Two odes to death and the soul's salvation: Whatever the occasions for which they were written (a tribute to a dead queen, or a chorale cantata), the two works on this recording have one subject in common: death and the soul's salvation. Performed in 1727 in memory of the sorely mourned Christiane Eberhardine, Queen of Poland and Electress of Saxony, the Funeral Ode BWV 198 is particularly moving in its sincerity and spiritual grandeur.

In 1991, Philippe Herreweghe and La Chapelle Royale recorded three Bach cantatas on the themes of suffering and death - death viewed as a kindly comforter. The soloist was the prodigious bass Peter Kooy, a long-standing partner of the ensemble and a key figure in it's magnificent survey of Bach's cantatas, motets and Passions.

Christ lag in Todesbanden, BWV 4, Gott der Herr ist Sonn und Schild, BWV 79, and Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott, BWV 80. Written at different moments in the composer’s life and based to a large extent on the works of Martin Luther, these cantatas reflect a marked taste for dramaturgy, vivid word painting and an invariably astonishing use of instruments and voices. Herreweghe and Collegium Vocale Gent give us an accomplished version of these masterpieces, confirming, if further proof were needed, their stature as ardent champions of Bach.