Jesu meine Freude
How is it even possible that I haven't yet gotten to 'Jesu meine Freude' in our Wednesday chorale series?
I was shocked--shocked--when, having found a really cool, new-to-me setting of JMF,
I double-checked and found that this actually is the case.
I hereby announce and declare and in all other ways affirm that (along with many of you, and some soon-to-be) I am a huge fan of this chorale, and that my mission today, should I decide to accept it (and such acceptance was never in doubt for a millisecond) is to rectify my omission by raining down upon your heads a full spectrum of settings of one of the most outstanding and deservedly best-loved chorales of all times and of all nations.
'Jesu meine Freude' first saw the light of day in the 1653 edition of the 'Praxis Pietatis Melica', a hymnal collected and edited by the composer and cantor Johann Crüger. Crüger used a six-verse poem by Johann Franck which had been published three years earlier. The text is in the first person, describing a most intimate and trusting relationship between the protagonist and his (her) Jesus. The outer verses describe this deep faith and loving friendship.
Verses 2-4 describe some of the turmoil and temptations posed for the Christian believer, who responds by resisting and maintaining his/her ground; in the valedictory verse 5 nocturne ('Gute nacht, O Wesen'),
he/she touchingly renounces the things of this world in favor of the eternal.
Both the melody and the poem are unusual. The chorale is written in the so-called 'bar form', with a repeated opening A section (the 'Stollen', or stanzas) followed by a contrasting B section (the 'Abgesang', or after-song), which in this case concludes with a repeat of the opening melody line, providing a formal 'rounding'. Here's a bit of textual analysis; I'm using my favorite verse--verse 3--as an example.
The two Stollen:
Trotz dem alten Drachen [Six syllables; rhyme A]
trotz des Todes Rachen, [Six syllables; rhyme A]
trotz der Furcht dazu! [Five syllables; rhyme B]
Tobe, Welt, und springe; [Six syllables; rhyme C]
ich steh hier und singe, [Six syllables; rhyme C]
in gar sichrer Ruh! [Five syllables; rhyme B]
The Abgesang:
Gottes Macht halt mich in acht; [Seven syllables (three plus four); internal rhyme D 'Macht'-D 'acht']
Erd und Abgrund muß verstummen, [Eight syllables; rhyme E]
ob sie noch so brummen. [Six syllables rhyme E]
For Franck's tightly constructed poetic structure, Crüger has created a complementary melody. The two Stollen begin on B and descend directly to the tonic E. The second phrase works up to high E, and the third phrase soars above to G, residing back to E. The Abgesang begins clearly in the relative major key of G. Its second phrase lives at and above the dominant B. And its third and final phrase, as noted above, is a repeat of the very first phrase of the chorale,
providing a satisfying sense of return and completion.
The new-to-me piece I mention above is Buxtehude's marvelous setting for three strings, three voices (SSB) and basso continuo. Like Bach, Buxtehude sets all six verses. And while Bach's 'Jesu meine Freude' is unequivocally original, it does seem to have echos of some of Buxtehude's ideas and techniques. (As some of you may recall, this was the case also with the two composers' settings of 'Christ lag in Todesbanden'.) I'll be interested to hear what those many of you who have sung the Bach will have to say on this topic. Here's a very nice recording of the Buxtehude; the score is in the attached packet.
And speaking of Bach: The suite of all six verses from his motet 'Jesu meine Freude' is attached in score and recording. But (wonderful and inimitable and irresistably lovable as it is) that just starts to scratch the surface! For your listening,
studying and singing pleasure, I offer:
Jesu meine Freude as a trumpet obligato for the tenor aria in Cantata 12: Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Sagen;
The final chorale from Cantata 64: Sehet, welch eine Liebe;
The final chorale from Cantata 81: Jesus schläft;
The final chorale from Cantata 87: Bisher habt ihr nicht;
BWV 358, a tasty four-part independent setting;
BWV 610, the setting from the Orgelbüchlein;
and the Fantasia and Chorale BWV 713.
And finally, as a sort of a bookend to the Buxtehude (or as its matching piece of bread surrounding the luscious peanut-butter-and-jelly of all that Bach), here's yet another hitherto-unknown-to-me piece (this just keeps happening), this one a ravishing extended setting of the first verse of 'Jesu meine Freude' by none other than the Bach aficionado extraordinaire Felix Mendelssohn.
So there! I hope I have made up for my glaring omission and have perhaps provided you with some fun and moving (and distracting) listening (and perhaps singing) over the next few days. For scores and text/translation and recordings not linked above (along with some other fun materials, including the first page of the Buxtehude in his original tablature
--you gotta check it out, simply click this link.
