Apart from those living in and around Gdańsk, Poland, and those lucky enough to have purchased copies of the excellent MDG Musica Baltica Series, I wonder how many are familiar with Johann Daniel Pucklitz. A regrettable oversight that can be remedied with this new release, entirely devoted to this hardly known Polish (?) composer. Born in the predominantly German-speaking Hansestadt Dantzig (Free Hanseatic City) in 1705, he might well have been German (From Wikipedia: Due to the special status of the city and significance within the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the city inhabitants largely became bi-cultural, sharing both German and Polish culture and were strongly attached to the traditions of the Commonwealth). The liner notes give insight into what is known about him and his compositional oeuvre, but details are missing.

Of his many, mostly sacred works, only 61 manuscripts have survived to this day, of which seven Cantatas and Masses are recorded here. The cover bears a modest number 1, so we may anticipate more of his works in future releases. And let me assure readers, after listening to this first set, we won’t regret it. This ‘Opera Omnia Vol. 1’ is first-rate material, superior to most ‘Church Music’ from that time. Johann Sebastian Bach is never far away. Cultural and musical life in Gdańsk was indeed at a high level, matching the wealth of its traders.

Gdańsk, as Dantzig is called now in Polish, proves that Warsaw is not the only place in Poland with a thriving musical community. The Goldberg Baroque & Vocal Ensemble are closely connected to this city, as is its conductor, Andrej Szadejko, a native of it.

There is no doubt in my mind that lovers of this kind of music will enjoy it as much as I did. A phenomenal orchestra (winner of a prestigious German OPUS Klassik 2022 Award) playing on original instruments and with historical performance practice, a brilliant vocal ensemble made up of young talent, supporting a cast of vastly experienced soloists (detailed bio in the accompanying booklet), take us back to the days of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and possibly the churches of St Mary’s and St John’s Centre, where this recording was made in MDG’ exquisite sound engineering.

Unlike Bach, it would seem to me, Pucklitz understood that for churchgoers a cantata of 10 minutes or so was already more than sufficient, leaving enough time for the gospel. Andrzej Szadejko has gone out of his way to give us, in his liner notes, a detailed description of each of the cantatas and masses. What he did not say is that the Chorale (track 21) is the same, though with a slightly different ending that Bach uses on occasion. This is not a matter of copy-paste (as some may want to call it in modern speak). These chorales, written by Martin Luther for ‘traditional community singing’, follow easy-to-remember lines to be sung in unison by the flock.

I must admit that I was not familiar with all the soloists. Nonetheless, they impressed me without exception; navigating with exemplary skill through the difficult parts, with my slight preference for the German Tenor, Georg Poplutz, in the Cantata ‘Du hast den guten Wein bisher behalten’ (and the careful pizzicato of the strings). I hold the view that for perfect diction and comprehensive recitation, texts are best sung by native speakers, as is the case here.

Full texts in German, with English translation, are given in the booklet.

I will stop here, believing that I have given enough food to entice your further listening pleasure. This could well be the perfect Christmas gift for your near and dear!

Blangy-le-Château, Normandy, France.

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