Bach cantatas (Teldec)

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The brown cover art used for the first issue on CD Teldec Bach Kantatenwerk 31.jpg
The brown cover art used for the first issue on CD

J. S. Bach - Das Kantatenwerk is a classical music recording project initiated by the record label of Telefunken in 1971 (the first recordings had been made in December 1970) to record all 193 sacred Bach cantatas. The project was entrusted to Nikolaus Harnoncourt and Gustav Leonhardt. Each conductor had his own instrumental ensemble, based in Austria and the Netherlands respectively.

Contents

The project was the first attempt at a complete recording of the sacred cantatas, but Harnoncourt and Leonhardt were still working on the cantatas when a project which started later, led by Helmuth Rilling, Gächinger Kantorei and Bach-Collegium Stuttgart completed a recording of the sacred cantatas and oratorios on Bach's 300th birthday, 21 March 1985. Since Rilling recorded on modern instruments the Telefunken (then Teldec) project could at least claim, when the project completed in 1990, to be the first recording using historical instruments, with boys' choirs and boy soloists for most soprano and some alto parts. [1] [2] Adult soloists included the tenors Kurt Equiluz and Marius van Altena. [3] An exception to the use of male voices was made for cantatas nos. 51 and 199, which were intended for a female soprano voice.

Harnoncourt conducted his Concentus Musicus Wien with either the Wiener Sängerknaben or the Tölzer Knabenchor. Leonhardt's instrumental ensemble was the Leonhardt-Consort. Leonhardt's usual choirs were the boys of the Tölzer Knabenchor and Knabenchor Hannover (the Netherlands does not have a strong tradition of boy sopranos), [4] and the adult Collegium Vocale Gent, while he featured the choir of King's College, Cambridge in the first volume. [5]

Shortly before the project finished Telefunken sold the Teldec label to Warner in 1988.

Format

The initial releases were LPs. The first CD edition was a direct reissue of the LP edition, where each original 2-LP album was printed on a single or double CD. [5] The collection is available as a boxed set of 60 CDs in the Warner Classics Das Alte Werk series. In 2000 it was included in a complete edition of Bach's works. [6]

See also

Warner was briefly involved with a second cantata set under the direction of the Dutch conductor Ton Koopman. [4] The cycle was started on Warner's subsidiary Erato Records in 1995. Warner withdrew its support from the project, which Koopman continued independently.

Related Research Articles

<i>Meine Seufzer, meine Tränen</i>, BWV 13

Meine Seufzer, meine Tränen, BWV 13, is a church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. He composed it in Leipzig for the second Sunday after Epiphany and first performed it on 20 January 1726.

<i>Jesu, nun sei gepreiset</i>, BWV 41

Jesu, nun sei gepreiset, BWV 41, is a church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. He composed the chorale cantata in Leipzig for New Year's Day and first performed it on 1 January 1725 as part of his second cantata cycle. It is based on the hymn by Johannes Hermann (1591).

<i>Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland</i>, BWV 62

Johann Sebastian Bach composed the church cantata Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland, BWV 62, in Leipzig for the first Sunday in Advent and first performed it on 3 December 1724. The chorale cantata is based on Martin Luther's Advent hymn "Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland". It is part of his chorale cantata cycle.

<i>Ich ruf zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ</i>, BWV 177

Johann Sebastian Bach composed the church cantata Ich ruf zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ, BWV 177. He wrote the chorale cantata in Leipzig for the fourth Sunday after Trinity and first performed it on 6 July 1732. The cantata text is formed by the unchanged five stanzas of Johann Agricola's hymn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Max van Egmond</span>

Max van Egmond is a Dutch bass and baritone singer. He has focused on oratorio and Lied and is known for singing works of Johann Sebastian Bach. He was one of the pioneers of historically informed performance of Baroque and Renaissance music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kurt Equiluz</span> Austrian classical tenor (1929–2022)

Kurt Equiluz was an Austrian classical tenor. He was a member of the Vienna State Opera as a tenor buffo from 1957 until 1983, remembered for roles such as Pedrillo in Mozart's Die Entführung aus dem Serail. He appeared regularly at the Salzburg Festival, including world premieres such as Rolf Liebermann's Penelope in 1954. He recorded works by Johann Sebastian Bach with conductors such as Michel Corboz, Helmuth Rilling and Charles de Wolff, and prominently as the Evangelist in the first recording of Bach's St John Passion on period instruments with the Concentus Musicus Wien in 1965, conducted by Nikolaus Harnoncourt.

<i>Ärgre dich, o Seele, nicht</i>, BWV 186

Ärgre dich, o Seele, nicht, BWV 186 is a church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. He composed it originally in Weimar in 1716 for Advent, BWV 186a, and expanded it in Leipzig in 1723 for the seventh Sunday after Trinity, where he first performed it on 11 July 1723.

<i>Siehe zu, daß deine Gottesfurcht nicht Heuchelei sei</i>, BWV 179

Johann Sebastian Bach composed the church cantata Siehe zu, daß deine Gottesfurcht nicht Heuchelei sei, BWV 179 in Leipzig for the eleventh Sunday after Trinity and first performed it on 8 August 1723.

