rssThe vocal sense is the most important factor in the hearing of polyphony. One hears counterpoint far less in terms of its component notes than in terms of the transitions between these notes. - Ralph Kirkpatrick
2005, July 18
BWV 650 Corrected
Schübler chorale 6, Come thou, Jesu, from heaven to earth (Kommst du nun, Jesu, vom Himmel herunter)
This morning I realized that the QT file of the sixth Schübler chorale has the chorale melody an octave too low. I missed the organ pedal marking, 4 fuss, meaning that it sounds an octave higher than written.
Since it is an alto aria, this makes sense, since it would be in the wrong range as I had it.
Here is the corrected file:
And since I have developed a fondness for the chorale an octave lower, here is the uncorrected version.
BWV 650, chorale an octave low
2005, July 12
How Brightly Beams the Morning Star
How Brightly Beams the Morning Star (Wie schön leuchtet der morgenstern)
This chorale melody is attributed to Philipp Nicolai (1544-1608), in 1599. Charles Sanford Terry comments that "it is improbable that Nicolai composed the melody" but rather more likely that he adjusted older material to his hymn. Terry goes on to state that the melody bears a partial resemblance to a 14th century carol, Resonet in laudibus.
Resonet in laudibus, harmonized by Ralph Vaughn Williams
According to Terry, the source of the hymn text is Psalm 45, but I personally cannot see a connection.
Besides the pieces below, the melody also appears in BWV 37.3 as a soprano and alto duet, and in BWV 49.6 where it is an aria duet for soprano and bass.
| The music: | BWV 1.1 | The opening chorale of Cantata 1. A complex chorale fantasia with the chorale in the soprano part. | BWV 1.6 | The final chorale of Cantata 1. The soprano part is doubled by the first horn and the first violin. The alto part is doubled by the second violin and the first oboe da caccia. The tenor part is doubled by the viola and the second oboe da caccia. |
| BWV 36(2).4 | Another four part chorale. | ||
| BWV 61.6 | This piece uses the final Amen from the chorale. | ||
| BWV 172.6 | A violin obbligato part accompanies this 4 part chorale, "How Brightly Shines the Morning Star". This is the final chorale of Cantata 172, "Erschallet, ihr Lieder" or "Ring Out, Songs, Resound". | ||
| BWV 172.6, Vocal parts | The four part harmonization without the violin. | ||
| BWV 172.6, violin obbligato | Violin part only. | ||
| BWV 436 | A four part chorale. |
MP3 files of these chorales are available. If you want one, leave me a note in a comment with your email address and I will send it. Unfortunately, the files are too large to put them on my ftp server for general distribution.
Some names under which this chorale is known:
Wie schön leuchtet der morgenstern
How Brightly Beams the Morning Star
Discussions from the Bach Cantatas website:
Discussions from the Emmanuel Music website:
BWV 1
BWV 36
BWV 61
BWV 172 (translation)
2005, July 09
The Gooloo Bird - Shel Silverstein (1930-1999)
Hopeful mother, without resources
The Gooloo bird
She has no feet.
She cannot walk
Upon the street.
She cannot build
Herself a nest,
She cannot land
And take a rest.
Through rain and snow
And thunderous skies,
She weeps forever
As she flies,
And lays her eggs
High over town,
And prays that they
Fall safely down.
Gooloo, a poem from A Light in the Attic, Shel Silverstein
WebSites:
Biography
Kid's Site
Banned Hamlet
Memorial
2005, July 06
Dorothy Sayers
As my Wimsey takes me.
Here are all the books Dorothy Sayers wrote with the characters Lord Peter and Harriet Vane. Harriet does not appear in two of them, but she is referred to marginally. These are great books to read and re-read; she is certainly a favorite of mine.
Strong Poison 1930
Have His Carcase 1932
The Nine Tailors 1934
Gaudy Night 1935
Busman’s Honeymoon 1937
Striding Folly 1973
Thrones, Dominations (co-author Jill Paton Walsh) 1998
A Presumption of Death (co-author Jill Paton Walsh) 2004
WebSites:
Dorothy Sayers Society
Dorothy Sayers
