St John Passion

First page of the autograph: Passio secundum Joannem

The Passio secundum Joannem or St John Passion[1] (German: Johannes-Passion), BWV 245, is a Passion or oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach, the older of two surviving Passions by Bach.[2] It was written during Bach's first year as director of church music in Leipzig and was first performed on April 7, 1724, at Good Friday Vespers at the St. Nicholas Church.[3][4]

The structure of the work falls in two halves, intended to flank a sermon. The anonymous libretto draws on existing works (notably Brockes') and is compiled from recitatives and choruses narrating the Passion of Christ as told in the Gospel of John, ariosos and arias reflecting on the action, and chorales using hymn tunes and texts familiar to a congregation of Bach's contemporaries.[5] Compared with the St Matthew Passion, the St John Passion has been described as more extravagant, with an expressive immediacy, at times more unbridled and less "finished".[6]

The work is most often heard today in the 1724 version although Bach revised it in 1725, 1732, and 1749, adding several numbers. "O Mensch, bewein dein Sünde groß", a 1725 replacement for the opening chorus, found a new home in the 1736 St Matthew Passion but several arias from the revisions are found only in the appendices to modern editions.

First performance

Originally Bach intended that the St John Passion would be first performed in the St. Thomas Church in Leipzig, but due to a last-minute change by the music council, it was first performed on Good Friday (as observed by German Protestants) of 1724 in the St. Nicholas Church, shortly after Bach's 39th birthday.[7] Bach quickly agreed to their desire to move the service to St. Nicholas Church,

but pointed out that the booklet was already printed, that there was no room available and that the harpsichord needed some repair, all of which, however, could be attended to at little cost; but he requested that a little additional room be provided in the choir loft of St. Nicholas Church, where he planned to place the musicians needed to perform the music. He also asked that the harpsichord be repaired.[7]

The council agreed and sent a flyer announcing the new location to all the people around Leipzig. The council made the arrangements requested by Bach regarding the harpsichord and space needed for the choir.[7]

Architecture and sources

Bach followed chapters 18 and 19 of the Gospel of John in the Luther Bible, and the tenor Evangelist follows exactly the words of that bible. The compiler of the additional poetry is unknown. Models are the Brockes Passion and a Johannes-Passion by Christian Heinrich Postel. The first scene is in the Kidron Valley, and the second in the palace of the high priest Kaiphas. Part Two shows three scenes, one with Pontius Pilate, one at Golgatha, and the third finally at the burial site. The dramatic argument between Pilate, Jesus, and the crowd is not interrupted by reflective elements but a single central chorale, #22 (note that this particular numbering is only used by the NBA).

Part One

1. Coro: Herr, unser Herrscher, dessen Ruhm in allen Landen herrlich ist!
2a. Evangelist, Jesus: Jesus ging mit seinen Jüngern über den Bach Kidron
2b. Coro: Jesum von Nazareth
2c. Evangelist, Jesus: Jesus spricht zu ihnen
2d. Coro: Jesum von Nazareth
2e. Evangelist, Jesus: Jesus antwortete: Ich hab's euch gesagt, daß ich's sei

3. Chorale: O große Lieb, o Lieb ohn alle Maße

4a. Evangelist, Jesus: Auf daß das Wort erfüllet würde

5. Chorale: Dein Will gescheh, Herr Gott, zugleich

6. Evangelist: Die Schar aber und der Oberhauptmann
7. Aria (alto, oboes, continuo): Von den Stricken meiner Sünden
8. Evangelist: Simon Petrus aber folgete Jesu nach
9. Aria (soprano, flutes [likely violins in 1724 version, as flutes were not known to be used in Leipzig yet], continuo): Ich folge dir gleichfalls mit freudigen Schritten
10. Evangelist, Maid, Peter, Jesus, Servant: Derselbige Jünger war dem Hohenpriester bekannt

11. Chorale: Wer hat dich so geschlagen

12a. Evangelist: Und Hannas sandte ihn gebunden zu dem Hohenpriester Kaiphas
12b. Coro: Bist du nicht seiner Jünger einer?
12c. Evangelist, Peter, Servant: Er leugnete aber
13. Aria (tenor, strings, continuo): Ach, mein Sinn