<i>Lobe den Herrn, meine Seele</i>, BWV 69a

Johann Sebastian Bach composed the church cantata Lobe den Herrn, meine Seele, BWV 69a, also BWV 69.1, in Leipzig for the twelfth Sunday after Trinity and first performed it on 15 August 1723. It is part of his first cantata cycle.

<i>Ihr, die ihr euch von Christo nennet</i>, BWV 164

Johann Sebastian Bach composed the church cantata Ihr, die ihr euch von Christo nennet, BWV 164 in Leipzig for the 13th Sunday after Trinity and first performed it on 26 August 1725.

<i>Ich glaube, lieber Herr, hilf meinem Unglauben</i>, BWV 109

Johann Sebastian Bach composed the church cantata Ich glaube, lieber Herr, hilf meinem Unglauben, BWV 109, in Leipzig for the 21st Sunday after Trinity and first performed it on 17 October 1723.

<i>Mein Gott, wie lang, ach lange?</i> BWV 155

Mein Gott, wie lang, ach lange?, BWV 155, is a church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. He first performed it in Weimar on the second Sunday after Epiphany, on 19 January 1716.

<i>Nimm, was dein ist, und gehe hin</i>, BWV 144

Nimm, was dein ist, und gehe hin, BWV 144, is a church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. He composed it in Leipzig for the Sunday Septuagesimae, the third Sunday before Lent, and first performed it on 6 February 1724.

<i>Erhöhtes Fleisch und Blut</i>, BWV 173

Erhöhtes Fleisch und Blut, BWV 173, is a church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. He composed it in Leipzig for Pentecost Monday and probably first performed it on 29 May 1724.

<i>Ihr Menschen, rühmet Gottes Liebe</i>, BWV 167

Johann Sebastian Bach composed the church cantata Ihr Menschen, rühmet Gottes Liebe, BWV 167 in Leipzig for the Feast of St. John the Baptist and first performed it on 24 June 1723. It is part of his first cantata cycle in Leipzig.

<i>Meinen Jesum laß ich nicht</i>, BWV 124 Chorale cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach

Meinen Jesum laß ich nicht, BWV 124, is a church cantata written by Johann Sebastian Bach. He composed the chorale cantata in Leipzig for the first Sunday after the Epiphany and first performed it on 7 January 1725. It is based on the hymn "Meinen Jesum laß ich nicht" by Christian Keymann.

<i>Was mein Gott will, das gscheh allzeit</i>, BWV 111 1725 cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach

Was mein Gott will, das g'scheh allzeit, BWV 111, is a cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach for use in a Lutheran service. He composed the chorale cantata in Leipzig in 1725 for the third Sunday after Epiphany and first performed it on 21 January 1725, as part of his chorale cantata cycle. It is based on the hymn by Albert, Duke of Prussia, published in 1554, on the topic of the Christian's acceptance of God's will.

<i>Leichtgesinnte Flattergeister</i>, BWV 181 1724 church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach

Leichtgesinnte Flattergeister, BWV 181, is a church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. He composed it in Leipzig for Sexagesima and first performed it on 13 February 1724.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bach cantatas (Koopman)</span> Recording series

The Bach cantatas project of Ton Koopman was the first complete recording of all the cantatas, including the 21 secular cantatas. Koopman conducted the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir and guest solo singers. The project began in 1995 and was completed in 2005 on 67 CDs.

Bach composed Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern, BWV 1, as chorale cantata for the Marian feast of the Annunciation, for a first performance in a church service in Leipzig on 25 March 1725. The cantata, for soprano, tenor and bass soloists, four-part choir and Baroque orchestra, takes around 25 minutes to perform.

References

  1. ↑ CD Review 11 7-12 31 1995 J.S. BACH Complete Sacred Cantatas BWV 1-199 Soloists, Leonhardt Consort, Gustav Leonhardt; ... Teldec's monumental series began in 1970 as the leading edge of the rising original instrument/authentic performance practice movement."
  2. ↑ Billboard - 1995 4 8 78 p107 "... first period instrument performances of Bach's 193 sacred cantatas, an 18-year recording project led by Gustav Leonhardt and Nikolaus ... "
  3. ↑ Text and Act : Essays on Music and Performance: Essays on Music p307 Berkeley Richard Taruskin Professor of Music University of California - 1995 "The Teldec Bach Cantatas Teldec's series of Bach church cantatas, begun in 1971, when the German label was still called Telefunken, is now ... The one singer associated with the project from first release to last was the tenor Kurt Equiluz.
  4. 1 2 Koopman, Ton (1996). "Recording Bach's Early Cantatas". Early Music. 24 (4): 605–621. doi:10.1093/earlyj/XXIV.4.605. ISSN   0306-1078. JSTOR   3128058.
  5. 1 2 "Harnoncourt & Leonhardt - Bach Cantatas & Other Vocal Works - Discography Part 2". www.bach-cantatas.com. Retrieved 2023-09-20.
  6. ↑ Kenyon, N. "The complete Bach edition". Gramophone. Retrieved 2018-03-31.
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