. "Taken together his cantatas comprise some of the most consistently beautiful music ever to have been composed, a corpus of work which counts as one of the great glories of European music."

The complete set is available on Amazon for £166. Booklet notes are available from the Monteverdi Choir website.