Music notes - Bach's Cantata

Bach

Cantata No 78 – Jesu Der du Meine Seele

Bach background:

Þ    Germany, born 1685

Þ    Church organist

Þ    Mainly church and organ music

Þ    Virtuoso organist

Þ    Contrapuntal in style

Þ    Word painting in his chorales

Þ    Rich contrapuntal textures

Þ    Melodies played on different instruments

Þ    Modulated to related keys

Baroque Period and Style:

Þ    1600 – 1750  =  Baroque period

Þ    ornate an dramatic

Þ    all phonics used

Þ    continuo used

Þ    imitation and canon common

Þ    melody elaborate and ornate

Þ    irregular phase lengths

Þ    melismatic

Þ    small orchestra – continuo, strings, wind such as flute oboe an later bassoon, brass of trumpets and horns

Þ    limited instruments

Þ    timpani use occasionally

Þ    Full SATB choir, all male

Þ    Contrast

Baroque Form:

Ritornello        –          based on a recurring idea

Aria                 –          A vocal piece from an opera or cantata written for solo or    

duet singing. Elaborate, ornate, melismatic.

Recitative       -           The words are an important feature, usually syllabic

Cantata          -           music for solo voice with orchestral accompaniment

Chorale          -           Simple Lutheran hymn

Chaconne      -           Uses a ground bass that passes into upper parts

Instruments:

Þ    Violins

Þ    Violas

Þ    Violone/ouble bass

Þ    Continuo – Cello and Organ

Þ    Oboe

Þ    Horn

Þ    Flauto traverse – flute

Bach’s Cantata:

Movement	Form	Voice	Key	Time
1. Chorus	Chaconne/Ritornello	SATB	G min	3-4
2. Duet Aria	Da Capa Aria	S & A	B flat	C
3. Tenor Recitative	Recitative secco	T	--	C
4. Tenor Aria	Dal Segno ABB’	T	G min	6-8
5. Bass Recitative	Recitative Accompagnato	B	E flat- F min	C
6. Bass Aria	ABA’	B	C min	C
7. Chorale	AABC	SATB	G min	C

Main Features:

Movement 1:

·        G minor

·        Ritornello form – recurring orchestral theme/section, heard 7 times (different each time)

·        Chaccone – ground bass theme heard in continuo and upper instruments and voices (oboe, descending chromatic)

·        Chromatic/austinato theme in ground bass – descending chromatic line, ends perfect cadence

·        Grief motif – syncopated rhythm, woodwind, strings

·        Joy motif  three note idea, bar 17, continuo, canon

·        Chorale theme bar 21 in ¾ time, soprano, repeated notes, altered to fit time sig, flute double 8^ve+.

·        SATB choir

·        Violin, violas, violone (double bass), continuo, flute, oboe, horn

·        Polyphonic (mainly)

·        Bass voice doubles continuo, bar 61

·        Voices enter imitively from bar 90 on

·        Full of perfect cadences

·        Mirror canon on oboes

·        Longest movement

·        Tonic pedal bar 68-71

·        Sequences used (lots)

·        Trills used

·        Mainly syllabic

·        Opening – homophonic

·        Horn doubles soprano line but not printed on score

2nd movement:

• Aria Duetto
• Duet – soprano and alto
• Organ, cello, violine (double bass – octave lower than written)
• B flat major
• Ternary form ABA
• Mainly polyphonic, also homophonic
• Recurring instrumental ritornello
• Pizzicato and staccato adds to happier mood
• Feeling of a walking bass throughout – feeling of hurrying
• B section – minor with slower rhythms and more sustained notes
• Dialogue
• Sequences
• 4 bar instrumental in C minor Bar 61-64
• Bar 32 – harmony 6^th, soprano and alto
• Da capo Aria – returns to beginning
• Syllabic and melismatic
• Vocals singing in canon and together
• Use of rests
• Word painting:

Þ    Bar 85-86 – freulich – means joyful, fast and lively, clearly heard by the way it’s sung

Þ    Bar 64-67, pause, rests, words stand out, Act! Hore – O Here, both voices sing it together, repeated 3 times.

Þ    Bar 9-10 – eilen means hurry, melismatic, lots of notes, busy, hurrying

Movement 3:

• Tenor and continuo
• Secco – sparse accompaniment
• Atonal, ads to despair and feeling of isolation
• Melody full of wide leaps ( intervals)
• Sound obscure
• Accompaniment is block chords and long sustained notes
• Tenor Recitative – clamatory speech
• Augmented intervals
• Diminished chords in harmony
• Dramatic speech
• Short movement
• Mostly syllabic
• Melismatic – erzurnet (angry)
• No key signature and no form – ambiguous

4^th Movement:

• Tenor Aria
• G minor
• Only movement in 6/8 time
• Binary form ABB₁
• Dal Segno at the end – repeat – return to sign
• Flute and continuo
• Melismatic
• Repetition
• Light hearted and melodic
• Recurring instrumental riternello – sequences used
• Ascending scale nearly 2 octaves
• Has an upbeat
• Appoggiatura – type of ornamentation
• Counter melody 0 bar 21
• Bar 21-22 descending repeated notes continuo
• Word painting:

Þ    Stehet – stand, dominant pedal, long sustained notes, held nearly 4 bars

Þ    Striete – to fight, sung aggressively, melismatic, loud

Þ    Behertz – brave, repeated, rests, wide leaps, rising – courageous

5^th Movement:

• Sparse accompaniment, same as movement 3 but more active
• Mainly syllabic, - one note per syllable
• Contrast in tempo, texture, mood, accompaniment, tonal centre
• Recitativo accompagnato – active accompaniment
• Last section more ornamented and melismatic
• Perfect cadence at end – in F minor
• Bass with strings and continuo
• Bass recitative
• E flat – G minor – F minor

6^th Movement:

• Bass aria
• C minor
• Bass voice
• Strings, continuo, oboe
• A more concerto style
• Recurring instrumental ritornello theme
• Elaborate free flowing oboe solo – semi quavers, sequences an scales
• ABA¹
• Perfect cadence at riternello theme
• Trill repeated
• Upbeat
• Dal Segno
• Narrow range

7^th Movement:

• Chorale (verse 12 of original hymn)
• G minor
• SATB Choir:  Soprano         - doubled by flute, oboe, horn and violin

                                    Alto           - doubled by oboe and violin

                                    Tenor        - doubled by viola

                              Bass           - doubled by continuo (cello and organ)

·        4 four bar phrases AABC

·        Homophonic

·        Repeated notes

·        Cadence every 2 bars (imperfect and perfect)

·        Tierce de Picardy – ends on a major chord

·        Contains all features of the piece

·        Bass- very busy

·        Balanced