FRESH from conducting a superb St John Passion three days earlier, Peter Seymour was back on the podium on Saturday with the St Matthew.

Each was sung in German. But there were differences in effect, if not in style, between the two events. Matthew Brook’s Christus was the backbone of the evening, mightily resilient.

Where necessary he commanded a stentorian authority, though his sufferings were heartfelt indeed. But he also, perhaps surprisingly, sang all bar one of the bass arias. Here he found a different tone, characterised by warm legato, nowhere more so than in the last, Purify Yourself, My Heart.

Nicholas Mulroy had the right equipment but was an uneven Evangelist here, in danger of becoming the story rather than just telling it. He regularly dwelt too long on weak syllables and the continuo group had difficulty remaining in close harness with him.

Jack Comerford’s Pilate was confidently delivered, as was his aria, luminously partnered by Daniel Edgar’s violin.

The most impressive of the aria soloists, all chorus members, were soprano Sarah Holland and contralto Laura Baldwin, both phrasing intelligently; Jonathan Hanley’s tenor showed promise. Several others might have used diction to improve projection.

The choir was consistently reliable: chorales were neatly phrased, choruses had a more hell-for-leather feeling. As soloists, the orchestra, led by Lucy Russell, was impeccable; as a band, it was less taut. But Seymour’s particular knack with Bach was never in doubt.