Masaaki Suzuki and the Bach Collegium Japan, renowned for their definitive interpretations of Bach’s vocal music, have also garnered critical acclaim for their recordings of major choral and orchestral works, including Mozart’s Requiem and the Mass in C minor, Beethoven’s Missa solemnis and Symphony no.9, and Brahms’s Ein deutsches Requiem. Their latest venture sees them turn their expertise to Felix Mendelssohn’s symphony-cantata, Symphony no.2 ‘Lobgesang’ (Hymn of Praise).

Scored for soloists, choir and orchestra, the work comprises three symphonic movements and a final chorus – a design that clearly echoes Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. Yet, Mendelssohn takes this concept further, with the concluding cantata section occupying two-thirds of the entire work’s duration. Its text draws from biblical excerpts and specially commissioned poems. The initial symphonic movements, steeped in German Romanticism, deftly alternate with chorale-like passages, establishing a profound link to the ancient cantata tradition that defines the monumental finale.

Premièred at St Thomas’s Church in Leipzig (the same church where Mendelssohn’s hero, Johann Sebastian Bach, once worked), the work celebrates the 400th anniversary of Gutenberg’s invention of the printing press. It proved an immediate and resounding success, quickly becoming one of the most frequently performed works during Mendelssohn’s lifetime.