Jesu, deine Passion delivers a splendid set of Bach cantatas for the first Sunday of Lent. As always with Bach's cantatas, the music is tailored to the mood of the liturgical occasion, in this case the opening of the Lenten season. In deeply insightful performances by the Collegium Vocale Gent under and director Philippe Herreweghe, all four cantatas are affectingly expressive. Herreweghe is a veteran Bach conductor who knows how to clarify densely contrapuntal textures and grow coherent form from motivic seeds. His sense of pacing keeps things moving even in contemplative passages. The 18 players of the Collegium are skilled soloists who form a poised and supple ensemble and the same is true of the Collegium's 12 singers, four of whom serve as Herreweghe's vocal soloists. Recorded in richly colorful and remarkably detailed digital sound, Jesu, deine Passion will be embraced by listeners who already know Herreweghe's way with Bach, or anyone with an interest in the more serious vein within Bach's cantatas.