Es wartet alles auf dich, BWV 187
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Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...
composed the church cantata (Everything waits for You), 187 in
Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...
for the seventh Sunday after
Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God th ...
and first performed it on 4 August 1726. The text came from a 1704 libretto cycle published in Meiningen, following a symmetrical pattern in seven movements, which opens with a quotation from the Old Testament, is focused on a central quotation from the
New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chri ...
, and ends with a closing
chorale Chorale is the name of several related musical forms originating in the music genre of the Lutheran chorale: * Hymn tune of a Lutheran hymn (e.g. the melody of "Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme"), or a tune in a similar format (e.g. one of the th ...
. Symmetrical
recitative Recitative (, also known by its Italian name "''recitativo''" ()) is a style of delivery (much used in operas, oratorios, and cantatas) in which a singer is allowed to adopt the rhythms and delivery of ordinary speech. Recitative does not repeat ...
s and
aria In music, an aria ( Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompa ...
s form the other movements. Bach set the opening as a chorus based on two verses from
Psalm 104 Psalm 104 is the 104th psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the King James Version: "Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art very great". In Latin, it is known as "Benedic anima mea Domino". In the slightly different ...
, set the central movement as a bass solo on a quotation from the Sermon on the Mount, and concluded with two stanzas from Hans Vogel's
hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hy ...
"" in a four-part setting. The arias and recitatives are performed by three vocal soloist. The cantata is scored for a Baroque instrumental ensemble of two oboes, strings and continuo. Bach later used the music from four movements of this cantata for his Missa in G minor, BWV 235.


History and words

Bach wrote the cantata in 1726 for the Seventh Sunday after Trinity as part of his third cantata cycle. The prescribed readings for the Sunday are from the Epistle to the Romans, "the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life" (), and from the Gospel of Mark, the feeding of the 4000 (). During 1726, Bach had performed several cantatas by his cousin
Johann Ludwig Bach Johann Ludwig Bach ( – 1 May 1731) was a German composer and violinist. He was born in Thal near Eisenach. At the age of 22 he moved to Meiningen eventually being appointed cantor there, and later Kapellmeister. He wrote a large amount of musi ...
who worked in Meiningen, from 2 February ( Purification) to 30 May ( Ascension). The texts for these cantatas came from a 1704 anonymous libretto cycle published in Meiningen. They follow a symmetrical pattern: structured in seven movements, they begin with a chorus on a quotation from the Old Testament, turn in the central movement to a quotation from the
New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chri ...
, and end with a closing
chorale Chorale is the name of several related musical forms originating in the music genre of the Lutheran chorale: * Hymn tune of a Lutheran hymn (e.g. the melody of "Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme"), or a tune in a similar format (e.g. one of the th ...
, while a
librettist A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major litu ...
added text for the inner movements as
recitative Recitative (, also known by its Italian name "''recitativo''" ()) is a style of delivery (much used in operas, oratorios, and cantatas) in which a singer is allowed to adopt the rhythms and delivery of ordinary speech. Recitative does not repeat ...
s and
aria In music, an aria ( Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompa ...
s. Bach began to compose cantatas on texts in this format on the first Sunday after Trinity in 1726, with ''Brich dem Hungrigen dein Brot'', BWV 39. The text for ''Es wartet alles auf dich'' follows the same pattern. The opening chorus is based on , directly related to the reading. A possible parallel source is Psalm 145:15-16. Part two is opened by a bass solo on from the Sermon on the Mount. The cantata is closed by stanzas 4 and 6 of Hans Vogel's
hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hy ...
"" (1563). The poet of the other movements is unknown; Walther Blankenburg suggested Christoph Helm. The librettist paraphrased in the third movement . Bach first performed the cantata on 4 August 1726. He used the music of four movements, the opening chorus and the arias, for four movements of the Gloria of his Missa in G minor, BWV 235.


