Table of Contents
How many church cantatas did JS Bach write?
Between 1723 and the first performance of the St Matthew Passion on Good Friday 1727, Bach wrote over 150 cantatas, recycling existing pieces and inventing new music at the punishing rate of almost one a week.
What we now call a church cantata JS Bach referred to as?
Bach called his cantatas “concertos” as Schütz did a century earlier.
Why did Bach compose so many cantatas?
In addition to the church cantatas composed for occasions of the liturgical year, Bach wrote sacred cantatas for functions like weddings or Ratswahl (the inauguration of a new town council). His chorale cantata cycle contains at least 40 chorale cantatas, each of these entirely based on text and tune of such hymn.
Who wrote the chorale text and tune on which JS Bach based his Wachet Auf cantata?
Philipp Nicolai
Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme
| “Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme” | |
|---|---|
| Catalogue | Zahn 8405a |
| Related | Chorale cantata by Bach |
| Text | by Philipp Nicolai |
| Language | German |
Are cantatas longer than operas?
Like the oratorio and opera, the cantata will have multiple short contrasting sections, or movements, like arias (solo singer), duets, and choruses. Then comes the oratorio – Opera’s little brother. They tend to be shorter, don’t have sets and staging, etc. Smaller than the oratorio is the cantata.
Are Bach’s cantatas off-limits to new music fans?
While the drama and spiritual depths of Bach’s Passions continue to attract suitably passionate converts, his sublime church cantatas often appear to be off-limits to newcomers. But don’t be deterred by the barriers of unfamiliarity or the sheer number of pieces.
When did Bach start writing church cantatas?
As far as known, Bach’s earliest cantatas date from 1707, the year he moved to Mühlhausen, although he may have begun composing them at his previous post in Arnstadt. Most of Bach’s church cantatas date from his first years as Thomaskantor and director of church music in Leipzig, a position which he took up in 1723.
What does JJ mean in Bach’s cantatas?
Another cantata in which Bach used that term is Ich bin vergnügt mit meinem Glücke, BWV 84. Typically, he began a heading with the abbreviation J.J. (Jesu juva, “Jesus, help”), followed by the name of the celebration, the beginning of the words and the instrumentation, for example in Gloria in excelsis Deo, BWV 191.
What is Bach’s autograph of an aria in the cantata?
Bach’s autograph of an aria in the cantata Herr, gehe nicht ins Gericht mit deinem Knecht, BWV 105 The cantatas composed by Johann Sebastian Bach, known as Bach cantatas (German: Bachkantaten), are a body of work consisting of over 200 surviving independent works, and at least several dozen that are considered lost.