Week 12

J. S. Bach: Cantata #133

Dear MBE Fans,

Welcome back to Cantata 133. This week I share a few thoughts on the alto aria “Getrost” (“Be Comforted”). It features the most intimate orchestration, marked by darker colors and a low tessitura (also known as range). In addition to the low female voice there is a duo of oboe d’amore (a slightly larger and lower pitched instrument than the regular oboe, and commonly used in the baroque era). 

The aria starts with an instrumental introduction, with three exclamatory gestures, outlining the aria’s key of A-major. (After all it is meant to be played on the third day of Christmas!) The vocal entrance repeats the exclamation with “Getrost.” What follows is a long-winded musical phrase that truly reflects the syntax of the lyrics: long melismatic figures, a modulation into a minor key, a series of suspensions, and a concluding cadence. The music mirrors the complex thought process behind the opening sentence: “A holy body contains the unfathomable being of the Highest.” (In fact, it’s even more arcane in the original German.)

In the middle section Bach is playing around with a parenthetic idea, again reflecting the lyrics: “Ich habe Gott – wie wohl ist mir geschehen! –Von Angesicht zu Angesicht gesehen.“
(“I have – what a happy occurrence for me!— beheld God face to face.”) In musical terms, Bach borrows a motive from the main section, couples it with the parenthetic text, and inserts it over and over again. “What a happy occurrence for me!” becomes overwhelmingly important as the aria goes on. This paves a logical transition to the final phrase: “Ach! meine Seele muß genesen.” (“Ah, my soul must now be healed.”)

I always found the connection between linguistic and musical syntax fascinating. Bach is a tremendous case study, but so is Schumann, Brahms, and most importantly, Wagner (as far as the German language is concerned). If you are interested in the topic, Leonard Bernstein’s series of the Harvard/Norton Lectures (available in book format as the “Unanswered Question”) is an indispensable reference. Hey, at least I am not the only geek on this planet who is drawn to the subject…:)

Mischa Santora, MBE artistic director

Translation

2. Arie
Getrost! es faßt ein heil'ger Leib
Des Höchsten unbegreiflichs Wesen.
  Ich habe Gott – wie wohl ist mir     geschehen! –
  Von Angesicht zu Angesicht gesehen.
  Ach! meine Seele muß genesen. 

Week 11

J. S. Bach: Cantata #133

Dear MBE Fans,

The soprano aria in this cantata is completely opposite in character from the festive opening movement. Bach draws us away from the public setting of the jubilant festivities into the intimate sphere of the listener’s relationship with Jesus at his birth: “Wie lieblich klingt es in den Ohren, Dies Wort: mein Jesus ist geboren” (How beautifully it rings in my ears this word: my Jesus is born). A quick note about the translation: “lieblich” is one of those hard-to-translate words. A combination of loving, sweet, and charming would more closely reflect its meaning.

Bach sets this movement in b-minor, the parallel minor key of the composition’s main tonality of D-major. It is in ABA form (da capo aria), but with a rather unusual middle section. The meter changes from 4/4 to 12/8 time (pulse of three eighth notes in groupings of four). The text is an antidote to the main section: “Wer Jesu Namen nicht versteht, und wem es nicht durchs Herze geht, der muß ein harter Felsen sein“ (Who cannot understand Jesus‘ name, and whose heart is not pierced/moved by it, must be a hard rock). 

In addition to the meter change, Bach also makes a switch in texture: the continuo and the bass line (cello and bass) are conspicuously missing in the entire middle section. The harmonies are chromatic, unpredictable, and seem to meander aimlessly. The implication of this musical metaphor is as stark as it is obvious: without faith and devotion to the Saviour life has no foundation, direction, or clarity.

This aria is over 7 minutes in approximate performance time, yet the lyrics take up six short lines of poetry and can be read in less than 30 seconds. This imbalance is quite characteristic of musical settings of sacred texts, in the Baroque era and beyond. It stems from the idea that music was (is) subservient to the word and needs to elevate the Word of God. Bach fully embraced this humility throughout his life.

There is a certain element of seniority in this hierarchy. After all, the medium of the written word has been around for thousands of years, compared to the relative newcomer of what we generally call “Classical Music”.

 Mischa Santora, MBE artistic director

Translation

4. Arie
Wie lieblich klingt es in den Ohren,
Dies Wort: mein Jesus ist geboren,
Wie dringt es in das Herz hinein!
  Wer Jesu Namen nicht versteht
  Und wem es nicht durchs Herze geht,
  Der muß ein harter Felsen sein. 

Week 10

J. S. Bach: Cantata #133

Dear Bach Cantata Fans,

Welcome back to another vocal gem from MBE’s archival recordings. Cantata #133 “Ich freue mich in dir” (I rejoice in you) was written for the third day of Christmas. Appropriately, the opening movement starts with two short upbeat motives that come to an abrupt halt, almost like false starts. It is the third upbeat that gets things going.

Christmas is the happiest of times in the Christian calendar. Bach was able to relay that unbridled, bustling joy of welcoming the Saviour into the world like no other composer. The bright, festive key of D-major is adorned with continuous strings of sixteenth notes in the treble voices crisscrossing each other like garlands on an over-decorated Christmas tree. The instrumental intro prepares us for a grand entrance of the chorus, heralding the birth of Jesus: “Ich freue mich in dir und heiße dich wilkommen” (I rejoice in you and bid you welcome).

The entire movement is based on a chorale melody in four stanzas by Kaspar Ziegler. Bach adds the harmonies, plus the elaborate instrumental parts (this technique is similar to his chorale preludes for organ).  After the opening welcome, the text addresses Jesus diminutively as an infant (Jesulein) and our connection to him as a little brother (Brüderlein). Just to make sure nobody would consider this as a slight to Christ, the closing lines emphasize his greatness: “Wie Freundlich sieht er aus, Der große Gottessohn!” (How friendly He appears, the great son of God!). On the last syllable “…sohn”, Bach creates a long, majestic melisma (stretched out syllable over many notes), underlining the greatness of Jesus and his birth.

This movement brings back my childhood memories around Christmas time: the festive decorations in a small village church, all parishioners dressed in their finest clothes, the exhilarating sounds of the organ and choir, and the overall happiness of spending time with family and friends. I know we are a long time away from the Holiday season, but I feel we can all use a little of that profound sense of happiness that Bach’s music bestows upon us.

 Mischa Santora, MBE artistic director

Translation

1. Chor
Ich freue mich in dir
Und heiße dich willkommen,
Mein liebes Jesulein!
Du hast dir vorgenommen,
Mein Brüderlein zu sein.
Ach, wie ein süßer Ton!
Wie freundlich sieht er aus,
Der große Gottessohn!

The Cantata #133 was performed on December 5/6, 2015 at MacPhail’s Antonello Hall, Minneapolis, MN, with the following performers:

Linh Kauffman, soprano
Alyssa Anderson, alto
Andrew Kane, tenor
Philip Zawisza, bass
Andrew Altenbach, conductor
MBE Ensemble

Recording engineer/mixing: Michael Barone (MPR)
Audio edits/mastering: Mischa Santora