Today, Karajan may not be widely seen as a specialist for Bach’s music but Karajan admired his oeuvre deeply and worked on it throughout his career.
This was by no means a matter of course. As an Austrian Catholic born in the city of Mozart and Biber he was not automatically familiar with protestant music. In his early Aachen years, in the seasons 1936/37 and 1937/38, Karajan performed the “St Matthews Passion” for the first time. He was able to engage the most distinguished Evangelist of his time, Karl Erb, who was immortalised in Thomas Mann’s novel ‘Doctor Faustus’. It was also the “St Matthew Passion” Karajan chose for his last concert as General Music Director in Aachen on 22 April 1942.
The Viennese “Bach Fest” for the 200th anniversary of Bach’s death in June 1950 was Karajan’s chance to prove his abilities in the baroque repertoire. He trained the “Wiener Singverein” in 40 – 50(!) rehearsals for the “St Matthew Passion”, turning it into one of the choir’s finest achievements.
The soloists in this recorded concert were among the best available at the time: Irmgard Seefried, Kathleen Ferrier, Walther Ludwig, Paul Schöffler and Otto Edelmann. The result was a triumph for Karajan and a singular highlight in Vienna’s relationship with Bach.
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