People change and forget to tell each other. - Lillian Hellman
Music
2008, May 11
Whit Sunday 2008
Pentecost, the fiftieth day after Easter with J.S. Bach and Alexander Sadoyan..
Painting by Alexander Sadoyan.
For today, Pentecost or Whit Sunday, we have BWV 172, "Erschallet, ihr Lieder, erklinget, ihr Saiten!" ("Ring out, you songs, resound, you strings!"), a favorite of mine, which concludes with a four part chorale with a wonderful violin obligato. It was written for Pentecost Sunday in May 1714, so is one of Bach's early cantatas. He also played it several times in Leipzig with some alterations.
Alfred Dürr says of this cantata: "All the various changes he made show how much trouble Bach took over a work which—as the number of documented performances (at least four) suggests—he seems to have particularly loved."
I have several performances of this cantata: Leusink, Leonhardt, Koopman, Suzuki, Rifkin, Gardiner and Rilling. The large number of performances available is another indication of the popularity and appeal of this cantata. The opening chorus is very festive; it puts me in mind of the opening movement of the Christmas Oratorio.
The six parts of the cantata are:
opening chorus
bass recitative with a low C at the end
bass aria
tenor aria
alto-soprano aria with the chorale "Komm, Heiliger Geist, Herre Gott" in the instruments
closing chorale with violin obligato.
As for the low C discussed at such great length on the Bach Cantatas Website, it is most audible on the Suzuki performance, but all the basses do well. The most joyous performance for me is Rifkin's. His choice of one voice and one instrument per part also allows the violin obligato to shine through on the final chorale.
BWV 172 Complete cantata by Leusink
Listen to the closing chorale with the soundfont JEUX, by John W. McCoy.
The closing chorale by Leusink, BWV 172.6
A discussion of the melody of BWV 172.6
Discussions of the Cantata
Notes from the Bach Cantatas Website p. 1
Notes from the Bach Cantatas Website p. 2
Notes from the Bach Cantatas Website p. 3
Notes from Craig Smith
Translation by Craig Smith
2008, May 01
The Ascension
The Feast of the Ascension with Medieval Wall Painting in English Parish Churches and Bach's Cantata BWV 37, Wer da gläubet und getauft wird.
I was captivated by this wonderful photo by T. Marshall of a wall painting in Seething, Norfolk. I love the feet disappearing into the void, perhaps a cloud, or perhaps there was a full figure originally and it has been obliterated. I love the warmth and color and the suggestion of the upwards watching friends and family below. Very likely this painting was detailed when created originally, but I believe its charm has grown with the passing of centuries.
I have just begun listening to cantata BWV 37, and am growing to love it. This cantata dedicated to faith is not grand, but is written on a small scale. There is a gentle energy in all parts of the music. There is no sense of triumphant gladness, but rather a quiet confidence in the friend who is going before. I especially appreciate the third movement which is a duet by Soprano and Alto on the chorale melody "Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern", which appears again soon on Whit (Pentecost) Sunday. I am also very fond of the oboe obligato in the bass aria; much of the energy and forward movement comes from this reed instrument used so often by Bach.
Part two is a tenor aria which originally had a violin obligato accompaniment which has been lost. I favor the violin parts in the Harnoncourt and the Gardiner edition, both possibly written by Alfred Dürr at different times. I do not have the score for any of the violin parts which show up in the excerpts below and the liner notes do not address this issue (a shame). In his book The Cantatas of J.S. Bach, Mr. Dürr says: "…with the aid of thematic material developed in the tenor and continuo parts, it may be reconstructed well enough for no breach of style to be apparent and without the overall impression suffering from its failings." I feel the violin parts as presented in these recordings live up to this expectation.
Music Samples
BWV 37 Complete cantata by Leusink
Excerpts
BWV 37.1 Opening Chorus by Harnoncourt
BWV 37.2 Tenor Aria: Leusink with tenor and continuo
BWV 37.2 Tenor Aria: Koopman with tenor, continuo and violin (written by Koopman)
BWV 37.2 Tenor Aria: Harnoncourt with tenor, continuo and violin (?written by A. Dürr)
BWV 37.2 Tenor Aria: Gardiner with tenor, continuo and violin (?written by A. Dürr)
BWV 37.3 Chorale Soprano and Alto: Leusink
BWV 37.3 Chorale Soprano and Alto: Harnoncourt
BWV 37.3 Chorale Soprano and Alto: Gardiner
BWV 37.3 Chorale Soprano and Alto: Koopman
BWV 37.4 Bass Recitive: Leusink
BWV 37.5 Bass Aria: Leusink
BWV 37.6 Chorale: Leusink
BWV 37.6 Chorale: Score
Discussions of the Cantata
Notes from the Bach Cantatas Website
Notes from Craig Smith
Notes from Simon Crouch
Translation by Craig Smith
2008, March 21
Good Friday, Bach's Birthday and a Full Moon
How to celebrate: the return of music to the church after Lent, with the St. Matthew and the St. John Passions.
March 21 marks the birthday of Johann Sebastian Bach. This year it is Good Friday, the day for which the Passions were composed and it is a Full Moon.
Sunday, March 23rd, 2008 – will be the earliest Easter Sunday since 1913. Easter Sunday is defined as the first Sunday after the “Ecclesiastical Full Moon” (the Church’s approximation of when a Full Moon will occur, generally within a day of the actual Full Moon) after March 20th, which was the date fixed by the Church as Equinox in 325 AD. The earliest possible Easter Sunday is March 22nd, which last occurred in 1818, and will next occur in 2285. Image of the full moon of March 21, 2008 courtesy of Matt Wedel.
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Gustav Leonhardt conducting the St. Matthew Passion, BWV 244.1. |
Jonathan Peter Kenny sings an aria from the St. Matthew Passion, BWV 244.39. |
2008, February 02
BWV 830 Partita Six
Glenn Gould plays Bach
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2008, January 27
Craig Smith, Emmanuel Music
Craig Smith died in November 2007.
Craig Smith, the artistic director of Emmanuel Music and the force behind the Emmanuel Music Website, died on November 14, 2007 at the age of 60.
This website has very helpful notes and the best translations of the Bach cantatas and has been very helpful to me in my research.
On January 31, there will be a memorial concert at 7:30pm in the sanctuary of the Emmanuel Church, 15 Newbury St. Boston, Massachusetts 02116. (617) 536-3355.
Craig Smith, Blue Mass Group obituary.
Craig Smith, Boston Phoenix obituary.
Craig Smith, Boston Globe obituary.
Craig Smith, broadcasts and obituary.
Craig Smith, NY Times obituary.
2008, January 04
James Kibbie and the Bach Organ
Another major work in progress.
James Kibbie is in the process of recording the Bach Organ Works on original 18th-century German organs by Silbermann, Hildebrandt, Trost, and others.
Free downloads of the organ works of J. S. Bach will be available as they are recorded in MP3 and AAC format. This work is sponsored by the University of Michigan
Here is a sample, BWV 659, one of the Leipzig chorales, in AAC format. This is a large file and takes a while to load. Be patient.
I am very impressed with this work and look forward to the Schubler chorales, some of my favorite organ music. I am very grateful that Mr. Kibbie contacted me and requested a link on my website.
