Bach: Christmas Oratorio, BWV248 (complete oratorio)

"a wonderfully flexible and dramatically vivid account, constantly illuminated by the obbligatos from the Gewandhaus wind...Chailly manages to combine the rhythmic lightness of a period-instrument performance with the tonal richness of a traditional orchestra. It is by far the most successful of his Bach forays to date." (Guardian)

"Any discerning music fan will be thrilled to receive Bach's Christmas Oratorio (Decca), a superb new recording by Riccardo Chailly"
(The Observer)

"[Chailly] eschews the current trend towards period instrumentation, with no perceptible loss of authenticity. It's marvellously recorded, the solo vocalists sustaining poise and clarity against the full onslaught of choir and orchestra, while the fulsome brass brings a dazzling, burnished lustre to the performance."
(The Independent)

"The first chorus gets things off to the most exciting start imaginable...he's very quick, but nothing sounds rushed or garbled - the articulation of the orchestra is stunningly rhythmic and precise, with a lovely sense of shape and of direction - as is the choral singing...This is an exceptional Christmas Oratorio and it becomes one of the front-runners in a crowded field."
(INternational Record Review)