Here are the cantatas for the 3rd Sunday after Epiphany. There are four cantatas for this day, which all are based on texts inspired by the Gospel reading of the day: the healing of a leper. The first three cantatas are from the three complete Leipzig cantata cycles (1724, 1725 and 1726), the last one, "Ich steh mit einem Fuß im Grabe", BWV 156, is one of the cantatas to a libretto by Picander from 1729.
Readings:
Romans 12:17–21, overcome evil with good
Matthew 8:1–13, the healing of the leper
The Gospel reading for this day consists of two stories, the healing of the leper and the faith of the Centurion. The emphasis is on blind faith. Romans, in contrast, extols the virtue of charity towards one's enemy.
Cantata Studies:
Bach Cantatas Website | Simon Crouch | Emmanuel Music | Julian Mincham | Wikipedia | Eduard van Hengel (in Dutch) | Bach Companion (Oxford U.P.) | Bach: The Learned Musician (Wolff) | Music in the Castle of Heaven (Gardiner)
[Christ cleansing a leper by Jean-Marie Melchior Doze, 1864]
Cantatas:
- Herr, wie du willt, so schicks mit mir, BWV 73, 23 January 1724
Chorale e recitativo (Tenor, Bass, Soprano): Herr, wie du willt, so schicks mit mir
Aria (Tenor, Oboe): Ach senke doch den Geist der Freuden
Recitativo (Bass): Ach, unser Wille bleibt verkehrt,
Aria (Bass): Herr, so du willt
Choral: Das ist des Vaters Wille
"Lord, as thou wilt, so ordain it with me"
Text and translation
Scored for soprano, tenor and bass soloists, a four-part choir, horn (replaced by organ in the revised version), two oboes, two violins, viola, and basso continuo.
This is a short but very original cantata. It is inspired by the story of the leper, which contrasts human weakness with God's will, and by the leper's plea, "Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean". The oboe motif of the chorale transforms into the recurring "Lord, if Thou Wilt," a kind of leitmotif for the entire cantata. The chorale is interspersed with recitatives by each of the soloists.
The emotional center of the cantata is the tenor aria (again with oboe accompaniment), "O enter thou spirit of joy into my heart".
In movement 3 the will of man is described as "bald trotzig, bald verzagt" (quickly contrary, quickly dashed), illustrated in the melody.
The bass aria that follows describes the soul's readiness for death using the leper's words from the gospel. In the final verse, pizzicato strings suggest funeral bells.
The cantata ends with the usual quiet chorale, the final stanza of Ludwig Helmbold's hymn "Von Gott will ich nicht lassen".
Video: J.S. Bach Foundation (St. Gallen) - Workshop (in German) - Contemplation (in German) - Was mein Gott will, das g’scheh allzeit, BWV 111, 21 January 1725
1. Coro: Was mein Gott will, das g'scheh allzeit
2. Aria (bass): Entsetze dich, mein Herze, nicht
3. Recitativo (alto): O Törichter! der sich von Gott entzieht
4. Aria (alto, tenor): So geh ich mit geherzten Schritten
5. Recitativo (soprano): Drum wenn der Tod zuletzt den Geist
6. Chorale: Noch eins, Herr, will ich bitten dich
"What my God wills, that will always be"
Text and translation
Scored for four vocal soloists (soprano, alto, tenor, and bass), a four-part choir, two oboes, two violins, viola, and basso continuo.
This chorale cantata, based on the hymn "Was mein Gott will, das g'scheh allzeit" by Albert, Duke of Prussia (1490-1568), published in 1554, explores the theme of the Christian's acceptance of God's will, particularly in the wake of the Duke's wife's passing. Albert was a significant figure as the first German prince to embrace Protestantism and transform his duchy into a secular state. He chose a French chanson melody (Claudin de Sermisy, 1528) that was later associated with other chorales.
The elaborate opening chorus, with a soprano cantus firmus, is marked by its intensity and dynamism. It begins with a 16-measure instrumental statement that incorporates the melody in a unique combination of alternating two- and three-measure phrases. The vocal parts intertwine with an orchestral concerto of oboes, strings, and occasional continuo.
In the bass aria, the librettist retained the line from the hymn "Gott ist mein Trost und Zuversicht" and delivered a resolute exhortation.
The radiant duet for alto and tenor underscores the text's message of courageously following God's path. Sung in canon, their voices move together in 3/4 time, evoking a minuet with a strong, confident character. Bach often uses suite rhythms, such as the minuet and gavotte, to symbolize souls progressing toward heaven, reflecting the profound joy of salvation through death. This duet shines like a dazzling gem.
After a soprano recitative in which the final words "O blessed, desired end!" are emphasized in an arioso, the cantata concludes with a simple but powerful four-part setting of the final verse of the chorale.
Video: J.S. Bach Foundation (St. Gallen) / Workshop (in German) - Contemplation (in German) - Alles nur nach Gottes Willen, BWV 72, 27 January 1726
Coro: Alles nur nach Gottes Willen
Recitativo und Arioso (Alto, Violinen): O selger Christ, der allzeit seinen Willen
Aria (Alto, Violinen): Mit allem, was ich hab und bin
Recitativo (Bass): So glaube nun
Aria (Soprano, Oboe, Streicher): Mein Jesus will es tun, er will dein Kreuz versüßen
Choral: Was mein Gott will, das g'scheh allzeit
"All only according to God's will"
Text and translation
Scored for soprano, alto and bass, a four-part choir, two oboes, two violins, two obbligato violins, viola and basso continuo.
