Sunday Bach - Trinity 8

Bach wrote three cantatas for the eighth Sunday after Trinity. Last year we listened to the final one; this year we'll listen to the middle one, BWV 178, Wo Gott der Herr nicht bei uns hält (If God the Lord holds not with us, Leipzig 1724). This is a chorale cantata, and for Bach it's very unusual, stormy almost, with recitativ eruptions during the chorale and aria movements like lightning lashing out in a storm. Given the current weather here in the eastern US, I thought this very fitting to the atmosphere. Here's the late Craig Smith of Emmanuel Music on this unusual cantata:

Bach Cantata BWV 178 is one of the most obscure in all of the canon. It is a pity, because after penetrating its difficult exterior it is one of the best. The opening chorus does something that no other chorus does. While the orchestra remains consistent in texture and affect, the chorus lives in two different worlds. The opening phrase is presented in simple block chords. The next phrase is highly colored and ornamented in the bottom three voices. The simple block phrasing recurs in the third phrase. After this, the bottom voices ornament their lines for the rest of the movement. Obviously Bach is associating the simple block phrasing with God, and the wild, extravagant writing with the raging foes. 

The next movement uses the chorale in its pure form sung by the alto with continuo. Each phrase is interrupted by “tropes” which here are recitative comments on the chorale. This is an old technique, more common in medieval music with comments on Gregorian chant, than in Bach. Next, a bracing aria for bass with strings uses its terrific energy to propel us into another chorale setting, this time for tenor and oboes d’amore. Tropes reappear in the next chorale setting for full chorus, with individual voices doing the recitative comments. The very intellectual text of the following tenor aria is portrayed as a marvelous and stormy seascape. It is an interesting and surprising take on these words. The chorale harmonization at the end brings us back to the block-like portrayal of the power of God.

© Craig Smith

This week's performance is from a recording by the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra and Choir under the direction of Ton Koopman. Get out your umbrella and hang on!

Photo © 2009 by A. Roy Hilbinger