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Bach, J.S.: Favourite Arias and Choruses

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Bach, J.S.: Favourite Arias and Choruses

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Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750) Favourite Arias and Choruses Christmas Oratorio, BWV 248 Mass in B Minor, BWV 232 St. Matthew Passion, BWV 244 St. John...

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Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750)

Favourite Arias and Choruses

Christmas Oratorio, BWV 248

Mass in B Minor, BWV 232

St. Matthew Passion, BWV 244

St. John Passion, BWV 245

The career of Johann Sebastian Bach, the most illustrious of a prolific musical family, falls neatly into three unequal parts. Born in 1685 in Eisenach, from the age of ten Bach lived and studied music with his elder brother in Ohrdruf, after the death of both his parents. After a series of appointments as organist and briefly as a court musician, he became, in 1708, court organist and chamber musician to Duke Wilhelm Ernst of Weimar, the elder of the two brothers who jointly ruled the duchy. In 1714 he was promoted to the position of Konzertmeister to the Duke, but in 1717, after a brief period of imprisonment for his temerity in seeking to leave the Duke's service, he abandoned Weimar to become Court Kapellmeister to Prince Leopold of Anhalt-Cothen, a position he held until 1723. From then until his death in 1750 he lived in Leipzig, where he was Thomaskantor, teaching at the choir school and with responsibility for the music of the five principal city churches, in 1729 assuming direction of the university collegium musicum, founded by Telemann in 1702.

At Weimar Bach had been principally employed as an organist, and his compositions of the period include a considerable amount written for the instrument on which he was recognised as a virtuoso performer. At Cothen, where Pietist traditions dominated the court, he had no church duties, and was responsible rather for court music. The period brought the composition of a number of instrumental works. The final twenty-seven years of Bach's life brought a variety of preoccupations, and while his official employment necessitated the provision of church music, he was able, among other things, to provide music for the university collegium musicum and to write or re-arrange a number of important works for the keyboard.

Bach's Christmas Oratorio consists of six cantatas for the season from Christmas to Epiphany, adapted from earlier work and written in 1734 and 1735. The first of these is the joyful Jauchzet, frohlocket, aufpresiet die Tage, for performance on Christmas Day, proclaimed by trumpets and timpani with an orchestra of two flutes, two oboes d 'amore, viola da gamba, lute, organ, harpsichord and strings and alto, tenor and bass soloists with the choir.

The Latin Mass had continued in use in the larger Lutheran churches of Germany, at least where Pietist changes had not taken root. By the time of Bach it was principally the Kyrie and Gloria that were retained. Nevertheless it has been suggested that the four shorter Latin Mass settings, BWV 233-6, were written probably in the later 1730s in Leipzig either for the Catholic court of Dresden or for a possible Bohemian patron, Count Sporck. The Kyrie and Gloria of the Mass in B minor were written in 1733, making some use of earlier material, and dedicated to the new Elector of Saxony, Friedrich August II, when Bach visited Dresden, presenting at the same time a petition for a court title that might serve to protect him in Leipzig from some of the insults that he claimed he suffered in differences with the civic authorities. His request was not granted until1736, after the death of a lesser patron, Duke Christian of Weissenfels, whom Bach had served as Kapellmeister von Haus aus, as he had from 1723 Prince Leopold. It is possible that the Kyrie and Gloria were performed in Dresden at the Sophienkirche, where Wilhelm Friedemann, Bach's eldest son, had been appointed organist in 1733, or perhaps in Leipzig at the Thomaskirche to celebrate the accession of the new monarch. The remaining movements of the B minor Mass, the Credo, Sanctus, Benedictus and Agnus Dei, make considerable use of earlier works and were added to the original score of the Mass in the last years of the composer's life, between 1747 and 1749.

The Agnus Deiis based on Ach, bleibe doch, mein liebstes Leben, from Cantata BWV 11, the Ascension Oratorio, written for Ascension Day 1735. It is in the form of an alto aria with violins and basso continuo and is followed by a Dona nobis pacem for four-part choir and full instrumental forces, using again the music of Gratias agimus, from the Gloria, a conclusion that some have found unsatisfactory, although the words on both occasions seem equally appropriate. This, one of the greatest of choral works, ends with both thanks to God and a prayer for peace.

The traditional Roman 1iturgy involves the singing of the Passions, accounts of the suffering and crucifixion of Christ, on four days preceding Easter. On Palm Sunday the first account, from the Gospel of St. Matthew, is sung, followed on the Wednesday of Holy Week by the narrative of St. Luke, with that of St. Mark on Maundy Thursday and that of St. John on Good Friday.

