Ach wie flüchtig, ach wie nichtig, BWV 26
Ach wie flüchtig, ach wie nichtig (Ah! how fleeting, ah! how futile), BWV 26, is a church cantata composed by Johann Sebastian Bach.
The chorale cantata was composed in Leipzig in 1724 for the 24th Sunday after Trinity, which fell that year on 19 November, the date of the work's premiere.
Scoring and structure
The piece is scored for corno, oboes I/II/III, flauto traverso, violins I/II, viola, and basso continuo, along with four vocal soloists (soprano, altus, tenor, bass) and four-part choir. It is in six movements:
- (Coro): "Ach wie flüchtig, ach wie nichtig" for choral and orchestral tutti.
- Aria: "So schnell ein rauschend Wasser schießt" for tenor, flauto, solo violin, and continuo.
- Recitativo: "Die Freude wird zur Traurigkeit" for altus and continuo.
- Aria: "An irdische Schätze das Herze zu hängen" for bass, oboes, and continuo.
- Recitativo: "Die höchste Herrlichkeit und Pracht" for soprano and continuo.
- Chorale: "Ach wie flüchtig, ach wie nichtig" for choral and orchestral tutti (colle parti).
Recordings
- Bach Cantatas Vol. 19: Greenwich/Romsey - Sopr.: Joanne Lunn; Alt.: William Towers; Ten.: Paul Agnew; Bass: Peter Harvey; Monteverdi Choir/English Baroque Soloists; John Eliot Gardiner, conductor. Label: Soli Deo Gloria
- Bach Cantatas Vol. 5 - Sundays after Trinity II - Sopr.: Ursula Buckel; Alt.: Hertha Töpper; Ten.: Ernst Haefliger; Bass: Theo Adam; Münchener Bach-Chor/Münchener Bach-Orchester; Karl Richter, conductor. Label: Archiv Produktion
- Bach Edition Vol. 11 - Cantatas Vol. 5 - Sopr.: Ruth Holton; Alt.: Sytse Buwalda; Ten.: Nico van der Meel; Bass: Bas Ramselaar; Holland Boys Choir/Netherlands Bach Collegium; Pieter Jan Leusink, conductor. Label: Brilliant Classics
- Bach Made in Germany Vol. 4 - Cantatas V - Sopr.: Regina Werner; Alt.: Rosemarie Lang; Ten.: Peter Schreier; Bass: Hermann Christian Polster; Thomanerchor, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig; Hans-Joachim Rotzsch, conductor. Label: Eterna/Leipzig Classics
- Die Bach Kantate Vol. 59 - Sopr.: Arleen Augér; Alt.: Doris Soffel; Ten.: Adalbert Kraus; Bass: Philippe Huttenlocher; Gächinger Kantorei/Bach-Collegium Stuttgart; Helmuth Rilling, conductor. Label: Hänssler
- J.S. Bach: Cantatas Vol. 28 - Cantatas from Leipzig 1724 - Sopr.: Yukari Nonoshita; Alt.: Robin Blaze; Ten.: Makoto Sakurada; Bass: Peter Kooy; Bach Collegium Japan; Masaaki Suzuki, conductor. Label: BIS 1451
- J.S. Bach: Complete Cantatas Vol. 14 - Sopr.: Lisa Larsson; Alt.: Annette Markert; Ten.: Christoph Prégardien; Bass: Klaus Mertens; Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir; Ton Koopman, conductor. Label: Antoine Marchand
- J.S. Bach: Das Kantatenwerk - Sacred Cantatas Vol. 2 - Boy soprano soloist; Alt.: Paul Esswood; Ten.: Kurt Equiluz; Bass: Siegmund Nimsgern; Wiener Sängerknaben & Chorus Viennensis (Chorus Master - Hans Gillesberger)/Concentus Musicus Wien; Nikolaus Harnoncourt, conductor. Label: Teldec
- J.S. Bach: Kantaten/Cantatas BWV 80, BWV 26, BWV 116 - Sopr.: Edith Mathis; Alt.: Trudeliese Schmidt; Ten.: Peter Schreier; Bass: Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau; Münchener Bach-Chor, Münchener Bach-Orchester; Karl Richter, conductor. Label: Archiv Produktion
- Les Grandes Cantates de J.S. Bach Vol. 10 - Sopr.: Friederike Sailer; Alt.: Claudia Hellmann; Ten.: Helmut Krebs; Bass: Erich Wenk; Heinrich-Schütz-Chor Heilbronn/Pforzheim Chamber Orchestra; Fritz Werner, conductor. Label: Erato/MHS
References
Sources
- Craig Smith, Programme notes - BWV 26, Emmanuel Music.
- Walter F. Bischof, Text and orchestration for BWV 26, Bach Cantatas, University of Alberta.
- Alfred Dürr: Johann Sebastian Bach: Die Kantaten. Bärenreiter, Kassel 1999, ISBN 3-7618-1476-3
- Alfred Dürr: The Cantatas of J.S. Bach, Oxford University Press, 2006. ISBN 0-19-929776-2
- Werner Neumann: Handbuch der Kantaten J.S.Bachs, 1947, 5th Ed. 1984, ISBN 3-7651-0054-4
- Hans-Joachim Schulze: Die Bach-Kantaten: Einführungen zu sämtlichen Kantaten Johann Sebastian Bachs. Leipzig: Evangelische Verlags-Anstalt; Stuttgart: Carus-Verlag 2006 (Edition Bach-Archiv Leipzig) ISBN 3-374-02390-8 (Evang. Verl.-Anst.), ISBN 3-89948-073-2 (Carus-Verl.)
- Christoph Wolff/Ton Koopman: Die Welt der Bach-Kantaten Verlag J.B. Metzler, Stuttgart, Weimar 2006 ISBN 978-3-476-02127-4
External links