Luogo e data di registrazione		s'Gravenwezel Castle, (Belgium) - July 2005
	Registrazione: live / studio		studio
	Recording Staff		Tonstudio Teije van Geest, Sandhausen (Germany) | Tonstudio van Geest | G. Appenheimer | E. Steiger | Studio Bauer, Ludwigsburg (Germany)
	Prima Edizione CD		ACCENT - ACC 25302 - (1 CD) - durata 66' 42" - (p) 2005 (c) 2006 - DDD
	Note		With the support of the Flemish authorities

COMMENTARY on the cantatas presented here The church year begins on the first Sunday of Advent. For practical reasons our series of recordings does not follow this pattern. "Ich ruf zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ" - BWV 177 for the 4th Sunday after Trinity This cantata was composed in 1732 and performed for the first time on July 6 of that year. It is a true chorale cantata, the entire text being from an old hymn - without any revision. In this case, Bach used a hymn of about 1530 by Johann Agricola. All five stanzas ("verses") have the same nine-line structure; iambic metre (short-long) prevails, but the seventh line provides a contrast by using trochaic metre (long-short) - a poetic Mannerism that has a special effect! The first and last stanzas are in four parts, on the analogy of the usual opening chorus and closing chorale; the three middle stanzas are treated quite differently. The second stanza is in two parts (alto and basso continuo), the third in three parts (soprano, oboe da caccia and b.c.) and the fourth in four parts (tenor, solo violin, solo bassoon and b.c.). That progression in compositional complexity is very effective, especially since there are no recitatives to interrupt the process. Calling for two oboes, solo violin, strings and b.c. together with the vocal quartet, the lively opening movement is conceived on a large scale. Right at the beginning the first oboe clearly sounds (like a signal) the interval we will later hear several times in the repeated vocal interpolations of "Ich ruf" (I call). This 'signal' proves to be an important element; Bach also used it (at the beginning of the next three lines of text) in the imitative entries of the three lower voices, whereupon the soprano and the oboes then take up the chorale tune each time. The instruments are assigned very active roles throughout in concertante fashion, with the solo violin taking the initiative. Also worthy of remark is the way Bach in the sixth line "Den wollest du mir geben" (which thou saw'st fit to give to me) suddenly assigns the chorale tune itself to all the lower voices in imitative fashion before allowing the soprano to sing it out, and the way he announces the last line "Dein Wort zu halten eben" (to keep thy word) with a rising oboe figure and then unusually assigns it directly to the soprano. The second stanza „Ich bitt noch mehr, o Herre Gott" (I ask still more, O Lord God) is an alto aria with a strikingly independent and repetitive basso continuo part; an essential element of it is a repeated formula of only five notes which first turns upward as a "question" and then turns downward as an "answer". The text could not be illustrated more clearly: man supplicates and God answers! Against this background, in dialogue as it were, the alto then sings the nine-line stanza again. The third stanza "Verleih, dass ich aus Herzensgrund", etc. (grant that from the depths of my heart) is an aria for soprano, oboe da caccia and basso continuo. The oboe da caccia has seldom been given such solo prominence and its sound in this dense three-part counterpoint is unforgettable. At the words "bald möcht abkehren" right at the end, the rhetorician Bach shows how variously this image can be set. The fourth stanza ("Lass mich kein Lust noch Furcht" etc.) is assigned to the tenor. The happy chamber-music passages of the two solo instruments (violin and bassoon) with b.c. change into a four-part concertante fabric full of surprises as soon as the vocal part begins. This is also an extremely rare tonal combination. Strange, irregularly placed accents distinguish the first line - reflecting the world as a confusion of pleasure and fear as the text implies? Bach also writes suggestively at the word "Sterben" (dying) in the last line. The final section using the fifth stanza ("Ich lieg im Streit und widerstreb") takes the form of a chorale in rich harmony and melody, but the prosody remains completely syllabic and simple. As in the other sections, the seventh line is trochaic in the otherwise 'upbeat' iambic context. "Wer nur den lieben Gott lässt walten" - BWV 93 for the 5th Sunday after Trinity This is again a chorale cantata; it was performed for the first time on July 9,1724. It is based on a seven-stanza hymn by Georg Neumark (1641). The anonymous librettist (in this case more of an 'arranger') retained three stanzas in their original form (first, fourth and seventh), and arranged the others to form recitatives and arias. The original stanzas each had six lines in iambic metre (short-long); the new texts are also iambic and include several of the original lines. Only in the case of the soprano aria "Ich will auf den Herren schaun / Und stets meinem Gott vertraun" (no. 6) did the librettist set his "own" lines in trochaic metre (long-short), lines 3 and 6 being "original" and thus iambic. That imparts to the text of this aria a rhythmically swinging alternation which is also musically attractive. Bach set the "original lines" to the original chorale tune, the "new" ones to freshly composed material! The opening choir (the first vers of the choraltext) with its 12/8 rhythm, has a fascinating 'swing'. Oboes and violins are opposed to each other, as couples in dialogue. The vocal quartet sings the six verses in three 'blocs' of two verses each. Every verse is presented first in a free passage (the first four in two parts, the last ones in four parts) before being exposed in a clearly recognisable way: the five first verses are finally presented (after the free sections) in the homophonic, vertical four-part manner - the melody of the last verse however, is only sung by the soprano, the other parts continuing their polyphonic figuration at the same time. This way the verse "Der hat auf keinen Sand gebaut" is given a particular splendour. The ensuing recitative for the bass with b.c. is of mixed character, more or less 