14. Chorale: Petrus, der nicht denkt zurück

1. Coro: Lord, our Lord, whose glory is magnificent in all the earth!
2a. Evangelist, Jesus: Jesus went forth with his disciples over the brook Cedron
2b. Coro: Jesus of Nazareth
2c. Evangelist, Jesus: Jesus said to them
2d. Coro: Jesus of Nazareth
2e. Evangelist, Jesus: Jesus answered, I have told you that I am

3. Chorale: O great love, o love beyond all measure

4a. Evangelist, Jesus: That the saying might be fulfilled

5. Chorale: Thy will be done, Lord God, at the same time

6. Evangelist: Then the band and the captain
7. Aria (alto, oboes): From the bonds of my sins
8. Evangelist: And Simon Peter followed Jesus
9. Aria (soprano, flutes): I will follow you likewise with joyful steps
10. Evangelist, Maid, Peter, Jesus, Servant: That disciple was known to the high priest

11. Chorale: Who hit you so

12a. Evangelist: Now Annas had sent him bound unto Caiaphas the high priest
12b. Coro: Are you not one of his disciples?
12c. Evangelist, Peter, Servant: He denied it
13. Aria (tenor, strings): Oh, my sense

14. Chorale: Peter, who does not think back

Part Two

15. Chorale: Christus, der uns selig macht
16a. Evangelist, Pilate: Da führeten sie Jesum von Kaiphas vor das Richthaus
16b. Coro: Wäre dieser nicht ein Übeltäter, wir hätten dir ihn nicht überantwortet.
16c. Evangelist, Pilate: Da sprach Pilatus zu ihnen
16d. Coro: Wir dürfen niemand töten.
16e. Evangelist, Pilate, Jesus: Auf daß erfüllet würde das Wort Jesu

17. Chorale: Ach großer König, groß zu allen Zeiten

18a. Evangelist, Pilate, Jesus: Da sprach Pilatus zu ihm
18b. Coro: Nicht diesen, sondern Barrabam!
18c. Evangelist, Pilate, Jesus: Barrabas aber war ein Mörder.
19. Arioso (bass, 2 viole d'amore, lute, continuo): Betrachte, meine Seel, mit ängstlichem Vergnügen
20. Aria (tenor, 2 viole d'amore, continuo [likely only Violoncello and Keyboard]): Erwäge, wie sein blutgefärbter Rücken
21a. Evangelist: Und die Kriegsknechte flochten eine Krone von Dornen
21b. Coro: Sei gegrüßet, lieber Jüdenkönig!
21c. Evangelist, Pilate: Und gaben ihm Backenstreiche.
21d. Coro: Kreuzige, kreuzige!
21e. Evangelist, Pilate: Pilatus sprach zu ihnen
21f. Coro: Wir haben ein Gesetz, und nach dem Gesetz soll er sterben
21g. Evangelist, Pilate, Jesus: Da Pilatus das Wort hörete, fürchtet' er sich noch mehr

22. Chorale: Durch dein Gefängnis, Gottes Sohn muß uns die Freiheit kommen

23a. Evangelist: Die Jüden aber schrieen
23b. Coro: Lässest du diesen los, so bist du des Kaisers Freund nicht
23c. Evangelist, Pilate: Da Pilatus da Wort hörete, führete er Jesum heraus
23d. Coro: Weg, weg mit dem, kreuzige ihn!
23e. Evangelist, Pilate: Spricht Pilatus zu ihnen
23f. Coro: Wir haben keinen König denn den Kaiser.
23g. Evangelist: Da überantwortete er ihn daß er gekreuziget würde.
24. Aria (bass) e coro (with strings and continuo): Eilt, ihr angefochtnen Seelen
25a. Evangelist: Allda kreuzigten sie ihn
25b. Coro: Schreibe nicht: der Jüden König
25c. Evangelist, Pilate: Pilatus antwortet

26. Chorale: In meines Herzens Grunde

27a. Evangelist: Die Kriegsknechte aber, da sie Jesum gekreuziget hatten, nahmen seine Kleider
27b. Coro: Lasset uns den nicht zerteilen, sondern darum losen, wes er sein soll.
27c. Evangelist, Jesus: Auf daß erfüllet würde die Schrift

