Boston Globe

“The singers - Suzie LeBlanc, Catherine Webster, Matthew White (Les Voix Baroques' director), Colin Balzer, and Nathaniel Watson - also made a virtue out of their varying timbres. White's warm alto and Balzer's focused, fluent tenor mediated between the sopranos' straight tones (LeBlanc's sine-wave purity, Webster's organ-pipe flute) and Watson's robust, flexible baritone.

After intermission came a masterpiece, "Membra Jesu Nostri," a cycle of seven cantatas, each focused on part of the crucified Christ's body: feet, knees, hands, side, breast, heart, face. Emotional directness gives it an intimate aura - uncluttered choral textures communicate the texts (devotional poetry framed by biblical quotations) with rich clarity, while solo arias, their floridity tempered by measured phrasing, crystallize each passing mood. Even the predictable seems new. ”

Author: 
Matthew Guerrieri
Date: 
Mon, 11/26/2007