Music


Structure and scoring

Bach structured the cantata in seven movements in two parts, the first three movements to be performed before the sermon, the others after the sermon. The first movement is a choral setting of psalm verses, followed by recitative and aria, the fourth movement is a bass solo on a quotation of
Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religiou ...
, followed by aria and recitative, and closed by a chorale. Bach scored the work for three vocal soloists ( soprano (S), alto (A) and bass (B)), a four-part choir, and a Baroque instrumental ensemble: two
oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. ...
s (Ob), two
violin The violin, sometimes known as a '' fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone ( string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument ( soprano) in the family in regu ...
s (Vl),
viola ; german: Bratsche , alt=Viola shown from the front and the side , image=Bratsche.jpg , caption= , background=string , hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow , range= , related= *Violin family ...
(Va), and basso continuo (Bc). The duration of the cantata is around 25 minutes. In the following table of the movements, the scoring follows the
Neue Bach-Ausgabe The New Bach Edition (NBE) (german: Neue Bach-Ausgabe; NBA), is the second complete edition of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, published by Bärenreiter. The name is short for Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750): New Edition of the Complete W ...
. The keys and
time signature The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note va ...
s are taken from the Bach scholar
Alfred Dürr Alfred Dürr (3 March 1918 – 7 April 2011) was a German musicologist. He was a principal editor of the Neue Bach-Ausgabe, the second edition of the complete works of Johann Sebastian Bach. Professional career Dürr studied musicology and Clas ...
, using the symbol for common time (4/4). The instruments are shown separately for winds and strings, while the continuo, playing throughout, is not shown.


Movements


1

The opening chorus is a setting of psalm verses, "" (These wait all upon You, that you may give them nourishment in due saeson). Grammatically this is a passive form where the subject (God) comes after the verb. This underlines the faith of the writer, who knows (s)he can totally rely on God for his/her daily needs. The following subjunctive (conditional form) underlines that God does this by grace, totally undeserved by the recipient. This is central to Bach's Lutheran faith. These verses are often used as a prayer before a meal. Bach achieves a unity of form, but at the same time an individual handling of the four ideas of the text, as in a motet. The motifs of the instrumental
sinfonia Sinfonia (; plural ''sinfonie'') is the Italian word for symphony, from the Latin ''symphonia'', in turn derived from Ancient Greek συμφωνία ''symphōnia'' (agreement or concord of sound), from the prefix σύν (together) and ϕωνή (sou ...
of 28 measures are continued through most of the movement, creating unity. "" (a) is expressed in free
polyphony Polyphony ( ) is a type of musical texture consisting of two or more simultaneous lines of independent melody, as opposed to a musical texture with just one voice, monophony, or a texture with one dominant melodic voice accompanied by chords, ...
embedded in the instrumental music, then repeated together with "" (b) in free polyphony with canonic imitation on two themes, with the instruments playing mostly
colla parte A variety of musical terms are likely to be encountered in printed scores, music reviews, and program notes. Most of the terms are Italian, in accordance with the Italian origins of many European musical conventions. Sometimes, the special mus ...
, then a and b are repeated within a part of the sinfonia, which is continued instrumentally. In the following second section, "" (c) is the theme of a choral fugue, "" (d) is the
countersubject In music, a subject is the material, usually a recognizable melody, upon which part or all of a composition is based. In forms other than the fugue, this may be known as the theme. Characteristics A subject may be perceivable as a complete mus ...
. The instruments play
colla parte A variety of musical terms are likely to be encountered in printed scores, music reviews, and program notes. Most of the terms are Italian, in accordance with the Italian origins of many European musical conventions. Sometimes, the special mus ...
first, then add motifs from the sinfonia. In the third concluding section the complete text is repeated within a part of the sinfonia.


2

In the first recitative, "" (What creatures are contained by the great sphere of the world!), the librettist paraphases ideas from verses 17 to 25 of the same psalm, which praises God as the Creator of the universe.


3

The first aria addresses God as the sustainer of life: "" (You Lord, You alone crown the year with Your good.), in a close paraphrase of . The alto voice is accompanied by the full orchestra in a dance-rhythm with irregular grouping of measures in the
ritornello A ritornello (Italian; "little return") is a recurring passage in Baroque music for orchestra or chorus. Early history The earliest use of the term "ritornello" in music referred to the final lines of a fourteenth-century madrigal, which were usu ...
s.


