Cantata BWV 31 - Discussions

Cantata BWV 31
Der Himmel lacht! Die Erde jubilieret
Discussions - Part 3

Continue from Part 2

Neil Halliday wrote (April 25, 2005):
BWV 31/2 (Mvt. 2): opening chorus; and sonata

It's interesting to look at (and listen for) the order of the appearance of the fugal subject, in this massive chorus.

Firstly (allegro); successively S1,S2, (trumpet flourish) A; then (with the initial notes of the basses' entry hidden behind another trumpet flourish) B,T,A,S2,S1. Note that in this section there is not a complete downward movement through all voices. This pattern is repeated, bringing us to the wistful, non-fugal 'adagio' section.

At the return of the 'allegro' section ("The Holiest cannot decay"), there is a new fugal subject, stated successively (this time we make it all the way from highest to lowest voice) in the order S1,S2,A,T,B.

The original fugal subject reappears, unusually, at the end of the movement in the instruments alone, in the order: trumpet 1, violins 1, trumpet 2.

=================

The rhythm of the initial massive unison section, in the instrumental sonata (1st movement), is tricky and highly effective, because all 15 staves of the score are silent on the first beat of the bar. (In 6/8 time, start counting on beat '2', when the music starts!).

This unison section contains only the notes of the C major chord, revealing an 'economy' of means similar to that displayed (though with completely different structure) in the several minutes of the the development of a major chord at the start of one of Wagner's operas (I forget which one).

==========

The score of the chorus is on 20 staves, and includes (as in the opening sonata) separate parts for cello 1, with cello 2 being designated to the continuo part; there are four oboes (including a taille), bassoon, and two violas etc, etc. Hearing the following recitative and bass aria leaves me with the impression that Bach was exhausted by the effort of writing the first two movements....

Neil Halliday wrote (April 25, 2005):
BWV 31/4 (Mvt. 4)

I wrote:
"the bass aria leaves me with the impression that Bach was exhausted by the effort of writing the first two movements"
But this may be because I had Werner's bass aria [3] in mind, in which he reduces the forces to a single cello, 'tinkly' harpsichord and voice - incredibly austere after the richness of the first two movements.

Listening to Harnoncourt's bass aria [5], I am pleasantly surprised; apart from Nimsgern's strong, expressive voice, we have a cello/violone combination, and most surprisingly of all, a pleasingly developed organ realisation, and a lively tempo, all adding up to a substantial bass aria.

Just goes to show how critical is the organist's realisation in this type of continuo only aria. (The only criticism I have of the Harnoncourt is that the organ sounds too small for my taste; I would prefer to hear this realisation a larger instrument).

Stephen Benson wrote (April 25, 2005):
Eric Bergerud wrote:
< But there isn't a possibility here that some of the reviewers have had anything to do with Middle School education is there? My wife has been waging war with elementary school kids for thirty years. The only thing that made her question her vocation was one year when she did a 5th/6th grade combination. The experience brought her close to breakdown and injected a general dislike of the male gender that was long lasting. >
Perceptive sort, aren't you. Try 29 years in a middle-school classroom, 26 of those years with 6th-graders! (When I can force myself to read the local newspaper, the first place I turn is the police blotter to see which of my former students' names appear there.)

This also brings to mind a quote regarding boy singers I may have mentioned before, but which fits here so well it merits repeating. David Mason Greene in a CD review in the American Record Guide in the March/April 1992 issue said:

"Boy sopranos seem to be admired for different qualities in different cultures. Italian trebles tend to sound like an elementary-school playground at noon recess. French trebles sound like killing-time in a poultry abattoir. British trebles have a pure, innocent, angelic quality, for which Americans seem also to strive—thereby suckering a large part of the gullible public as to the true nature of children."

Doug Cowling wrote (April 25, 2005):
BWV 31: Boys will be boys

Stephen Benson wrote:
< This also brings to mind a quote regarding boy singers I may have mentioned before, but which fits here so well it merits repeating. David Mason Greene in a CD review in the American Record Guide in the March/April 1992 issue said:
"Boy sopranos seem to be admired for different qualities in different cultures. Italian trebles tend to sound like an elementary-school playground at noon recess. French trebles sound like killing-time in a poultry abattoir. British trebles have a pure, innocent, angelic quality, for which Americans seem also to strive-thereby suckering a large part of the gullible public as to the true nature of children." >
Bach's boys were not angels either. The complex schema of fines for various misdemeanors at St. Thomas' indicates that boys have always been boys. I always imagine a mad rush up the gallery stairs at the last minute to avoid the late fine on Sunday morning.