28. Chorale: Er nahm alles wohl in acht

29. Evangelist, Jesus: Und von Stund an nahm sie der Jünger zu sich.
30. Aria (alto, viola da gamba, continuo): Es ist vollbracht!
31. Evangelist: Und neiget das Haupt und verschied.
32. Aria (bass) e coro ([Versions I-IV and revision] with string accompaniment, continuo): Mein teurer Heiland, laß dich fragen
33. Evangelist: Und siehe da, der Vorhang im Tempel zeriß in zwei Stück
34. Arioso (tenor, flutes [likely violins in Version I], oboes, continuo): Mein Herz, in dem die ganze Welt bei Jesu Leiden gleichfalls leidet
35. Aria (soprano, flute [likely violin in Version I], oboe da caccia, continuo): Zerfließe, mein Herze, in Fluten der Zähren
36. Evangelist: Die Jüden aber, dieweil es der Rüsttag war

37. Chorale: O hilf, Christe, Gottes Sohn

38. Evangelist: Darnach bat Pilatum Joseph von Arimathia

39. Coro: Ruht wohl, ihr heiligen Gebeine

40. Chorale: Ach Herr, lass dein lieb Engelein

15. Chorale: Christ, who makes us blessed
16a. Evangelist, Pilate: Then led they Jesus from Caiaphas into the hall of judgment
16b. Coro: If he were not a malefactor, we would not have delivered him to you
16c. Evangelist, Pilate: Then said Pilate to them
16d. Coro: We must not put any man to death
16e. Evangelist, Pilate, Jesus: That the saying of Jesus might be fulfilled

17. Chorale: Oh great king, great at all times

18a. Evangelist, Pilate, Jesus: Pilate therefore said to him
18b. Coro: Not this man, but Barabbas!
18c. Evangelist, Pilate, Jesus: Now Barabbas was a robber.
19 Arioso (bass, viole d'amore, lute): Look, my soul, with anxious pleasure
20. Aria (tenor, viole d'amore): Consider how his blood-stained back
21a. Evangelist: And the soldiers plaited a crown of thorns
21b. Coro: Hail, King of the Jews!
21c. Evangelist, Pilate: And they smote him with their hands.
21d. Coro: Crucify him, crucify him!
21e. Evangelist, Pilate: Pilate said to them
21f. Coro: We have a law, and by our law he ought to die
21g. Evangelist, Pilate, Jesus: When Pilate heard that saying, he was the more afraid

22. Chorale: Through thy captivity, Son of God has come to us the freedom

23a. Evangelist: But the Jews cried out, and said
23b. Coro: If you let this man go, you are not Caesar's friend
23c. Evangelist, Pilate: When Pilate heard that saying, he brought Jesus forth
23d. Coro: Away, away with him, crucify him!
23e. Evangelist, Pilate: Pilate said to them
23f. Coro: We have no king but Caesar.
23g. Evangelist: Then he delivered him to them to be crucified
24. Aria (bass) e coro: Hurry, you souls
25a. Evangelist: There they crucified him
25b. Coro: Write not, The King of the Jews;
25c. Evangelist, Pilate: Pilate answered

26. Chorale: In the bottom of my heart

27a. Evangelist: Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took his garments
27b. Coro: Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be
27c. Evangelist, Jesus: That the scripture might be fulfilled

28. Chorale: He took everything well in eight

29. Evangelist, Jesus: And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home.
30. Aria (alto, viola da gamba): It is finished!
31. Evangelist: He bowed his head, and departed.
32. Aria (bass) e coro: My precious Savior, let ask you
33. Evangelist: And, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two
34. Arioso (tenor, flutes, oboes): The heart, in which the whole world in Jesus' suffering likewise suffers
35. Aria (soprano, flute, oboe da caccia): Melt, my heart, in floods of tears
36. Evangelist: The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation day

37. Chorale: O help, Christ, Son of God

38. Evangelist: And after this Joseph of Arimathea, asked Pilate

39. Coro: Rest well, holy bones

40. Chorale: O Lord, let your dear little angels

Bach followed the Gospel of John but added two lines from the Gospel of Matthew, the crying of Peter and the tearing of the curtain in the temple (in Version I, this second line was replaced by the line from the Gospel of Mark).