'recognizable' original fragments of the chorale tune alternating with free "secco" sections. Bach systematically set the unchanged original lines of the text of 1641 to the original fragments of the chorale melody (accompanied by a steadily striding basso continuo), and set the "new" lines in free secco writing. This movement is particularly expressive in terms of both music and text, and very skilfully combines the old and the new. Bach exploited its opportunities to the full, not being able to resist a typical madrigalism at the words "Kreuz und Leid" (cross and grief). In German, Kreuz refers both to the cross and to the sharp sign in music; Bach here indeed set the word on a note raised a semitone by a "cross" (C sharp instead of C). In the aria no. 3 for tenor and strings, the principal theme is based on a similar madrigalism. The line "Man halte nur ein wenig stille" (we keep just a little silent) is actually 'interrupted' by rests after nur and stille! The resulting rhythmic figure then threads through the entire aria. Furthermore, the melodic line of the theme is unmistakably derived from the original chorale tune set in the major key, providing another instance of how "spontaneous-seeming" music can in fact spring from many given factors. The cheerful atmosphere of this aria corresponds with the optimism expressed by the text. The piece that follows marks the mid-point of the cantata (the fourth of seven sections) and uses the original text of the fourth stanza of the hymn of 1641, the central theme being confidence in God. It is a masterpiece of deductive genius in the guise of simplicity. The soprano and alto sing, imitating each other. The motivic material derives from the basic melody of the chorale supported by an instrumental ostinato bass. In unison, the violins and violas perform the unchanged chorale tune line for line, like a wordless comment. The ensuing long recitative for tenor and b.c. is structured in the same way as the bass recitative no. 2, being a systematic combination of original lines of text set to recognizable melodic fragments of the chorale and newly written lines set in free 'secco' style. But at the lines "Wenn Blitz und Donner kracht / Und dir ein schwülles Wetter bange macht, / Dass du von Gott verlassen seist" (when thunder and lightning crash / and a sultry storm makes you afraid, / [do not think] that God has forsaken you) Bach of course used the descriptive "accompagnato" style, full of Baroque sensibility. The aria no. 6 was described above with reference to its metrical alternation. The oboe and soprano enter into a lively dialogue; the quotations from the original melody are quite plain. This cantata closes with a simple chorale setting that is like a summary of what has gone before it, both verbally and musically. "Ach Herr, mich armen Sünder"- BWV 135 for the 3rd Sunday after Trinity It was performed for the first time on June 24, 1724. The text of this chorale cantata - by an unknown librettist from Bach's time - is based on a hymn of 1597 that was itself based on Psalm 6. The first and last stanzas of the original hymn of 1597 are retained literally in the outer movements; in the middle movements the remaining original stanzas were revised by the anonymous librettist at a later date, individual lines of the original being retained unchanged at places. The melody Bach uses in the outer movements is the same as that in the better known chorale "O Haupt voll Blut und Wunden". The opening chorus (SATB, with 2 oboes, strings and b.c., reinforced by a trombone) is a complicated chorale fantasia of the kind that only J.S. Bach ever wrote. A brief description may serve as an aid to listening: The text of this chorus is a plea for grace and forgiveness. The eight lines of the (original) text are sung by the vocal ensemble as eight "blocks", in each of which the familiar chorale tune is adopted in clear form by the bass, supported by the basso continuo with trombone. At the seventh line, "dass ich mag ewig leben" (that I may live eternally), Bach unusually assigns all the notes of the melody the same value - a fine madrigalism. In the instrumental prelude and the "interludes" between the lines, the basso continuo is silent; the violins and viola in unison accompany the two oboes like a "bassetto" in the higher octave, always anticipating the next fragment of the melody. The continuous quaver figuration throughout in all the parts except for the bass is clearly derived from the beginning of the chorale tune (cf. "O Haupt voll Blut" etc.), but uses smaller note values. After the fourth line, "sonst ists mit mir verloren" (or I will be lost), this motif sounds in mirror form and is briefly confronted with the original form - another nicety in Bach's text-bound composing in this movement! This monumental choral section is followed by a tenor secco recitative. It presents apt images of the physical ailments which plague the repentant sinner - one imagines the face, marked by suffering, of a St Jerome or a St Mary Magdalene. In the ensuing aria for tenor, two oboes and b.c., "Tröste mir, Jesu, mein Gemüte" (comfort me, Jesus, in my spirit), there is a hint of a lullaby accompaniment in the basso continuo, and it sometimes goes beyond that (consolation?); at the same time, the polonaise-like dance (the dance of death?) is disconcerting. Much mention is made of death in this section of the text, the line "Denn im Tod ist alles Stille / Da gedenkt man deiner Nicht" deriving from the line "For in death there is no remembrance of thee" in Psalm 6. Bach gives the words Tod and Stille ("death" and "quiet") explicit treatment, as one might expect. In the ensuing secco recitative (this time for the alto) the tormented, repentant saint appears again in sighs, tears and fears, with Bach creating a masterly depiction of the scene using simple rhetorical means. Then the bass enters with "Weicht, all ihr Übeltäter / Mein Jesus tröstet mich" (yield, all ye evildoers, my Jesus comforts me), a lively string aria expressing the joy of absolution; the enemies have been overcome. The closing chorale (again the original text of 1597) is a flowery revision of the doxology "Gloria Patri et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto", which ends each psalm prayer. Sigiswald Kuijken Translation: J & M Berridge