This recording from 1999 presents Finnish mezzo Monica Groop in three JS Bach canatatas for solo alto, numbers 35, 169 and 170, all of which were written within a few months of each other in 1726. Groop has a lustrous dark mezzo that is often quite beautiful but she is also not a particularly expressive singer. The accompaniment provided by the Ostrobothnian Chamber Orchestra led by director Juha Kangas, also from Finland, is just as important in setting the performance tone as Groop but the same tendency is present in the instruments. Kangas has a tendency to flatten out all tempi to a moderate pace - fast and slow sections are blended - which unfortunately accentuates Groop's lack of emotional dynamism. The organ obligato part provided by Hakan Wikman is also more important in these cantatas than in other Bach works in the genreand seems to be done well.