Vor deinen Thron by J.S. Bach
I suppose because of the recent passing of two members of our community, and possibly also because we're entering the darkest months of the year, I seem this week to be drawn to pieces about death and loss. Monday's madrigal mourned the death of a talented member of the music establishment of Queen Elizabeth I; on Friday, we'll be looking at the moving memorial motet by Heinrich Isaac (on a poem by Angelo Poliziano) for Lorenzo de' Medici; today we'll explore the so-called 'deathbed chorale' of Johann Sebastian Bach.
It's an unusual setting of a chorale called 'Wenn wir in höchsten Nöten sein'. The melody, attributed to Louis Bourgeois, first appeared in 1547 to the text 'Leve le coeur', a French version of the Ten Commandments. Here's a lovely version of the tune, with lute accompaniment, sung to the text of Martin Luther's 'Frau musica singt'.
Listen to it a few times to get it in your ear.
In 1588, Paul Eber used the tune in his 'Cantica sacra' for a new text, 'Wenn wir im höchsten Nöten sein'. It was with this title that Bach designated his four settings of the tune: BWV 641, a setting in the Orgelbüchlein'; two independent chorales,
BWV 431 and BWV 432; and BWV 668, the final chorale prelude in the so-called 'Great Eighteen Chorale Preludes',
which were composed in the last ten years of Bach's life.
During his last illness, Bach is said to have been composing and revising earlier works, with some assistance since he had lost his sight. He gave the revised version of BWV 668 in dictation, possibly to his son CPE Bach or to his son-in-law J.C. Altnikol, close upon his death. In addition to making some revisions, he apparently specified that he wanted the piece to be designated by the title 'Vor deinen thron tret ich hiermit', an alternate text by Bodo von Hodenberg which had been published in 1646. Although Bach had never used this text (or the melody associated with it), he realized it meshed perfectly with the melody of 'Wenn wir in höchsten Nöten sein'.
This is the deathbed chorale. It was published after Bach's death as the final piece of the 'Art of the Fugue', providing some closure for that work whose intended finale was left incomplete. Attached is an arrangement for voices with the text for 'Vor deinen Thron' underlaid. Here is a moving two-verse rendition by J.E. Gardiner and the Monteverdi Choir.
Follow along with the text-translation sheet (also attached) as you listen.
The piece demonstrates a typical Bachian super-tight construction. For each chorale phrase, the lower voices introduce the melody in diminution, in normal form and in inversion; this little intro is then joined by the chorale melody in longer notes in the soprano. Also notable is the considerable use of chromaticism in the piece.
But what's really amazing is the meshing of words and music--you're sure to get chills up your spine as you listen and read and think about old Bach using his last moments of life to lovingly refine his music for himself, for his family, for posterity, for us; and to eagerly look for the world beyond.
'Vor deinen Thron' was a part of what was to be our 2020-21 season; it will surely find a place in our mutual lives when finally, with great excitement and celebration, we can finally go forward again.
I suppose because of the recent passing of two members of our community, and possibly also because we're entering the darkest months of the year, I seem this week to be drawn to pieces about death and loss. Monday's madrigal mourned the death of a talented member of the music establishment of Queen Elizabeth I; on Friday, we'll be looking at the moving memorial motet by Heinrich Isaac (on a poem by Angelo Poliziano) for Lorenzo de' Medici; today we'll explore the so-called 'deathbed chorale' of Johann Sebastian Bach.
It's an unusual setting of a chorale called 'Wenn wir in höchsten Nöten sein'. The melody, attributed to Louis Bourgeois, first appeared in 1547 to the text 'Leve le coeur', a French version of the Ten Commandments. Here's a lovely version of the tune, with lute accompaniment, sung to the text of Martin Luther's 'Frau musica singt'.
Listen to it a few times to get it in your ear.
In 1588, Paul Eber used the tune in his 'Cantica sacra' for a new text, 'Wenn wir im höchsten Nöten sein'. It was with this title that Bach designated his four settings of the tune: BWV 641, a setting in the Orgelbüchlein'; two independent chorales,
BWV 431 and BWV 432; and BWV 668, the final chorale prelude in the so-called 'Great Eighteen Chorale Preludes',
which were composed in the last ten years of Bach's life.
During his last illness, Bach is said to have been composing and revising earlier works, with some assistance since he had lost his sight. He gave the revised version of BWV 668 in dictation, possibly to his son CPE Bach or to his son-in-law J.C. Altnikol, close upon his death. In addition to making some revisions, he apparently specified that he wanted the piece to be designated by the title 'Vor deinen thron tret ich hiermit', an alternate text by Bodo von Hodenberg which had been published in 1646. Although Bach had never used this text (or the melody associated with it), he realized it meshed perfectly with the melody of 'Wenn wir in höchsten Nöten sein'.
This is the deathbed chorale. It was published after Bach's death as the final piece of the 'Art of the Fugue', providing some closure for that work whose intended finale was left incomplete. Attached is an arrangement for voices with the text for 'Vor deinen Thron' underlaid. Here is a moving two-verse rendition by J.E. Gardiner and the Monteverdi Choir.
Follow along with the text-translation sheet (also attached) as you listen.
The piece demonstrates a typical Bachian super-tight construction. For each chorale phrase, the lower voices introduce the melody in diminution, in normal form and in inversion; this little intro is then joined by the chorale melody in longer notes in the soprano. Also notable is the considerable use of chromaticism in the piece.
But what's really amazing is the meshing of words and music--you're sure to get chills up your spine as you listen and read and think about old Bach using his last moments of life to lovingly refine his music for himself, for his family, for posterity, for us; and to eagerly look for the world beyond.
'Vor deinen Thron' was a part of what was to be our 2020-21 season; it will surely find a place in our mutual lives when finally, with great excitement and celebration, we can finally go forward again.