Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring is the most common English title of the 10th movement of the cantata Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben, BWV 147 composed by Johann Sebastian Bach. A transcription by the English pianist Myra Hess (1890–1965) was published in 1926 for piano solo and in 1934 for piano duet.[1] The British organist Peter Hurford made his organ transcription for the chorale movement as well. Today, it is often performed at wedding ceremonies slowly and reverently, in defiance of the effect suggested by Bach in his original scoring,[2] for voices with trumpet, oboes, strings, and continuo. Written during his first year in Leipzig, Germany, this chorale movement is one of Bach's most enduring works.
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Much of the music of Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben comes from Bach's Weimar period. This earlier version (BWV 147a) lacked the recitatives, but included the opening chorus and the four arias incorporated into the later version. For Leipzig, Bach added three recitatives and the celebrated chorale movement which concludes each of the two parts.[3]
Although it is the 32nd surviving cantata that Bach composed, it was assigned the number BWV 147 in the complete catalogue of his works.[4] Bach wrote a total of 200 cantatas during his time in Leipzig, largely to meet the Leipzig Churches' demand for about 58 different cantatas each year.
Contrary to the common assumption, the violinist and composer Johann Schop, not Bach, composed the movement's underlying chorale melody, Werde munter, mein Gemüthe; Bach's contribution was to harmonize and orchestrate it.[5] The frequent use of arrangements of the piece in modern weddings is in no way related to its scope or Bach's intent for it. Rather, it was one segment of an extended, approximately 20-minute treatment of a traditional Church hymn, as is typical of cantatas of the Baroque period.
Bach scored the chorale movements (6 and 10) from Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben for choir, trumpet, violin, optionally oboe, viola, and basso continuo. The music's wide popularity has led to numerous arrangements and transcriptions, such as for the classical guitar. And according to The New Oxford Companion to Music, the best-known for piano is by Dame Myra Hess.[5]
The following is the most commonly heard English version of the piece. It was written by the poet laureate Robert Bridges. It is not a translation of the stanzas used within Bach's original version, but is inspired by the various the stanzas of the same hymn composed in 1642 by Johann Schop that Bach had drawn upon: Jesu, meiner Seelen Wonne, the lyrics of which were written in 1661 by Martin Jahn (c. 1620–c. 1682).
Jahn's verses[6][7] express a close, friendly, and familiar friendship with Jesus, who gives life to the poet. It has been noted that the original German hymn was characteristically a lively hymn of praise, which is carried over somewhat into Bach's arrangement; whereas a slower, more stately tempo is traditionally used with the English version.
The original German text[6] does not correspond to the most common English version. A close-to-literal translation of the original German:
Well for me that I have Jesus,
O how strong I hold to him
that he might refresh my heart,
when sick and sad am I.
Jesus have I, who loves me
and gives to me his own,
ah, therefore I will not leave Jesus,
when I feel my heart is breaking.—from BWV 147, Chorale movement no 6
Jesus remains my joy,
my heart's comfort and essence,
Jesus resists all suffering,
He is my life's strength,
my eye's desire and sun,
my soul's love and joy;
so will I not leave Jesus
out of heart and face.—from BWV 147, Chorale movement no. 10
Excerpted below are the opening stanzas of Jahn's Jesu, meiner Seelen Wonne.
Gloss:
—[4]Jesus, my refuge and deliverer,
Jesus, the ground of my confidence,
Jesus, mighty trampler on the serpent,
Jesus, light of my life!
How my heart longs for you,
dear Jesus, painfully!
Come, ah come, I wait for you,
come,O dearest Jesus!
Jesus, delight of my soul,
Jesus, my best pleasure,
Jesus,my sun of joy,
Jesus, it is well known to you
how I love you from my heart
and am distressed without you.
Therefore O Jesus come to me
and stay with me forever and ever.
The English hymn is typically played slowly and reverently, however, the studio group Apollo 100 recorded a fast-paced, electronic-keyboard version in 1972, which featured in the film Boogie Nights (1997). [5]
The Beach Boys song Lady Lynda is based on the melody of the song, but not the words. Like the Beach Boys, The Brian Setzer Orchestra song "Bach's Bounce" uses the melody.
The melody of Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring has inspired Claudio Baglioni, the famous italian singer, for his song "Per incanto e per amore"
‘Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring’ As Played by a Wooden Staircase: The melody was used in a 2011 three-minute TV commercial for a Japanese cell phone, shot in the woods near Kyushu, Japan. According to the designer, no additional music was added — what you hear is just the sound of a ball, a long wooden xylophone, and gravity. [8]