Das neugeborne Kindelein by J.S. Bach
And do I ever have a great chorale cantata with which to usher in the (musical) season! It's Bach's Cantata 122: Das neugeborne Kindelein, part of the second annual Leipzig cantata cycle, in which (as you no doubt recall) almost all of the cantatas are chorale cantatas. That is to say, they are entirely based upon a single chorale, generally with the melody and first and final verses appearing in the first and final movements, while the middle movements set to music a poetic paraphrase of the middle verses of the chorale.
But this general scheme is altered in some cases to allow the melody and the original chorale verses to appear elsewhere in the cantata. This occurs in today's cantata, in which we hear the tune instrumentally in one movement, and an inner verse set to the tune in another.
I love it when Bach does this! Many of you will recall Bach's early Cantata 4: Christ lag in Todesbanden, in which (following Pachelbel) he composes an omnes versussetting in which the entire libretto is the chorale itself, with the melody appearing in each and every movement. It's as though we get to take a journey with Herr Bach through the chorale, as he pulls out all the stops to create different (sometimes wildly divergent) iterations of the same source material.
BWV 122 is a sort of hybrid of the two approaches, with four of the movements including the chorale and two free movements--a bass aria and a bass recitative; these are as usual based upon paraphrases of chorale verses.
The structure is symmetrical in nature, not unusual for Bach (though one can go astray trying to see symmetry in Bach, finding it where it doesn't really exist): Movements 1 and 6 are chorale-based; movements 2 and 5 are not (apart from the text paraphrases); movements 3 and 4 are.
But none of this speaks to the music itself! You can take a look at the 1597 chorale melody (by the wonderfully named Cyriakus Schneegaß) here, with complete information available here. The text of the chorale can be found at this link, and Pamela Dellal's side-by-side text-translation of our cantata is available here. (She's the best.)
The movements lay out thus:
1. A classic opening movement, with a concerto-like introduction for the band--three oboes at the forefront--leading to the sopranos in longer notes on the melody, while the lower voices cavort below.
2. That bass aria mentioned above, well worth a look and a listen. Sometimes movements accompanied only by basso continuo seem a bit thin--but not this one. It's like Mr. Toad's Wild Ride! (All the same, when we do this piece--and we will--we'll likely abbreviate the da capo to include only the opening instrumental statement.)
3. A very interesting accompanied recitative for the soprano, joined by those three oboists, who have now picked up recorders, playing the chorale melody (top line) with harmonized accompaniment.
4. A trio--no, actually a duet with a chorale cantus firmus. The alto, doubled by the violins, carries the chorale tune and third verse, while the soprano and tenor dance above and below, all supported by a snazzy accompaniment in the basso continuo.
5. A recitative for the bass, accompanied by a halo of strings, which paves the way for:
6. A brief but satisfying valediction: A hearty four-part setting of the last verse of the chorale.
As usual, a score of the cantata is attached to this message. You can download Bach's manuscript at this link. Other materials are accessible via the links noted above.
And do I ever have a great chorale cantata with which to usher in the (musical) season! It's Bach's Cantata 122: Das neugeborne Kindelein, part of the second annual Leipzig cantata cycle, in which (as you no doubt recall) almost all of the cantatas are chorale cantatas. That is to say, they are entirely based upon a single chorale, generally with the melody and first and final verses appearing in the first and final movements, while the middle movements set to music a poetic paraphrase of the middle verses of the chorale.
But this general scheme is altered in some cases to allow the melody and the original chorale verses to appear elsewhere in the cantata. This occurs in today's cantata, in which we hear the tune instrumentally in one movement, and an inner verse set to the tune in another.
I love it when Bach does this! Many of you will recall Bach's early Cantata 4: Christ lag in Todesbanden, in which (following Pachelbel) he composes an omnes versussetting in which the entire libretto is the chorale itself, with the melody appearing in each and every movement. It's as though we get to take a journey with Herr Bach through the chorale, as he pulls out all the stops to create different (sometimes wildly divergent) iterations of the same source material.
BWV 122 is a sort of hybrid of the two approaches, with four of the movements including the chorale and two free movements--a bass aria and a bass recitative; these are as usual based upon paraphrases of chorale verses.
The structure is symmetrical in nature, not unusual for Bach (though one can go astray trying to see symmetry in Bach, finding it where it doesn't really exist): Movements 1 and 6 are chorale-based; movements 2 and 5 are not (apart from the text paraphrases); movements 3 and 4 are.
But none of this speaks to the music itself! You can take a look at the 1597 chorale melody (by the wonderfully named Cyriakus Schneegaß) here, with complete information available here. The text of the chorale can be found at this link, and Pamela Dellal's side-by-side text-translation of our cantata is available here. (She's the best.)
The movements lay out thus:
1. A classic opening movement, with a concerto-like introduction for the band--three oboes at the forefront--leading to the sopranos in longer notes on the melody, while the lower voices cavort below.
2. That bass aria mentioned above, well worth a look and a listen. Sometimes movements accompanied only by basso continuo seem a bit thin--but not this one. It's like Mr. Toad's Wild Ride! (All the same, when we do this piece--and we will--we'll likely abbreviate the da capo to include only the opening instrumental statement.)
3. A very interesting accompanied recitative for the soprano, joined by those three oboists, who have now picked up recorders, playing the chorale melody (top line) with harmonized accompaniment.
4. A trio--no, actually a duet with a chorale cantus firmus. The alto, doubled by the violins, carries the chorale tune and third verse, while the soprano and tenor dance above and below, all supported by a snazzy accompaniment in the basso continuo.
5. A recitative for the bass, accompanied by a halo of strings, which paves the way for:
6. A brief but satisfying valediction: A hearty four-part setting of the last verse of the chorale.
As usual, a score of the cantata is attached to this message. You can download Bach's manuscript at this link. Other materials are accessible via the links noted above.