The accounts of the Passion as found in the four Gospels naturally lend themselves to performance by more than one singer, an element of drama provided with the words of Christ, Pilate and other individuals allotted to different voices. This seems to have become the practice by the thirteenth century, when liturgical drama had already become a regu1ar part of Easter and Christmas ceremonies. By the early sixteenth century an element of polyphony had been introduced as a possible elaboration of the 1iturgical tradition.

Various forms of sung Passion were taken over by Martin Luther, and by the beginning of the eighteenth century German Lutherans had elaborated these earlier types of Passion. The form used by Bach was that of the oratorio Passion, as developed in North Germany in the middle of the seventeenth century. Here the bib1ical text is interrupted by meditative episodes, occasional instrumental passages and newly harmonized chorales.

Bach composed five Passion settings, of which those based on the Gospels of St. Matthew and of St. John survive. His St. Mark Passion is lost and a fourth, using the text of the Gospel of St. Luke, is considered spurious, while the fifth, referred to in Bach's Obituary, may be a single-choir version of the St. Matthew Passion. The St. Matthew Passion in its full surviving version was first performed, according to current Lutheran custom, on Good Friday, either in 1727 or in 1729, and repeated with various revisions in 1736 and in 1740. It is scored for two choirs and two orchestras, a division physically possible in the Church of St. Thomas in Leipzig, where performances were first given. The final version of the work calls for flutes, oboes, oboe d 'amore, cor anglais, bassoon, a string section including a viola da gamba and organ continuo for each of the instrumental ensembles.

The text of the St. Matthew Passion is taken, in the first place, from the Gospel of. St. Matthew in the translation of Martin Luther. The narrative is sung by the Evangelist, a tenor, with the words of Christ, Peter, Judas and others allocated to different Bingers. In addition to the Biblical text there are recitatives and arias that offer reflection on the events of the Passion and chorales that allow the chorus to add its own more familiar meditation.

The additional texts newly written for Bachare by Picander, the pseudonym of the Leipzig poet and civil servant Christian Friedrich Henrici, who w rote the additional text of Bach's St. Mark Passion and of a number of cantatas. The whole work is in two parts, the first of these taking the narrative from the events leading up to the Last Supper, to Gethsemane and the betrayal of Christ. The second part, after a contralto aria, opens with Christ before the High Priest and goes on to St.

Peter's denial of Christ, the attempt of Judas to repent and Christ before Pilate, His condemnation, scourging and crucifixion, ending as Pilate orders a watch to be kept on the sepulchre.

The general pattern of the St.

John Passion is similar to that of the St.

Matthew Passion, with the Gospel narrative sung by a tenor Evangelist and with meditative arias, choruses and chorales. Following tradition, the words of Christ are given to a bass, as are those of Pilate. Of the twelve chorales, four are in Part 1, the part of the work originally sung before the sermon. In Part 1 there are three arias, for alto, soprano and tenor. In addition to the chorales, the chorus opens the work with a prayer that seeks to point the lesson to be learned from the Passion. The chorus also follows tradition in providing the turba sections, the words of the crowd, in Part 1 of the servants of the High Priest seeking Christ in the garden of Gethsemane and later in the narrative of the servants of the High Priest warming themselves by the fire by the side of Simon Peter.

Disc 1

Christmas Oratorio, BWV 248

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Performed by: Bach Festival Orchestra Washington Choral Arts Society Orchestra Vienna Symphony Orchestra Budapest Failoni Chamber Orchestra Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra Stuttgart Bach Collegium Failoni Orchestra, Budapest Concerto Koln Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra Munich Residence Chamber Orchestra
Composed by: Johann Sebastian Bach James Taylor
Conducted by: Greg Funfgeld Karin Freist-Wissing Norman Scribner August Langenbeck Karl Munchinger Geza Oberfrank Helmuth Rilling Matyas Antal Ralf Otto Roland Buchner Ferdinand Grossman Reinhard Kammler
Johannes Kammler, bass
Tamara Matthews, soprano
Janice Chandler-Eteme, soprano
Ferdinand Geirhos, boy alto
Ivo Hartmann, boy soprano
Markus Goppel, boy soprano
Sebastian Maurer, boy alto
Elly Ameling, soprano
Peter Pears, tenor
Christoph Pregardien, tenor
Ruth Ziesak, soprano
Marietta Simpson, mezzo-soprano
Judit Nemeth, alto
Janos Toth, bass
Hanno Muller-Brachmann, bass-baritone
Erich Majkut, tenor
Ingrid Kertesi, soprano
Jozsef Mukk, tenor
Gerhard Werlitz, tenor
Christopheren Nomura, baritone
Monica Groop, mezzo-soprano
Helen Watts, alto
Sibylla Rubens, soprano
Klaus Mertens, baritone
Ingeborg Danz, alto
Marcus Ullmann, tenor
Friederike Sailer, soprano
Erika Winkler, contralto
Hannes Swedberg, bass
Fritz Wunderlich, tenor
Tom Krause, bass-baritone
Benjamin Butterfield, tenor
Stefan Horz, organ

