Bach: Easter Oratorio

Consisting of 11 numbers, the Oster Oratorium begins with two purely instrumental movements taken from an earlier concerto. The third, a duet, was later transformed into a chorus and may have actually originally been the concluding allegro of the same concerto, is succeeded by a selection of different suite-based dance forms. Richly orchestrated and complete with trumpets and drums, this uplifting work, the first of 3 oratorios by Bach, is superbly performed.