Bach composed Alles nur nach Gottes Willen in his third cantata cycle for the Third Sunday after Epiphany. The cantata text was written by Salomon Franck, who was Bach's librettist when they both worked for the ducal court in Weimar. Franck published it in his Evangelisches Andachts-Opffer in 1715. However, Bach composed the music much later. The cantata takes the readings about the healing of a leper as a testimony to the blind faith the believer should have in the Lord in good times and bad - it is about God's omnipotence and human trust in God.
The final chorale "Was mein Gott will, das g'scheh allzeit" was written by Albert, Duke of Prussia in 1547. The chorale theme by Claudin de Sermisy first appeared in 1528 in print in the collection of secular songs Trente et quatre chansons. Bach had previously used the chorale as the basis for his chorale cantata Was mein Gott will, das g'scheh allzeit, BWV 111, composed for the same occasion in 1725.
Although Franck had marked the first movement as an aria, Bach composed it as a chorus, opened by a ritornello dominated by two-bar runs in the violins and eventually in the continuo. It is a brilliant chorus in concertante style - the word "all" is repeated almost obsessively.
The first recitative for alto begins as a secco, but develops into an arioso on the words "Herr, so du willt," which are repeated nine times with a different continuo line, and culminate in "so sterb ich nicht. The following alto aria begins immediately with the voice, to ensure a connection between the recitative and the aria, then follows an unusual ritornello, a fugue with the two violins and the continuo.
The bass speaks in the recitative with the authority of the Vox Christi. The sweet soprano aria brings a balmy peace, more like song and dance, the instruments playing a ritornello and repeating it after a short sung passage: "Mein Jesus will es tun, er will dein Kreuz versüßen" (My Jesus will do it, he will sweeten your cross). In the main section that follows, the voice is embedded in the ritornello. This is followed by the short final chorale.
Video: J.S. Bach-Foundation (St. Gallen) / Workshop (in German) - Contemplation (in German) - Ich steh mit einem Fuß im Grabe, BWV 156, 23 January 1729
Sinfonia
Aria (Tenor) and Chorale (Soprano): Ich steh mit einem Fuß im Grabe
Recitative (Bass): Mein Angst und Not
Aria (Alto): Herr, was du willt, soll mir gefallen
Recitative (Bass): Und willst du, dass ich nicht soll kranken
Chorale: Herr, wie du willt, so schicks mit mir
"I stand with one foot in the grave"
Text and translation
Scored for three vocal soloists (alto, tenor, and bass), four-part choir, oboe, two violins, viola, and basso continuo.
Although it bears the hallmarks of a Weimar creation with its evocative language and intimate scoring, BWV 156 actually originated in Leipzig and features texts by the local poet Picander. It is believed to have premiered on January 23, 1729, making it Bach's fourth and final cantata for the third Sunday after Epiphany. The scripture readings for that Sunday were taken from Romans (offering guidance for life) and the Gospel of Matthew (recounting the healing of a leper).
Of Bach's extensive repertoire of over two hundred extant cantatas, thirty deal directly with themes of death, and many more touch on them indirectly. Like many of his contemporaries, Bach was intimately acquainted with the realities of death, having lost ten of his twenty-one children in infancy. This solo cantata shows Bach's mature cantata style at its most refined. The text reflects the biblical passage in which Jesus heals a leper, and presents the tension between two alternatives: pleading with God to end the sinner's suffering by welcoming him into heaven, while at the same time expressing the allure of the prospect of being healed. The central aria is the fulcrum between these two extremes.
The cantata begins with a deeply felt sinfonia dominated by a melancholy oboe solo, which Bach later reused in his Harpsichord Concerto BWV 1056. Compared to its later iteration for harpsichord, the melody remains straightforward and unadorned, strategically setting the tone for the following movement.
The following movement combines a tenor aria with a chorale cantus firmus. The structure of the aria is unconventional, with the tenor, embodying the sick individual from the Gospel, seemingly resigned to impending death as he boldly sings "Ich steh mit einem Fuß im Grabe" while the soprano interjects with Johann Hermann Schein's hymn "Machs mit mir, Gott, nach deiner Güt".
A bass recitative and arioso convey the anguish of those "who linger longer on earth, delaying their entrance into heaven". Once again, the tension between the desire for relief from suffering and the lure of healing is palpable.
The central alto aria serves as a focal point between these conflicting feelings. Alto solos alternate with a buoyant instrumental concertino of oboe, violin, and continuo. Structurally, the movement adopts the altered da capo aria form.
The cantata concludes with a chorale that features an original melody by Bach and ends with the affirmation, "Herr, wie du willt, so schicks mit mir" (Your will is the best). Throughout the piece there is a pervasive longing for the liberation of death.
Video: Netherlands Bach Society - Interview with conductor Lars Ulrik Mortensen /
J.S. Bach Foundation (St. Gallen) / Workshop (in German) - Contemplation (in German)