My sons sang as boys for composer, Derek Holman, at St. Simon's Church,Toronto. Dr. Holman was for me JSB redivivus. His brilliant musicianship and genius for training inspired the boys to quite pheonmenal heights. At the same time, he ran a tight ship with a caustic wit and the occasional well-timed bellow when the boys misbehaved. The boys adored him and many have gone on to become fine musicians and composers as adults.

Eric Bergerud wrote (April 26, 2005):
[To Doug Cowling] I believe either Wolff or Boyd recounted a warning from school authorities toward the musical establishment (not sure it was directed at Bach personally) to make sure that the boys stayed in the church throughout the service and didn't duck out to throw snowballs or chuck rocks at birds. And Bach had to stare down one student with a sword - just like Blackboard Jungle, and ended up in some trouble for defending himself. (This was pre-Leipzig.) All that sounds familiar enough. At least he didn't get sued as I recall.

Eric Bergerud wrote (April 29, 2005):
BWV 31: Revisited

As threatened I got my mits on a copy of Harnoncourt's BWV 31 [5], wanting to hear for myself whether others on the list were correct in their claim that Harnoncourt's boys had made a complete botch of things. I've listened to the thing five times through and also revisited Leusink [11] and Rotzsch [6] because both employ boys in the choir. I also have Koopman's recording [8], but as his version is "state of the art" (no boys) there is no reason to consider it further.

I will admit the very real possibility that I am either hard of hearing or have very bad taste. That said, I take strong issue with Harnoncourt's critics of this performance. I think what we have here is the Harnoncourt approach to the Teldec cycle written large. He uses small forces. There is no question that his players are using instruments that Harnoncourt believed produced a sound representative of the early 18th century. The singers are all male. And in BWV 31 the "heavy lifting" is left to the boys.

Harnoncourt obviously had no desire to temper the impact of this approach and it shows in 31. After all, after a lively, almost martial sonfinia, Harnoncourt puts the fate of the work squarely in the lap of his boy singers. There eight movements. The sonfinia, recitatives for bass and tenor, short arias for bass and tenor (all nicely done by Equiluz and Nimsgern) a long chorus for the boys, a boy soprano recitative, a boy soprano aria (the longest movement of the bunch) and a short chorawhere there are more boys.

Let's look at the aria. This has got to be tough stuff. Anyone that likes boys in Bach quickly realizes that they aren't going to match the virtuosity or strength of tone of someone like Ruth Holton (Leusink) [11] or Helga Termer (Rotzsch) [6]. But comparing a boy with a female soprano I would argue is impossible. It's not like comparing a piano to a harpsichord. It's more like comparing a flute to a tuba. I can see why modern audience would rather listen to female sopranos. (I wonder if counter-tenors would still have a job if that were up to the average Bach fan.) In a very real sense they are better singers. Their music more beautiful. But when a boy does nail a note, he's doing something that no one else can. I am very glad that Ruth Holton sings Bach cantatas. I'm also glad that one can also listen to Harnoncourt and hear a boy give a very demanding aria a good try. I find the results most satisfying.

The chorus is a little different. Both Leusink [11] and Rotzsch [6] have boys choirs to make music with. But comparing the respective results with that of Harnoncourt isn't easy. Rotzsch's forces are, unless I'm really deaf, larger, older and more fully supported by a likewise larger orchestra. The sound is certainly more pleasant, but the Thomanerchor is getting a lot of support. I will stand correction here, but I would say the same thing is true with Leusink's forces. Either Leusink has one very good boy alto or Buwalda dominates the opening chorus. Both are in their own way very good music, but they don't sound like Harnoncourt. Perhaps they are simply better.

Or perhaps they are simply different. One of the problems I have with judging Harnoncourt's singers is that nobody else gives boys the same parts. Pick a famous Bach aria and you can compare a large number of fine tenors, countertenors, female sopranos etc. But how do you tell if a boy singing an aria in Harnoncourt's cycle is doing a bad job or sounds like a boy? There is simply no body of work to act as a comparison. So one is left with taste.