4

The fourth and central movement sets the biblical words "" (Therefore, do not be anxious, saying: "What will we eat, what will we drink), from the Sermon on the Mount. Bach gives them to the bass as the ' (voice of Christ), accompanied by the violins in
unison In music, unison is two or more musical parts that sound either the same pitch or pitches separated by intervals of one or more octaves, usually at the same time. ''Rhythmic unison'' is another term for homorhythm. Definition Unison or per ...
and the continuo, which also takes part in their motifs.


5

The soprano aria, "" (God takes care of every life), is in two contrasting parts. The first section is accompanied by festive
dotted rhythm In Western musical notation, a dotted note is a note with a small dot written after it. In modern practice, the first dot increases the duration of the basic note by half (the original note with an extra beam) of its original value. This means ...
s and a broad melody of the solo oboe, the second section, marked ', is again like a dance. Only the instruments repeat afterwards the dotted rhythm of the beginning. The dance seems to have an unusual confidence, almost a cheeky or upstart like confidence. It sounds more like a bassoon than an oboe. So God's grace allows the believer this confidence. It reminds me a little of Luther's instruction to his newborn son, who wouldn't be dissuaded from crying endlessly. Finally in desperation, Luther asked him, "Is the devil bothering you again? Why not do what I do and pull your pants down and fire a blast in his face." John Osborne used this scene in his "Luther" play. The incident may well be apocryphal, and my 'quotation' is based on my memory. Were he based in England, Luther may well have been nicknamed "fartin' Martin" (as I like to be). The bassoon/oboe certainly mimics the methanous outburst well. I can't help wondering if Bach had this Lutheran outburst in mind as he wrote.... I guess it should be added, this is about as irreverent as Bach got in his music.


6

In the
recitative Recitative (, also known by its Italian name "''recitativo''" ()) is a style of delivery (much used in operas, oratorios, and cantatas) in which a singer is allowed to adopt the rhythms and delivery of ordinary speech. Recitative does not repeat ...
"" (If I can only hold onto Him with childlike trust), the last words of the soprano are enriched by the strings, like the in Bach's '' St Matthew Passion''.


7

The final chorale is a four-part setting for the choir and all instruments. It features two stanzas of the hymn. The fourth stanza, "" (God has provided for the earth) relates to the beginning, God as the Creator, while the sixth stanza, "" (We thank profoundly and pray to Him that He give us the will of His Spirit, that we understand it rightly), expresses thanksgiving, ending on the Latin word "Gratias".


Publication

The cantata was published in the first edition of Bach's works by the Bach-Gesellschaft in volume 37, edited by
Alfred Dörffel Alfred Dörffel (24 January 1821 – 22 January 1905) was a German pianist, music publisher and librarian. Career Dörffel was born in Waldenburg, Saxony, the son of August Friedrich Dörffel and his wife Christiane Charlotte, née Kröhne. He ...
in 1891. In the
Neue Bach-Ausgabe The New Bach Edition (NBE) (german: Neue Bach-Ausgabe; NBA), is the second complete edition of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, published by Bärenreiter. The name is short for Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750): New Edition of the Complete W ...
, it appeared in volume I/18 in 1966, edited by
Leo Treitler Leo Treitler (born January 26, 1931) is an American musicologist born in Dortmund, Germany. He is distinguished professor at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. Treitler studied at the University of Chicago under Grosvenor Coop ...
, followed by a critical report in 1967.


Recordings

A list of recordings is provided on the Bach Cantatas Website. Ensembles playing period instruments in historically informed performance are shown with green background.


References


Bibliography

''General'' * ''Books'' * * ''Online sources'' * * * *


External links

*
Cantata BWV 187 Es wartet alles auf dich
history, scoring, sources for text and music, translations to various languages, discography, discussion, Bach Cantatas Website

English translation,
University of Vermont The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a public land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is among the oldest universities in the United ...

BWV 187 Es wartet alles auf dich
text, scoring,
University of Alberta The University of Alberta, also known as U of A or UAlberta, is a Public university, public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford,"A Gentleman of Strathcona – Alexande ...
* Luke Dahn
BWV 187.7
bach-chorales.com {{DISPLAYTITLE:''Es wartet alles auf dich'', BWV 187 Church cantatas by Johann Sebastian Bach Psalm-related compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach 1726 compositions