Sweet consolation, my Jesus is coming
| Bach cantata | |
|---|---|
| Sweet consolation, my Jesus is coming | |
| BWV: | 151 |
| Occasion: | Christmas (3rd day) |
| Year of origin: | 1725 |
| Place of origin: | Leipzig |
| Genus: | cantata |
| Solo : | S, A, T, B |
| Choir: | (S, A, T, B) |
| Instruments : | Ft, Oa; 2Vl, Va; Bc |
| text | |
| Georg Christian Lehms | |
| List of Bach cantatas | |
Sweet consolation, my Jesus is coming ( BWV 151) is a church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach . He composed the work in Leipzig for Christmas Day ( December 27th ) and performed it for the first time on December 27th, 1725.
history
Bach composed this solo cantata in Leipzig at the end of 1725 in his third year as Thomaskantor as part of his third cantata cycle . He wrote it for the service on St. John's Day (Boxing Day, December 27th). The St. Thomas' Choir was only used for the final movement, as in other Bach works for a third festival day.
The prescribed scriptures for the feast day came from the Epistle to the Hebrews ( Hebrews 1, 1–14 EU ) and the prologue of the Gospel according to John , also known as the “Hymn to the Word” ( John 1, 1–14 EU ). Bach chose a text by Georg Christian Lehms , which was inspired by the letter to the Hebrews. The last movement is a setting of the last verse of the hymn Praise God, ye Christians all the same , a Christmas song by Nikolaus Herman from the year 1560th
Bach first performed the cantata on December 27, 1725; it was performed again between 1728 and 1731. The score and the parts of the autograph are in the art collections of the Veste Coburg Coburg ( Bavaria ) in Germany .
Occupation and structure
The work is written for four soloists ( soprano , alto , tenor and bass ) and a four-part choir (SATB) and is composed of a flute , an oboe d'amore , two violins , a viola and the figured bass .
The cantata has five movements:
- Aria (soprano): Sweet consolation, my Jesus is coming
- Recitative (bass): Rejoice, my heart
- Aria (alto): I can comfort me in Jesus' humility
- Recitative (tenor): You dear Son of God
- Chorale: Today he locks the door again.
music
Due to its intimate cast and the lack of a large-scale opening choir , the work is described as a “precious miniature” and “the most personal of Bach's Christmas cantatas”.
The opening aria begins in 12/8 time with a molto adagio that looks like a lullaby . This movement “dominates and shines through the whole work” with its “shimmering transparency”. It is written in G major and is accompanied by an obbligato flute and string instruments , the sound of which is enhanced by the oboe d'amore . The flute's music is heavily ornamented , almost like an arabesque , and expands the soprano s melodic arcs. The da capo aria contains a sharply contrasting middle section, “an ecstatic alla breve dance of joy, partly gavotte , partly gigue ”, which is based on a motif of “agile triplet chains” that form a “melodic melody”. The opening section then repeats to complete the sentence. John Eliot Gardiner thinks that this sentence contains “musical cues from both Gluck and Brahms ” and “something authentic Levantine or even Basque ”. Craig Smith notes that this is " closest to the southern German Rococo ". While listening, you can almost see the putti and golden rays of the sun of the churches from this time in Bavaria and Austria .
The second movement is a secco recitative in bass . It offers a double transition, both harmonic - from a major key to a minor key in preparation for the third movement - and thematically - "advancing (or receding) from the state of celebration to the recognition of the humility of the state of Christ".
The da capo -Alt aria is from Unison - oboe d'amore and string instruments accompanied. It expands the secondary mode defined in the second sentence and the subject of deprivation . The phrase emphasizes that the seventh (the seven- note interval ) and the technique of inversion to aid the meaning of the text. It begins with a chromatic string line led by a solo violin. When the vocal line begins, it becomes "inseparable, even obsessive, intertwined with the singer".
The tenor recitative reverses the movement of the bass, modulating from the minor key to the major key, and changing the emphasis of the text from humility to solemnity. It is a secco recitative, short and simple in its melody.
The last movement is a four-part setting of the eighth and thus last stanza of Nikolaus Herman Choral.
Recordings
- Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir , Ton Koopman . JS Bach: Complete Cantatas Vol. 18 . Antoine Marchand, 2002
- Bach Collegium Japan , Masaaki Suzuki . JS Bach: Cantatas Vol. 43 . UNTIL 2008
- Choir and Orchestra “Pro Arte” Munich / Kurt Redel . JS Bach: Cantatas Nos. 157 55 151 . Erato, 1956
- Frankfurter Kantorei / Bach-Collegium Stuttgart , Helmuth Rilling . The Bach cantata . Hänssler Verlag , 1971
- Holland Boys Choir / Netherlands Bach Collegium , Pieter Jan Leusink . Bach Edition Vol. 12 - Cantatas Vol. 6 . Brilliant Classics, 1999
- Monteverdi Choir / English Baroque Soloists , John Eliot Gardiner . Bach Cantatas Vol. 15: New York . Soli Deo Gloria, 2000.
Web links
- Structure and text
- Sweet consolation, my Jesus is coming, BWV 151 : Sheet music and audio files in the International Music Score Library Project
- Sweet consolation, my Jesus is coming BWV 151; BC A 17 Bach Digital
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Cantata BWV 151 . bach cantatas. Retrieved June 2, 2013.
- ↑ a b Schuhmacher, Gerhard: Liner notes to Bach Cantatas, Vol. 36 . bach cantatas. Retrieved June 2, 2013.
- ↑ Cantata BWV 151, “Sweet consolation, my Jesus is coming” . Bach Choir of Bethlehem. Retrieved December 14, 2012.
- ↑ a b BWV 151 . University of Alberta. Retrieved June 2, 2013.
- ↑ Cantata No. 151 . Allmusic. Retrieved June 2, 2013.
- ^ A b c Smith, Craig : BWV 151 . Emmanuel Music. Retrieved June 2, 2013.
- ^ Reed, Philip: Liner notes to Britten at Aldeburgh . bach cantatas. Pp. 5-6. Retrieved June 2, 2013.
- ↑ a b c d e Mincham, Julian: Chapter 8 BWV 151 . jsbachcantatas. Retrieved June 2, 2013.
- ↑ a b c d John Eliot Gardiner: Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) / Cantatas Nos 57, 64, 133 & 151 . Soli Deo Gloria (at Hyperion Records website). 2006. Accessed December 31, 2018.
- ^ A b c Hofmann, Klaus: Liner notes to Cantatas 43 . bach cantatas. 2008. Retrieved June 2, 2013.
