These are the St Matts in my collection at the moment:
- Klemperer
- Richter
- Gardiner
- Rilling
- Herreweghe (both of them)
- van Veldhoven
Unfortunately, I have to give a big thumbs down to the Gardiner. He takes it at a much faster tempo than the others, such that Komm ihr tochter sounds more like a gay dance than the serious work that it is. It is lacking in gravity. I acknowledge that I have the minority opinion on this one - it seems to be well reviewed and comes highly recommended by many. It just doesn't work for me.
I also have to give another thumbs down to the van Veldhoven. Of all the versions of St Matts, the sonics on this one are the best (released on SACD). The players sing with a lot of commitment, but the performance can be a little bit scrappy, and again - seems to be lacking in gravity.
All of the others (Klemperer, Richter, Rilling, Herreweghe) can be safely recommended, but with a couple of asterisks against the Klemperer and Richter. The Klemperer is a landmark recording, featuring outstanding singers like Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (when he was still young and smoking!), and Peter Pears. This is probably as far away from Bach as it is possible - the orchestral forces are massive, and the chorus is overwhelming. The tempo is exceedingly slow, such that there is an anecdote that Fischer-Dieskau complained to Klemperer that the soloists were turning blue sustaining the long notes. Klemperer frowned and conducted even slower still! The sound is quite muddy, and it is difficult to hear what the chorus is singing. However - this recording positively throbs with emotion and tragedy, and you really feel as if the performers are Christians singing in fear of God.
I have to put another asterisk for the Richter. He uses a modern orchestra, but it is cut down in size compared to Klemperer. The chorus in this recording is exceedingly good - not surprising given Richter's career. Richter's conducting is absolutely straight laced and traditional. Norman Lebrecht did not like Richter - he said that Richter played in a way that made Germans feel safe to be Germans (remember, this was in the 1950's, soon after the war). It is not HIP, but it is still an enjoyable recording.
If you are after a HIP recording, the Herreweghe can be safely recommended. Both the earlier and later recordings are good, but I prefer the one with Bostridge as the evangelist.