-
Finally, I want to address a cantata that has been my main listening focus for about a year now, J.S. Bach: Christ lag in Todesbanden, BWV 4 - The Church Cantatas, Vol. 139, YouTube link, total duration 19:19 minutes, uploaded on 26.11.2023, currently (3.02.2024) with 4,591 views. The timestamps for individual movements are: Christ lag in Todesbanden, BWV 4:
- 00:00 I. Sinfonia,
- 01:15 II. Coro Versus I. Christ lag in Todesbanden,
- 05:05 III. Duetto, Versus II. Den Tod niemand zwingen kunnt (Soprano, Alto),
- 08:47 IV. Aria Versus III. Jesus Christus, Gottes Sohn (Tenore),
- 10:51 V. Coro, Versus IV. Es war ein wunderlicher Krieg,
- 13:10 VI. Aria, Versus V. Hier ist das rechte Osterlamm (Basso),
- 16:17 VII. Duetto, Versus VI. So feiern wir das hohe Fest (Soprano, Tenore),
- 18:02 VIII. Choral, Versus VII. Wir essen und leben wohl (Coro).
-
This work is absolutely remarkable, an early opus presumably from 1707 (Bach was around 22 at the time), later revised (1724/1725), incorporating one of the oldest surviving musical sources, based on the sequence “Victimae paschali laudes” by the court chaplain Wipo of Emmerich of the Emperor Henry II, Conrad II, and Henry III from the 11th century and the subsequent song “Christ ist erstanden” from the 12th century, which was used by Luther in 1524 and thereafter in many versions. Bach himself used the model extensively, and here in the cantata, following an introductory Sinfonia, in all subsequent (seven) movements - following the stanzas of the song - used it as a theme. I have delved into the structure of this cantata elsewhere and will not expand on it here, but I would suggest paying attention to the symmetry and rhythm changes.
-
The recommended recording here is, among the dozen or so recordings I know, the most highly regarded, possibly surprisingly from the affordably available complete recording of all Bach cantatas with Pieter Jan Leusink and the Netherlands Bach Collegium, the Holland Boys Choir, and of course vocal soloists: The tempos with their modifications and the dynamics (volume and its variation) are set in a way that, in my perception, is hardly surpassable, especially the balance between the voices (instruments, soloists, and choir) I find outstanding, possibly also a special achievement of the mix in post-production - in any case, this results in an astonishingly high transparency of the sometimes highly complex polyphonic guidance. The second source for the convincing transparency and overall effect is probably the lively articulation of the individual voices with their specific timbres and their own musical logic.
-
Although I believe that I can rely on the high immediate impact of the melodic guidance, complex harmony, and varied rhythm in their interaction, the distance to currently customary sound patterns is clearly evident, so that children should possibly not be introduced to it in a forced manner. For one’s own study, it could be helpful to watch the recording with Damien Guillon at: YouTube link, duration: 0:11 minutes, where the score is shown as the music plays. Also, the recording with Masaaki Suzuki, YouTube link, duration: 18:35 minutes, is mentioned as a reference recording, which is probably a bit more perfect than the one with Leusink, but in my perception also somewhat sterile. Also very interesting is the recording with Jansson YouTube link, duration 24:04 minutes, with only 6 female singers and 5 instrumentalists, vocally particularly transparent, but instrumentally rather thin and unbalanced in some movements, although the organ can compensate for some of it - of course, like a number of other recordings, these are musical achievements to which I pay the greatest respect regardless of critical comments.