You must be the change you want to see in the world. - Gandhi
2005, April 14
Schübler chorale 3, BWV 647
Who allows God alone to rule him (Wer nur den lieben Gott läßt walten)
This is the third Schübler chorale, BWV 647, based on the melody "Wer nur den lieben Gott läßt walten", used in cantatas for many occasions, including one wedding. The melody may be by Georg Neumark, from about 1640, and appeared in his "Fortegepflantzter Musikalisch-Poetischer Lustwald", Jena, 1657.
This is a transcription of the soprano and alto duet from Cantata 93. All the sections of the Cantata use the chorale melody, with the seventh section a simple four part harmonization.
| The music: | BWV 647 | Cantus firmus in the pedal, sounding an octave higher than written (Pedal 4 Fuß). | |
| BWV 93.7 | A four part harmonization of the chorale melody. | ||
| BWV 166.6 | A four part harmonization of the chorale melody. | ||
| BWV 179.6 | A four part harmonization of the chorale melody. | ||
| BWV 197.10 | A four part harmonization of the chorale melody. | ||
| BWV 434 | A four part harmonization of the chorale melody. | ||
| BWV 642 | Another organ chorale on the same melody. | ||
| BWV 690 | Another organ chorale on the same melody. | ||
| BWV 691 | Another organ chorale on the same melody. |
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:
Wer nur den lieben Gott läßt walten
Wer weiss, wie nahe mir meine ende
Who allows God alone to rule him
Who will but let himself be guided
Discussion from the Bach Cantatas website
Discussion from the website of Emmanuel Music of Boston
The Organ Music of J.S. Bach, 2nd ed.
Peter Williams, Cambridge University Press 2003