He chose the chorales:

For the words of the aria "Ach, mein Sinn" (#13), Bach used an adaptation of a 1675 poem by Christian Weise, "Der weinende Petrus".[8]

For the central chorale (#22) "Durch dein Gefängnis, Gottes Sohn, muß uns die Freiheit kommen" ("Through Your prison, Son of God, must freedom come to us) Bach adapted the words of an aria from the Johannes-Passion of Christian Heinrich Postel (1700) and used the melody of "Mach's mit mir, Gott, nach deiner Güt" by Johann Hermann Schein. The architecture of Part Two shows symmetry around this movement, the music of the preceding chorus #21f "Wir haben ein Gesetz" corresponds to #23b "Lässest du diesen los", the demand #21d "Kreuzige ihn!" is repeated in an intensified way in #23d "Weg, weg mit dem, kreuzige ihn!", #21b "Sei gegrüßet, lieber Jüdenkönig" reappears as #25b "Schreibe nicht: der Jüden König".[9][10]

Scoring

The St John Passion is written for an intimate ensemble of soloists, four-part choir, strings and basso continuo and pairs of flauti traversi and oboes, the latter both doubling on oboe da caccia. For special colours Bach also used lute, viola d'amore and viola da gamba, instruments that were already old-fashioned at the time. In present day performances the part of Jesus is given to one bass soloist, Pilate and the bass arias to another. Some tenors sing the Evangelist – a very demanding part – and the arias. The smaller parts (Peter, Maid, Servant) are sometimes performed by choir members.

Versions

Researchers have discovered that Bach revised his St John Passion several times before producing a final version in the 1740s.[11] Alternate numbers that Bach introduced in 1725 but later removed can be found in the appendix to scores of the work, such as that of the Neue Bach-Ausgabe (and heard in the recording by Emmanuel Music directed by Craig Smith, cited below).[12]

The St John Passion was not Bach's first passion. While he was working as organist in 1708 and Konzertmeister in 1714 in Weimar, Bach possibly wrote a Passion, known as the Weimarer Passion, but it is now lost.[2] Sometimes while listening to the St John Passion today one can sense an older feel to some of the music, and some scholars believe that those portions are the surviving parts of the Weimar Passion.[2] Unlike the St Matthew Passion, to which Bach made very few and insignificant changes, the St John Passion was subject to several major revisions.[13] The original version from 1724 is not the one most familiar to us today, but rather the Version of 1739-1749.[14] In the 1724 version, the Recitative Movement No. 33 reads "Und die Vorhang im Tempel zerriß in zwei Stück; von oben an bis unten aus." (Mark 15, 33) and was in 3 measures. From 1725 on, this was replaced by the more familiar 7-measure quote from Matthew 27: 51-52 (except in the 3rd version, in which this was taken out altogether).

In 1725, Bach replaced the opening and closing choruses and added three arias (BWV 245a-c) while cutting one (Ach, mein Sinn) from the original version.[12] The opening chorus was replaced by O Mensch, bewein dein Sünde groß, which was later transposed and reused at the end of part one of the St Matthew Passion.[12] The closing chorale was replaced by a brilliant setting of "Christe, du Lamm Gottes", taken from the cantata Du wahrer Gott und Davids Sohn, BWV 23.[12] The three new arias are not known to have been reused.[4][15]

In the 1730s, Bach revised the St John Passion again, restoring the original opening chorus, removing the final Chorale (thus ending the work with the choral Movement No. 39), and removing the three new arias.[15] He also excised the two interpolations from the Gospel of Matthew that appeared in the work, probably due to objections by the ecclesiastical authorities.[12] The first of these he simply removed; he composed a new instrumental sinfonia in lieu of the second.[16] He also inserted an aria to replace the still-missing Ach, mein Sinn.[17] Neither the aria nor the sinfonia has been preserved.[18] Overall, Bach chose to keep the biblical text, and inserted Lutheran hymn verses so that he could return the work to its liturgical substance.[19]

We can infer that Bach had in mind an orchestra composed of no more than 15 to 17 musicians.[20] In 1749, he reverted more or less to the original of 1724, making only slight changes to the orchestration, most notably replacing the by-then almost obsolete viola d'amore with muted violins.[12] Also, Bach's orchestra for this piece would have been very delicate in nature because he called for many gamba strings.[21]

In the summer of 1815, Bach's Passions began to be studied once again. Parts of the St John Passion were being rehearsed and the St Matthew Passion was soon to follow.[22] Fred Wolle, with his Choral Union of 1888 at the Moravian town of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, was the first to perform the St John Passion in the Americas. This spurred a revival of Bach's choral music in the New World.[23]

