March 18, 2013.Mostly Bach.Johann Sebastian Bach was born on March 21, 1685 in Eisenach, a town in Thuringia, Germany.His great Mass in B minor BWV 232 was one of his the last compositions to be completed in 1749 (Bach died a year later).Bach was a Lutheran, practically all of his sacred music was composed for Lutheran services, so it’s quite a mystery why Bach decided to compose a Mass, a setting for a Catholic liturgy.The Mass was probably never performed in its entirety till the revival of Bach’s music in the mid-19th century; it’s not even clear if Bach intended for it to be performed that way, as different parts are scored for different ensembles.As was so often the case in his career, Bach, who regularly had to compose a predetermined number of pieces on a tight schedule, reused much of his material written earlier.In this case, he picked Kyrie and Gloria, which he composed in 1733 as the Missa, and included them without a change as the first part of the complete Mass (he also used several sections of the same Missa to compose a cantata, Gloria in excelsis Deo, in 1745).Some music in the second part, Credo or Symbolum Nicenum, was also written earlier, but some was composed for the complete Mass.The third part, Sanctus, is a copy of a work written in 1724, and most of the music in Part IV, Osanna, Benedictus, and Agnus Dei was resued from earlier compositions.Nonetheless, by virtue of Bach’s genius, the complete Mass stands as a unified whole, and one of the greatest achievements in the history of music.Here’s Kyrie eleison, the very first section of the Mass, and here is Sanctus, Part III, which consists of only one section, and Osanna in excelsis Deo, the first section of part IV, titled Osanna, Benedictus, and Agnus Dei.They are performed by the Münchener Bach Orchester & Chor, Karl Richter conducting.
Georg Philipp Telemann, Bach’s friend and the godfather of his son Carl Philipp Emanuel, was born on March 14, 1681 in Magdeburg.One of the most prolific composers (he penned around 3000 pieces) Telemann’s legacy presents a striking example of changing fortunes.During his life he was considered a major composer, popular not just in Germany but abroad and favorably compared to J. S. Bach.Then by the 19th century his reputation sunk to such a degree that Bach’s biographers used Telemann’s name as an example of inferior composers of the time (turns out that some of the work attributed to Bach was actually written by Telemann).Of course many of the 3000 pieces Telemann wrote were mediocre, but that’s not how talents are judged.Here’s his superb cantata, Allein Gott in der Höh sei Her, which should put to rest all speculations about Telemann’s gifts.Performers are: Maurice André, trumpet, Barry McDaniel, bass, Chorale Philippe Caillard, Chamber Orchestra of Saarland Radio, Karl Ristenpart conducting.
Mostly Bach 2013
March 18, 2013. Mostly Bach. Johann Sebastian Bach was born on March 21, 1685 in Eisenach, a town in Thuringia, Germany. His great Mass in B minor BWV 232 was one of his the last compositions to be completed in 1749 (Bach died a year later). Bach was a Lutheran, practically all of his sacred music was composed for Lutheran services,
so it’s quite a mystery why Bach decided to compose a Mass, a setting for a Catholic liturgy. The Mass was probably never performed in its entirety till the revival of Bach’s music in the mid-19th century; it’s not even clear if Bach intended for it to be performed that way, as different parts are scored for different ensembles. As was so often the case in his career, Bach, who regularly had to compose a predetermined number of pieces on a tight schedule, reused much of his material written earlier. In this case, he picked Kyrie and Gloria, which he composed in 1733 as the Missa, and included them without a change as the first part of the complete Mass (he also used several sections of the same Missa to compose a cantata, Gloria in excelsis Deo, in 1745). Some music in the second part, Credo or Symbolum Nicenum, was also written earlier, but some was composed for the complete Mass. The third part, Sanctus, is a copy of a work written in 1724, and most of the music in Part IV, Osanna, Benedictus, and Agnus Dei was resued from earlier compositions. Nonetheless, by virtue of Bach’s genius, the complete Mass stands as a unified whole, and one of the greatest achievements in the history of music. Here’s Kyrie eleison, the very first section of the Mass, and here is Sanctus, Part III, which consists of only one section, and Osanna in excelsis Deo, the first section of part IV, titled Osanna, Benedictus, and Agnus Dei. They are performed by the Münchener Bach Orchester & Chor, Karl Richter conducting.
Georg Philipp Telemann, Bach’s friend and the godfather of his son Carl Philipp Emanuel, was born on March 14, 1681 in Magdeburg. One of the most prolific composers (he penned around 3000 pieces) Telemann’s legacy presents a striking example of changing fortunes. During his life he was considered a major composer, popular not just in Germany but abroad and favorably compared to J. S. Bach. Then by the 19th century his reputation sunk to such a degree that Bach’s biographers used Telemann’s name as an example of inferior composers of the time (turns out that some of the work attributed to Bach was actually written by Telemann). Of course many of the 3000 pieces Telemann wrote were mediocre, but that’s not how talents are judged. Here’s his superb cantata, Allein Gott in der Höh sei Her, which should put to rest all speculations about Telemann’s gifts. Performers are: Maurice André, trumpet, Barry McDaniel, bass, Chorale Philippe Caillard, Chamber Orchestra of Saarland Radio, Karl Ristenpart conducting.