How is it even possible that I haven't yet gotten to 'Jesu meine Freude' in our Wednesday chorale series?
I was shocked--shocked--when, having found a really cool, new-to-me setting of JMF,
I double-checked and found that this actually is the case.
I hereby announce and declare and in all other ways affirm that (along with many of you, and some soon-to-be) I am a huge fan of this chorale, and that my mission today, should I decide to accept it (and such acceptance was never in doubt for a millisecond) is to rectify my omission by raining down upon your heads a full spectrum of settings of one of the most outstanding and deservedly best-loved chorales of all times and of all nations.
'Jesu meine Freude' first saw the light of day in the 1653 edition of the 'Praxis Pietatis Melica', a hymnal collected and edited by the composer and cantor Johann Crüger. Crüger used a six-verse poem by Johann Franck which had been published three years earlier. The text is in the first person, describing a most intimate and trusting relationship between the protagonist and his (her) Jesus. The outer verses describe this deep faith and loving friendship.
Verses 2-4 describe some of the turmoil and temptations posed for the Christian believer, who responds by resisting and maintaining his/her ground; in the valedictory verse 5 nocturne ('Gute nacht, O Wesen'),
he/she touchingly renounces the things of this world in favor of the eternal.
Both the melody and the poem are unusual. The chorale is written in the so-called 'bar form', with a repeated opening A section (the 'Stollen', or stanzas) followed by a contrasting B section (the 'Abgesang', or after-song), which in this case concludes with a repeat of the opening melody line, providing a formal 'rounding'. Here's a bit of textual analysis; I'm using my favorite verse--verse 3--as an example.
The two Stollen:
Trotz dem alten Drachen [Six syllables; rhyme A]
trotz des Todes Rachen, [Six syllables; rhyme A]
trotz der Furcht dazu! [Five syllables; rhyme B]
Tobe, Welt, und springe; [Six syllables; rhyme C]
ich steh hier und singe, [Six syllables; rhyme C]
in gar sichrer Ruh! [Five syllables; rhyme B]
The Abgesang:
Gottes Macht halt mich in acht; [Seven syllables (three plus four); internal rhyme D 'Macht'-D 'acht']
Erd und Abgrund muß verstummen, [Eight syllables; rhyme E]
ob sie noch so brummen. [Six syllables rhyme E]
For Franck's tightly constructed poetic structure, Crüger has created a complementary melody. The two Stollen begin on B and descend directly to the tonic E. The second phrase works up to high E, and the third phrase soars above to G, residing back to E. The Abgesang begins clearly in the relative major key of G. Its second phrase lives at and above the dominant B. And its third and final phrase, as noted above, is a repeat of the very first phrase of the chorale,
providing a satisfying sense of return and completion.
The new-to-me piece I mention above is Buxtehude's marvelous setting for three strings, three voices (SSB) and basso continuo. Like Bach, Buxtehude sets all six verses. And while Bach's 'Jesu meine Freude' is unequivocally original, it does seem to have echos of some of Buxtehude's ideas and techniques. (As some of you may recall, this was the case also with the two composers' settings of 'Christ lag in Todesbanden'.) I'll be interested to hear what those many of you who have sung the Bach will have to say on this topic. Here's a very nice recording of the Buxtehude; the score is in the attached packet.
And speaking of Bach: The suite of all six verses from his motet 'Jesu meine Freude' is attached in score and recording. But (wonderful and inimitable and irresistably lovable as it is) that just starts to scratch the surface! For your listening,
studying and singing pleasure, I offer:
Jesu meine Freude as a trumpet obligato for the tenor aria in Cantata 12: Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Sagen;
The final chorale from Cantata 64: Sehet, welch eine Liebe;
The final chorale from Cantata 81: Jesus schläft;
The final chorale from Cantata 87: Bisher habt ihr nicht;
BWV 358, a tasty four-part independent setting;
BWV 610, the setting from the Orgelbüchlein;
and the Fantasia and Chorale BWV 713.
And finally, as a sort of a bookend to the Buxtehude (or as its matching piece of bread surrounding the luscious peanut-butter-and-jelly of all that Bach), here's yet another hitherto-unknown-to-me piece (this just keeps happening), this one a ravishing extended setting of the first verse of 'Jesu meine Freude' by none other than the Bach aficionado extraordinaire Felix Mendelssohn.
So there! I hope I have made up for my glaring omission and have perhaps provided you with some fun and moving (and distracting) listening (and perhaps singing) over the next few days. For scores and text/translation and recordings not linked above (along with some other fun materials, including the first page of the Buxtehude in his original tablature
--you gotta check it out, simply click this link.