Congregational use

While writing the St John Passion, Bach intended to retain the congregational spirit of the worship service.[19] The text for the body of the work is taken from the Gospel of John chapters 18 and 19.[19] To augment these chapters, which he summarized in the music, Bach used an elaborate body of commentary consisting of hymns, which were often called chorales, and arias.[24] He used Martin Luther's translation of the Bible with only slight modifications.[25] The text for the opening prayer, "Herr, unser Herrscher, dessen Ruhm", as well as the arias, chorales and the penultimate chorus "Ruht wohl, ihr heiligen Gebeine", come from various other sources.[26] It is interesting to note also that two recitative passages, the first dealing with Peter's weeping after his betrayal and the second portraying the temple veil's ripping during the crucifixion, do not appear in the Gospel of John, but the Gospel of Matthew.[15]

A modern example originating in Communist Hungary demonstrates the congregational character of St John Passion. In the early 1950s musicians were allowed to play church music only in the frame of liturgy. However, the St John Passion is an almost complete Lutheran liturgy, focused on the Evangelium. Hence, by inserting four missing features, the whole Passion could be performed as if it were part of the liturgy.

There is no applause, either at the beginning or at the end. The Passion contains quite a few chorales that are in regular use in worship. The congregation and the audience are to remain silent, as no one is supposed to sing along with the professionals.[27][28]

Highlights

Criticism

The text Bach set to music has been criticized as anti-Semitic.[30] This accusation is closely connected to a wider controversy regarding the tone of the New Testament's Gospel of John with regards to Judaism.[31]

Lukas Foss, who came to the United States in 1937 as a Jewish refugee from Nazi Germany, changed the text from "Juden" to "Leute" (people) when he conducted performances of the work.[30] This has been the trend of numerous mainline Christian denominations since the late 20th century as well, for instance, the Episcopal Church, when they read the gospel during Good Friday services. Michael Marissen's Lutheranism, Anti-Judaism, and Bach's 'St John's Passion' examines the controversy in detail. He concludes that Bach's St John Passion and St Matthew Passion contain fewer statements derogatory toward Jews than many other contemporary musical settings of the Passion. He also noted that Bach used words for the commenting arias and hymns that tended to shift the blame for the death of Jesus from "the Jews" to the congregation of Christians.[31]

Recordings

For selected recordings see St John Passion discography

Notes

  1. Bach's Latin title is more literally "Passion according to John"
  2. 1 2 3 Steinberg, Michael. Choral Masterworks: A Listener's Guide, 19. New York: Oxford University Press. 2005.
  3. Williams, Peter. The Life of Bach, 114. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 2004.
  4. 1 2 Markus Rathey. 2016. Bach’s Major Vocal Works. Music, Drama, Liturgy, Yale University Press
  5. Daw, Stephen. The Music of Johann Sebastian Bach: The Choral Works, 107. Canada: Associated University Presses, Inc. 1981.
  6. Steinberg, 22.
  7. 1 2 3 Wolff, Christoph. Johann Sebastian Bach: The Learned Musician, 291. New York: WW Norton & Company. 2000.
  8. Dreyfus, Laurence. The Triumph of 'Instrumental Melody': Aspects of Musical Poetics in Bach's St John Passion. In Melamed, Daniel R. Bach Perspectives, Volume 8: J. S. Bach and the Oratorio Tradition, 100–101. University of Illinois Press. 2011. ISBN 978-0-252-03584-5.
  9. The Passion of Saint John, BWV 245 commentary of Michael Steinberg (2004)
  10. Architecture and Sources of the St John Passion Neuer Basler Kammerchor (in German)
  11. Wolff, 293–4.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Wolff, 294.
  13. Wolff, 297.
  14. Melamed, Daniel R. Hearing Bach's Passions, 72. New York: Oxford University Press. 2005.
  15. 1 2 3 Melamed, 75.
  16. 1 2 Steinberg, 25.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Steinberg, 21.
  18. Bach, 237.
  19. 1 2 3 Herz, Gerhard. Essays on J.S. Bach, 58. Ann Arbor, MI: UMI Research Press. 1985.
  20. Bach, vi.
  21. Hochreither, Karl. Performance Practice of the Instrumental-Vocal Works of Johann Sebastian Bach, 11. Maryland, The Scarecrow Press. 2002.
  22. Herz, 94.
  23. Herz, 199.
  24. Steinberg, 20.
  25. Wolff, 292.
  26. Wolff, 293.
  27. BWV 245 TajKéAp
  28. A Deák téri János passió-előadások kulisszatitkaiból I.
  29. see the score of the Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Hungary
  30. 1 2 Steinberg, 23.
  31. 1 2 Steinberg, 26.

Further reading

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