Darzu ist erschienen der Sohn Gottes, BWV 40
Darzu ist erschienen der Sohn Gottes (For this purpose is the son of God manifested), BWV 40, is a Christmas cantata composed by Johann Sebastian Bach. The title also appears in more modern German as Dazu ist erschienen der Sohn Gottes.
History
The cantata was composed in Leipzig in 1723 for the second day of Christmastide, also known as Christmas Monday or St. Stephen's Day, which falls on 26 December. The work was thus premiered on 26 December 1723 and performed once more in Bach's lifetime, in either 1746 or 1747.
The prescribed readings for the day are from the Acts, the Martyrdom of of Stephen (Acts 6:8–7,22, Acts 7:51–59), and from the Gospel of Matthew, Jerusalem killing her prophets (Matthew 23:35–39).
The libretto is of mixed authorship, as follows[1][2]:
- the Gospel of John, chapter 3, verse 8, as text for the first movement
- Kaspar Füger's poetry for the third movement (specifically, verse 3 of Wir Christenleut, 1592)
- Paul Gerhardt's poetry for the sixth movement (specifically, verse 2 of Schwing dich auf zu deinem Gott, 1648)
- Christian Keymann for the final chorale (from Freuet euch, ihr Christen alle, 1646)
- an anonymous poet for the remaining movements (W. Blankenburg[3] proposes either Christian Weiss, Sr. or Bach himself).
The chorale theme for movement 3 is Wir Christenleut hab'n jetzund Freud (Zahn 2072)[4], of unknown authorship.
The chorale theme for movement 6 is Schwing dich auf zu deinem Gott (Zahn 4870)[5], of unknown authorship.
The chorale theme for movement 8 is Freuet euch, ihr Christen alle (Zahn 7880a)[5] by Andreas Hammerschmidt, who published it in his Vierter Theill Musicalischer Andachten (1646), in Freiberg.
Bach re-used (parodied) the first movement of this cantata for the Cum Sancto Spiritu fugue in his 1738 Missa in F major, BWV 233.
Scoring and structure
The piece is scored for corni I/II, oboes I/II, violins I/II, viola, and basso continuo, along with three vocal soloists (altus, tenor, bass) and four-part choir.
It is in eight movements:
- (Coro): Darzu ist erschienen for choral and orchestral tutti.
- Recitativo: Das Wort ward Fleisch und wohnet in der Welt for tenor and continuo.
- Chorale: Die Sünd macht Leid for choral and orchestral tutti colle parti.
- Aria: Höllische Schlange, wird dir nicht bange for bass, oboes, strings, and continuo.
- Recitativo: Die Schlange, so im Paradies for altus, strings, and continuo.
- Chorale: Schüttle deinen Kopf und sprich for choral and orchestral tutti colle parti.
- Aria: Christenkinder, freuet euch! for tenor, corni, oboes, and continuo.
- Chorale: Jesu, nimm dich deiner Glieder for choral and orchestral tutti colle parti.
Recordings
- Les Grandes Cantatas de J.S. Bach Vol. 20, Fritz Werner, Heinrich-Schütz-Chor Heilbronn, Pforzheim Chamber Orchestra, Claudia Hellmann, Georg Jelden, Jakob Stämpfli, Erato 1964
- Die Bach Kantate Vol. 62, Helmuth Rilling, Figuralchor of the Gedächtniskirche Stuttgart, Bach-Collegium Stuttgart, Verena Gohl, Adalbert Kraus, Siegmund Nimsgern, Hänssler 1970
- J.S. Bach: Das Kantatenwerk - Sacred Cantatas Vol. 3, Gustav Leonhardt, Knabenchor Hannover, Leonhardt-Consort, René Jacobs, Marius van Altena, Max van Egmond, Teldec 1975
- Bach Made in Germany Vol. 4 - Cantatas IX, Hans-Joachim Rotzsch, Thomanerchor, Neues Bachisches Collegium Musicum, Ortrun Wenkel, Peter Schreier, Siegfried Lorenz, Eterna 1981
- Bach: Cantata Advent/Cantata Christmas, Wolfgang Kelber, Heinrich-Schütz-Ensemble München, Monteverdi-Orchester München, Reiner Schneider-Waterberg, Kobie van Rensburg, Christian Hilz, Calig-Verlag 1996
- J.S. Bach: Complete Cantatas Vol. 8, Ton Koopman, Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir, Bogna Bartosz, Jörg Dürmüller, Klaus Mertens, Antoine Marchand 1998
- Bach Christmas Cantatas, Craig Smith, Orchestra and Chorus of Emmanuel Music, Gloria Raymond, Frank Kelley, Mark McSweeney, Koch International 1999
- Bach Edition Vol. 15 - Cantatas Vol. 8, Pieter Jan Leusink, Holland Boys Choir, Netherlands Bach Collegium, Sytse Buwalda, Marcel Beekman, Bas Ramselaar, Brilliant Classics 2000
- J.S. Bach: Cantatas Vol. 15 - Cantatas from Leipzig 1723, Masaaki Suzuki, Bach Collegium Japan, Robin Blaze, Gerd Türk, Peter Kooy, BIS 2000
- Bach Cantatas Vol. 14: New York, John Eliot Gardiner, Monteverdi Choir, English Baroque Soloists, Robin Tyson, James Gilchrist, Peter Harvey, Soli Deo Gloria 2000
References
- ^ Christoph Wolff (Eds.): Die Welt der Bach-Kantaten, Metzler/Bärenreiter, Stuttgart und Kassel, 3 Bände Sonderausgabe 2006 ISBN 3-476-02127-0
- ^ C. S. Terry and D. Litti, Bach's Cantata Libretti, Journal of the Royal Musical Association 1917 44(1):71-125; doi:10.1093/jrma/44.1.71
- ^ W. Blankenburg, Johann Sebastian Bach. Wege der Forschung. Darmstadt, 1970.
- ^ Die Melodien der deutschen evangelischen Kirchenlieder, aus den Quellen geschöpft und mitgeteilt von Johannes Zahn (6 volumes), Verlag Bertelsmann, Gütersloh (1889–93). [further edited by the Gesellschaft zur wissenschaftlichen Edition des deutschen Kirchenlieds. Hildesheim, New York: Georg Olms Verlagsbuchhandlung, 1998. 6 volumes. ISBN 3-48709-319-7]
- ^ a b Die Melodien der deutschen evangelischen Kirchenlieder, cit.
Sources
The first source is the score.
General sources are found for the Bach cantatas. Several databases provide additional information on each single cantata:
- Cantata BWV 40 Dazu ist erschienen der Sohn Gottes history, scoring, sources for text and music, translations to various languages, discography, discussion, bach-cantatas website
- BWV 40 - "Dazu ist erschienen der Sohn Gottes" English translation, discussion, Emmanuel Music
- BWV 40 Darzu ist erschienen der Sohn Gottes history, scoring, Bach website (German)
- BWV 40 Dazu ist erschienen der Sohn Gottes English translation, University of Vermont
- BWV 40 Darzu ist erschienen der Sohn Gottes text, scoring, University of Alberta