Jauchzet, frohlocket - 7:20

Mass in B minor, BWV 232

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Performed by: Bach Festival Orchestra Victor Orchestra Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra Cologne Chamber Orchestra London Symphony Orchestra Capella Istropolitana Collegium Musicum 90 Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra London Philharmonic Orchestra Philharmonia Orchestra Stuttgart Bach Collegium Studio orchestra Kleine Konzert, Das
Composed by: Johann Sebastian Bach James Taylor
Conducted by: Greg Funfgeld Herbert von Karajan Adrian Boult Sylvan Levin Richard Hickox Karl Munchinger Christian Brembeck Helmut Muller-Bruhl Helmuth Rilling Albert Coates Gustave Bret Marc Minkowski Hermann Max
Hans-Georg Wimmer, bass
Tamara Matthews, soprano
Rosa Lamoreaux, soprano
Joanne Lunn, soprano
Stephen Varcoe, bass
William Sharp, baritone
Julia Lezhneva, soprano
Elly Ameling, soprano
Henri Merckel, violin
Colin Balzer, tenor
Christian Gerhaher, bass
Mark Tucker, tenor
Elisabeth Schumann, soprano
Georges Thill, tenor
Heinz Rehfuss, bass
Joseph Fuchs, violin
Margaret Balfour, contralto
Werner Krenn,
Nancy Argenta, soprano
Kathleen Ferrier, contralto
Marietta Simpson, mezzo-soprano
Martina Koppelstetter, mezzo-soprano
Markus Schafer, tenor
Hartmut Elbert, bass
Markus Brutscher, tenor
Hanno Muller-Brachmann, bass-baritone
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, soprano
Christian Immler,
Jan Rozehnal, choirmaster
Yvonne Minton, mezzo-soprano
Catherine Denley, alto
Andreas Schmidt, bass
Franz-Josef Selig, bass
Frederick Urrey, tenor
Dorothy Maynor, soprano
Sunhae Im, soprano
Marianne Beate Kielland, mezzo-soprano
Ann Hallenberg, mezzo-soprano
Lucy Crowe, soprano
Veronika Winter, soprano
Nicolai Gedda, tenor
Terry Wey, counter-tenor
Nathalie Stutzmann, alto
Faridah Schafer Subrata, mezzo-soprano
Stephan Schreckenberger, bass
Friedrich Schorr, bass-baritone
Basil Lam, harpsichord
Johanna Koslowsky, soprano
Marga Hoffgen, alto
Helen Watts, alto
Thomas Quasthoff, bass
Sibylla Rubens, soprano
Marlis Petersen, soprano
Ingeborg Danz, alto
Juliane Banse, soprano
Lothar Odinius, tenor
Daniel Lichti, bass-baritone
Friederike Wagner, soprano
Anke Vondung, alto
Blandine Staskiewicz, mezzo-soprano
Kai Wessel, counter-tenor
Stella Doufexis, soprano
Luca Tittoto, bass
Tom Krause, bass-baritone
Recording date: 14 � 25 November 2003

