J.S. Bach

Bach’s “Sanfte soll mein Todeskummer”: An Easter Lullaby

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Sanfte soll mein Todeskummer (“Gentle shall be my contemplation of death”) is a sacred tenor aria from Bach’s Easter Oratorio, BWV 249. Sung by Simon Peter following the discovering of the empty tomb of Christ, it is a serene reflection on death as a peaceful slumber. Accompanied by recorders, with their pastoral connotations, the aria unfolds with the gentle rocking motion of a lullaby. The Netherlands Bach Society writes, In Bach’s church …

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Bach’s “O Lamm Gottes, Unschuldig,” BWV 618: Canon Alla Quinta

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Typically, a musical canon involves a melodic line which is imitated by one or more voices after a set duration, resulting in a magical contrapuntal layering. In the chorale prelude for organ, O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig (“O Lamb of God, innocent”), BWV 618, Bach expanded on this idea by creating a canon “alla quinta” (“canon at the fifth”). Unlike a canon in unison, the voices are set a fifth apart. In this …

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Bach’s Violin Concerto in A Minor, BWV 1041: Hilary Hahn and the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen

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“Bach has played a long part in my musical life,” said violinist Hilary Hahn in a 2018 interview. “I started playing the solo Bach Sonatas and Partitas when I was nine in preparation for a couple of movements that I played on my first full recital when I was ten, and shortly after that I started at Curtis…” While Bach’s six groundbreaking Sonatas and Partitas showcase the violin as an instrument capable …

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Remembering Helmuth Rilling

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Helmuth Rilling, an acclaimed German choral conductor and influential interpreter of Bach, passed away last Wednesday, February 11. He was 92. Rilling founded numerous ensembles including the Gächinger Kantorei (1954), the Bach-Collegium Stuttgart (1965), the Oregon Bach Festival (1970), and the Internationale Bachakademie Stuttgart (1981). He served as professor of choral conducting at the Frankfurt Musikhochschule from 1965 to 1989 and led the Frankfurter Kantorei from 1969 to 1982. “Music has to …

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Bach’s “Osanna in Excelsis”: Celebrating a Milestone at The Listeners’ Club

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We begin the year by celebrating a milestone at The Listeners’ Club. This is our 2,000th post. I have enjoyed exploring all of this music with you during these years, and I look forward to continuing the journey. For today, I have selected the brief and festive Osanna in excelsis (“Hosanna in the highest”) which opens the fourth section of Bach’s Mass in B minor, BWV 232. Set in 3/8 time, its lively forward …

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Bach’s Kyrie, Gott heiliger Geist BWV 671: Monumental Treatment of an Ancient Melody

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In 1525, Martin Luther wrote his Kyrie, adapting an ancient Gregorian chant melody set in the Phrygian mode. It consists of three parts, moving from God the Father, to God the Son, and concluding with the Holy Spirit. J.S. Bach composed three organ preludes (Clavier-Übung III) based on the sections of Luther’s Kyrie. Beginning in the treble register, each descends, as if to evoke the religious symbolism of Christ’s descent. In the final …

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“Gottes Zeit ist die allerbeste Zeit”: György Kurtág’s Sublime Transcription of Bach

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In an interview, the Hungarian composer György Kurtág (b. 1926) was asked if he is a believer. His answer was uncertain: I do not know. I toy with the idea. Consciously, I am certainly an atheist, but I do not say it out loud, because if I look at Bach, I cannot be an atheist. Then I have to accept the way he believed. His music never stops praying. And how can …

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