Herr Christ, der einge Gottessohn (Lord Christ, the only Son of God), BWV 96, is a church cantata written by Johann Sebastian Bach in 1724 in Leipzig for the 18th Sunday after Trinity.
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Bach wrote the cantata in 1724 for the 18th Sunday after Trinity as part of his second annual cycle of mostly chorale cantatas. He performed it three times, first on 8 October 1724, a second time probably on 24 October 1734, and a third time probably on 1 October 1740. Musicologists have suggested different dates for the later performances.
The prescribed readings for the Sunday were from the First Epistle to the Corinthians, 1 Corinthians 1:4–8, Paul's thanks for grace of God in Ephesus, and from the Gospel of Matthew, Matthew 22:34–46, the Great Commandment. The cantata text of an unknown author is based exclusively on the chorale Herr Christ, der einig Gottessohn in five verses of Elisabeth Cruciger (1524). The first and last verse in their original wording are movements 1 and 6 of the cantata, verses 2 and 3 were transformed to movements 2 and 3 of the cantata, and verse 4 was reworded for movements 4 and 5. The chorale was originally associated with Epiphany, but also with the 18th Sunday after Trinity. The gospel asks how Jesus of David's descent, as said in 2 Samuel 7, can also be David's Lord, as claimed in Psalm 110:1. The chorale tries to answer this question, comparing Jesus to the Morning star, an image also used in the chorale Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern, the base for Bach's cantata Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern, BWV 1.[1]
The cantata is scored for soprano, alto, tenor and bass soloists, a four-part choir, flauto traverso, flauto piccolo or (later) violino piccolo, two oboes, horn or (later) trombone, two violins, viola, and basso continuo.[1]
In the opening chorus Bach has the alto sing the cantus firmus and a horn play along (in later performance replaced by trombone). An unusual flauto piccolo or sopranino recorder is used to illustrate the sparkling of the morning star.[2][3] In a later performance (probably 1734) it was replaced by a violino piccolo. The choral setting is polyphonic in the three other voices and embedded in instrumental music base on similar motifs.
The tenor aria is accompanied by the transverse flute, probably played by the flauto piccolo player of the first movement. As for Was frag ich nach der Welt, BWV 94, written some weeks before, Bach seems to have had an excellent flute player.
The bass aria illustrates the words Bald zur Rechten, bald zur Linken lenkte sich mein verirrter Schritt (Soon to the right, soon to the left my erring steps lean) in jagged motifs and a frequent switch between winds and strings. In the middle section steady steps picture Gehe doch, mein Heiland, mit (Yet go with me, my Savior). The final part combines both elements.
The closing chorale is a four-part setting for the choir, horn, oboes and strings.[1]
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