Gloria: Gloria in excelsis Deo - Et in terra pax - 7:48
Agnus Dei - 5:53

St. Matthew Passion, BWV 244

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Performed by: Cologne Chamber Orchestra Hungarian State Symphony Orchestra Concertgebouw Orchestra Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra Stuttgart Bach Collegium Budapest Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra Kleine Konzert, Das
Composed by: Johann Sebastian Bach
Conducted by: Willem Mengelberg Christopher Stokes Frigyes Sandor Karl Munchinger Helmut Muller-Bruhl Geza Oberfrank Helmuth Rilling Hermann Max
Wilfried Jochens, tenor
Hans-Georg Wimmer, bass
Nico van der Meel, tenor
Locky Chung, bass
Claudia Couwenbergh, soprano
Elly Ameling, soprano
Allan Ahrans, bass
Eberhard Metternich, choirmaster
Hans-Christoph Rademann, choirmaster
Dominique Engler, soprano
Yosemeh Adjei, alto
Lothar Blum, tenor
Julian Schulzki, bass
Peter Pears, tenor
Magda Kalmar, soprano
Denes Gulyas, tenor
Zeger Vandersteene, tenor
Christoph Pregardien, tenor
Emily Gray, soprano
Jeffrey Makinson, organ
Judit Nemeth, alto
Peter Koves, bass
Markus Schafer, tenor
Istvan Gati, baritone
Hanno Muller-Brachmann, bass-baritone
Janos Remenyi, choirmaster
Agnes Mester, choirmaster
Marianne Beate Kielland, mezzo-soprano
Karl Erb, tenor
Willem Ravelli, bass
Jo Vincent, soprano
Ilona Durigo, alto
Louis van Tulder, tenor
Herman Schey, bass
Piet van Egmond, organ
Johannes den Hertog, harpsichord
Louis Zimmermann, violin
G. Blanchard, oboe
W. Peddemors, oboe
Hubert Barwahser, flute
Jozsef Mukk, tenor
Veronika Winter, soprano
Michael Schade, tenor
Marga Hoffgen, alto
Thomas Quasthoff, bass
Julia Hamari, contralto
Klaus Mertens, baritone
Ingeborg Danz, alto
Hermann Prey, bass-baritone
Matthias Goerne, baritone
Ibolya Verebics, soprano
Christiane Oelze, soprano
Manfred Ackermann, bass
Lena Susanne Norin, alto
Fritz Wunderlich, tenor
Monika Frimmer, soprano
Ernst-Gerold Schramm, bass
Raimund Nolte, bass
Tom Krause, bass-baritone

Chorus with chorale: Kommt, ihr Tochter, helft mir klagen (Chorus) - 7:38
Aria: Blute nur, du liebes Herz! (Soprano) - 4:52
Aria: Ich will bei meinem Jesu wachen (Tenor, Chorus) - 5:29
Chorale: Wer hat dich so geschlagen (Chorus) - 0:57
Erbarme dich� mein Gott - 7:11
Chorale: O Haupt voll Blut und Wunden (Chorus) - 2:31
Wir setzen uns mit Tranen nieder (Chorus) - 6:35

St John Passion, BWV 245

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Performed by: Sixteen Orchestra, The Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra Scholars Baroque Ensemble Stuttgart Bach Collegium Kleine Konzert, Das
Composed by: Johann Sebastian Bach James Taylor
Conducted by: Harry Christophers Edward Higginbottom Karl Munchinger Helmuth Rilling Hermann Max Simon Carrington
Hans-Georg Wimmer, bass
Ralf Popken, alto
Mellissa Hughes, vocals
Elly Ameling, soprano
Mariane Koehnlein-Goebel, contralto
Allan Ahrans, bass
Ilya Poletaev, organ
Derek Chester, tenor
Douglas Williams, bass-baritone
Abigail Haynes, soprano
Ian L. Howell, alto
Sylvia Aiko Rider, alto
Steven Caldicott Wilson, tenor
William Perdue, cello
Cameron Arens, double bass
Michael George, bass
Joshua Copeland,
Dorothea Roschmann, soprano
Christoph Pregardien, tenor
Gotthold Schwarz, bass
Markus Brutscher, tenor
James Gilchrist, tenor
John Bernays, bass
Eamonn Dougan, bass
Joe Littlewood, soprano
James Bowman, alto
Matthew Beale, tenor
Colin Baldy, bass
William Kendall, tenor
Patrizia Kwella, soprano
Andreas Schmidt, bass
David James, counter-tenor
David Wilson-Johnson, bass
Michael Schade, tenor
Julia Hamari, contralto
Ingeborg Danz, alto
Hermann Prey, bass-baritone
Matthias Goerne, baritone
Juliane Banse, soprano
Walter Berry, bass
Manfred Ackermann, bass
Werner Hollweg, tenor
Dieter Ellenbeck, tenor
Martina Lins, soprano
Wolfgang Isenhardt, tenor
Ian Partridge, tenor
Recording date: 6-14 July 2001

Aria: Ich folge dir gleichfalls mit freudigen Schritten (Soprano) - 3:53
Aria: Es ist vollbracht (Alto) - 5:38
Aria: Zerfliesse, mein Herze (Soprano) - 6:32
Ruht wohl, ihr heiligen Gebeine (Chorus) - 7:28

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Composer(s):
Bach, Johann Sebastian

Conductor(s):
Brembeck, Christian; Oberfrank, Geza

Orchestra(s):
Budapest Failoni Chamber Orchestra; Capella Istropolitana; Hungarian State Symphony Orchestra; Scholars Baroque Ensemble

Artist(s):
Mukk, Jozsef; Nemeth, Judit; Schafer Subrata, Faridah; Verebics, Ibolya

Label: Naxos Classics
UPC: 730099425728
Item Number: 8553257
Release Date: Jul 10, 1995

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