The smart money says that the fall 2006 reissues of Christmas discs featuring the singing of the
Regensburger Domspatzen have something to do with the fact that the brother of choral director
Georg Ratzinger had recently been elected Pope Benedict VI. This 1979 recording of Bach's Weichnachtsoratorium, for example, is a fine and upstanding performance with the kind of rousing support from the period-instrument Collegium St. Emmeram led by
Hans-Martin Schneidt that makes it a more than acceptable third or fourth choice in echt Deutsche recordings of the work. The chorus has a robust but fruity tone and a sweet set of soprano soloists in Hubertus Bauman and particularly Frank Sahesch-Pur. While
Ratzinger's interpretations plumb no great depths, his lovingly rounded phrasing and smoothly blended ensemble are still very attractive. Those who go for more austere performances or more opulent performances may want to look elsewhere, but for a strong, solid, and sure performance,
Ratzinger's is well worth hearing, although it should also be noted that Archiv's sound is oddly hard and sometimes glaring.