Lobet Gott in seinen Reichen (Praise God in his kingdoms), BWV 11, also known as the Ascension Oratorio, is an oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach, marked by him as Oratorium In Festo Ascensionis (Oratorio for the feast of the Ascension). It was probably composed in 1735 for the service for Ascension and first performed on 19 May 1735. The text additional to biblical sources and chorales was presumably written by Picander who had worked for the Christmas Oratorio before. The oratorio spans eleven movements, with a performance time of around half an hour, performed in two parts, 1–6 before the sermon and 7–11 after the sermon.
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In the Bach Gesellschaft Gesamtausgabe (BGA) the work was included under the cantatas (hence its low BWV number), and in the Bach Compendium it is numbered BC D 9 and included under oratorios.
The work is festively scored for four soloists, soprano, alto, tenor and bass, a four part choir, three trumpets, timpani, two flauto traverso, two oboes, two violins, viola and basso continuo.
As opposed to other works of Bach based on Bible narration, the Ascension Oratorio is compiled from multiple sources: the first recitative of the Evangelist (movement 2) is from Luke 24:50–51, the second (5) from Acts 1:9 and Mark 16:19, the third (7) from Acts 1:10–11, the last (9) from Luke 24:52a, Acts 1:12 and Luke 24:52b. The biblical words are narrated by the tenor as the Evangelist. In his third recitative two men are quoted, for this quotation tenor and bass both sing in an Arioso.[1]
The festive opening chorus is based on the cantata Froher Tag, verlangte Stunden, BWV Anh18. The recitatives for bass and alto are accompanied by the flutes in a recitativo accompagnato. The arias for alto and soprano are both based on the wedding cantata Auf, süß entzückende Gewalt, written in 1725 on words of Johann Christoph Gottsched. Bach used the model for the alto aria also used for the Agnus Dei of his Mass in B minor. The soprano aria is one of the rare pieces in his music without basso continuo, the two unison flutes, the oboe and the strings playing a trio, augmented to a quartet by the singer, as probably intentionally "heavenly" music without earthly weight (German: Erdenschwere). The original words in the wedding cantata mentioned "Unschuld" (innocence). The first chorale, closing part 1, the fourth verse of Du Lebensfürst, Herr Jesu Christ of Johann Rist, is a modest four part setting, whereas the final chorale, the seventh verse of Gott fähret auf gen Himmel of Gottfried Wilhelm Sacer, is embedded in an instrumental concerto. Similar to the final chorale Nun seid ihr wohl gerochen of the Christmas Oratorio, written half a year earlier, the chorale tune in a minor key appears in the triumphant context of a different major key.[1]
Bach wrote the cantata Froher Tag, verlangte Stunden (Happy day, long hoped-for hours) for the inauguration of a renovation of the Thomasschule zu Leipzig, first performed on 5 June 1732. The words of Johann Heinrich Winckler survived.[3] The music is lost but for the opening chorus that Bach used as a model for the Ascension Oratorio.[1]
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