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Gelobet sei der Herr, mein Gott, BWV 129

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Gelobet sei der Herr, mein Gott
BWV 129
Chorale cantata by J. S. Bach
[[[Thomaskirche|Thomaskirche, Leipzig]]] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help)
OccasionTrinity Sunday
Choraleby Johann Olearius
Performed16 June 1729 (1729-06-16): Leipzig
Movements5
Vocal
  • SATB choir
  • solo: soprano, alto and bass
Instrumental

Gelobet sei der Herr, mein Gott (Praised be the Lord, my God),[1] BWV 129, is a church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. Bach composed the chorale cantata in Leipzig for Trinity Sunday and possibly first performed it on 16 June 1726. It is a general praise of the Trinity, without a reference to a specific gospel reading. Addressing God the Creator, the Saviour and the Comforter, it could be used for other occasions such as Reformation Day. The cantata is festively scored and ends in a chorale fantasia, like the Christmas Oratorio. It is the conclusion of Bach's second annual cycle of cantatas, containing chorale cantatas.

History and words

Bach composed the cantata in Leipzig for Trinity Sunday, the earliest in 1726.[2] In his second year Bach had composed chorale cantatas between the first Sunday after Trinity of 1724 and Palm Sunday, but for Easter had returned to cantatas on more varied texts, possibly because he lost his librettist.[3] Later Bach composed again chorale cantatas to complete his second annual cycle. This cantata is one of the completing works. It is based entirely on the unchanged words on the chorale Gelobet sei der Herr, mein Gott (1665) by Johann Olearius and celebrates the Trinity in five stanzas.[2][4]

The prescribed readings for the Sunday were from the Epistle to the Romans, reflecting "depth of wisdom" (Romans 11:33–36), and from the Gospel of John, the meeting of Jesus and Nicodemus (John 3:1–15). Unlike most chorale cantatas of 1724/25, but similar to the early [[[Christ lag in Todes Banden, BWV 4|Christ lag in Todes Banden, BWV 4]]] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help) and [[[Lobe den Herren, den mächtigen König der Ehren, BWV 137|Lobe den Herren, den mächtigen König der Ehren, BWV 137]]] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help), also composed after the second cantata cycle, Bach left the chorale text unchanged, thus without a reference to the readings.[2][5]

According to Christoph Wolff, the cantata was also performed on Reformation Day.[6]

Scoring and structure

The cantata in five movements is festively scored for three soloists, soprano, alto and bass, a four-part choir, three trumpets, timpani, flauto traverso, two oboes, oboe d'amore, two violins, viola, and basso continuo.[2]

  1. Coro: Gelobet sei der Herr, mein Gott
  2. Aria (bass): Gelobet sei der Herr, mein Gott, mein Heil
  3. Aria (soprano): Gelobet sei der Herr, mein Gott, mein Trost
  4. Aria (alto): Gelobet sei der Herr, mein Gott, der ewig lebet
  5. Chorale: Dem wir das Heilig jetzt

Music

The opening chorus on the first stanza of the chorale begins with a concerto of all the instruments as a ritornello. The trumpets highlight occasionally the interplay of strings and woodwinds. The cantus firmus, a melody of O Gott, du frommer Gott by Ahasverus Fritsch (1679), [7] is sung by the soprano, while the other voices sing sometimes in imitation, sometimes in homophony. The text is a praise of the God the Creator.

The following three movements are all arias. In the first aria the bass praises God the Saviour, accompanied only by the continuo. Bach may have thought of the vox Christi (voice of Christ), and of his humility. The word "Gelobet" (praised) is set as an expressive melisma. In the second aria the soprano, accompanied by flute and violin, praises God the Comforter. In the third aria the alto is accompanied by an oboe d'amore in song-like general praise. John Eliot Gardiner suggests that the "pastoral dance" was "inspired, perhaps in its imagery, by the concept of "den alles lobet, was in allen Lüften schwebet" (praised by all things that move in the air).[5] The final chorale is set in a joyful concerto of the instruments, similar to the conclusions of Bach's Christmas Oratorio and Ascension Oratorio.[2] Gardiner calls it "punctuated by brass and orchestral fanfares."[5] By this festive ending Bach marked Trinity Sunday as the conclusion of the first part of the liturgical year.


Selected recordings

References

  1. ^ Dellal, Pamela. "BWV 129 – "Gelobet sei der Herr, mein Gott"". Emmanuel Music. Retrieved 13 June 2014.
  2. ^ a b c d e Dürr, Alfred (1981). Die Kantaten von Johann Sebastian Bach (in German). Vol. 1 (4 ed.). Deutscher Taschenbuchverlag. pp. 322–324. ISBN 3-423-04080-7.
  3. ^ Wolff, Christoph (1999). The transition between the second and the third yearly cycle of Bach’s Leipzig cantatas (1725) (PDF). p. 2. Retrieved 1 June 2011. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help); line feed character in |title= at position 88 (help)
  4. ^ "Gelobet sei der Herr, mein Gott / Text and Translation of Chorale". Bach Cantatas Website. 2005. Retrieved 14 June 2011.
  5. ^ a b c Gardiner, John Eliot (2008). "Cantatas for Whit Tuesday / Holy Trinity, Blythburgh" (PDF). Bach Cantatas Website. p. 10. Retrieved 7 June 2011.
  6. ^ Mincham, Julian (2010). "Chapter 16 BWV 129 Gelobet sei der Herr". The Cantatas of Johann Sebastian Bach. Retrieved 15 June 2011.
  7. ^ "Chorale Melodies used in Bach's Vocal Works / O Gott, du frommer Goth". Bach Cantatas Website. 2006. Retrieved 1 June 2011.

Sources

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