In my case, I am also left with an image I have cultivated in my mind as to what Bach's music sounded like. Some musicologists have suggested it was probably pretty terrible. I rather doubt it. I don't think Bach would have composed a huge body of music that he knew full well couldn't be performed without embarrassment. (I wouldn't doubt he composed work that he believed could have been better done by adult women, but ultimately that is beside the point.) Obviously it would not have had the kind of polish available to a modern professional ensemble working with top recording engineers. But I can hear boys singing sincerely and at least sometime with considerable skill. Perhaps they dropped a note. Perhaps they dropped a lot of them. But I think there must have been moments when things worked and the result was sublime.

I guess that's really what I hear in Harnoncourt. It may not be the best cycle. No one has reproduced it. No one is likely to do so. (I still will not consider the OVPP argument over until someone shows that it can work with boys - that should be a self-evident acid test.) But I am absolutely sure that when listening to Harnoncourt I am listening to music that comes the closest of any modern ensemble to that created and played by Bach. That's important to me. And yes, I find it very beautiful.

Neil Halliday wrote (April 29, 2005):
BWV 31/8 (Mvt. 8) examples

Of the examples at the BCW (soprano aria): http://www.bach-cantatas.com/Mus/BWV31-Mus.htm

I like Leusink's version [11] the most. The tempo is perfect, and supports the tenderness of Holton's expression. Leusink's continuo group, including organ, is fine in this example; but I would like more emphasis of the cello pizzicato element in the score. (Werner [3] - not in the examples - is excellent in this regard).

Harnoncourt's orchestra [5] sounds very quiet, and the organ realisation sounds lame along-side that in Leusink's version [11]. (Imagine the artistry Bach himself would have brought to the continuo, on one of the organs installed on St. Thomas's church.

(BTW, do we know for sure whether Bach employed the organ proper for the continuo keyboard in his cantata performances, or one of the 'toys' you can hear in the Harnoncourt? Directors should realise that quiet stops are available on real organs, if that is the concern.)

OTOH, Leusink's organist [11] seems to do a good job, despite the small instrument - I suppose that's where improvisational/compositional artistry comes in.

The boy soprano is one of the excellent ones in the H/L series [5].

Rilling/Auger's version [7] is bright and strong - but too much so, because this aria seems to call out for a more tender expression. The jangling harpsichord does not help.

Suzuki [9] is too brisk and care-free, lacking a deeper connection with the music and text. There ought to be some wistfulnes in wanting to die, even with the prospect of heaven at hand.

Werner's version [3] is enjoyable, except that Giebel does not quite capture the tenderness that is such an attractive feature of this aria. Werner brings out the backgroung chorale tune (in the unison strings) better than the other recordings.

=============

A brief ranking of movements of the complete cantata, in Werner, Rilling and Harnoncourt.

Mvt. 1. (Sonata) 1. Werner [3]. 2. Rilling [7]. 3. Harnoncourt [5] (This last recording is amazing for a demonstration of the struggle that players had with their period instruments back in the early days of HIP).

Mvt. 2. (Chorus) 1. Werner [3]. 2. Rilling [7]. 3. Harnoncourt [5].
Rilling's trumpets lack presence. Harnoncourt's solo boys on the S1 S2 lines tend to slide between the 1/16 notes in the (admittedly difficult) beginning part of the first subject.

Mvt. 3. (bass recitative) 1. Werner [3]. 2. Rilling [7]. 3. Harnoncourt [5].
I would prefer the approach that the Bach Aria Group might bring to this 'string of alternating recitative and arioso' type of movement, because the usual methods employed by both HIP and non-HIP ensembles can become tedious. BAG would give the 'recitative' accompaniment to sustained piano chords *without cello*, and only bring in the cello, with tasteful piano accompaniment, in the 'arioso'sections. This creates a pleasing contrast between the sections and and helps sustain interest.

Mvt. 4. (B aria) 1. Harnoncourt [5]. 2. Rilling [7] (enjoyable except for the jangly
harpsichord). 3. Werner [3].
Harnoncourt's organist shows some artistry here, helping to fill-out the accompaniment to an otherwise austere aria.

Werner's austerity and slow tempo begin to drag.

Mvt. 6. (T aria) 1. Rilling [7]. 2. Werner [3]. 3. Harnoncourt [5].
I like Rilling's vivid 5 part string orchestra, and Kraus' good expression of the confidence and cheerfulness in this tuneful aria.

Mvt. 8. (S aria) commented on, above.

Mvt. 9. Chorale. Werner [3] and Rilling [7]: both pleasing; and both feature the trumper part.
The trumpet in Harnoncourt [5] seems to have turned into a squeaky violin; however, the choir sings with enthusiasm, thus helping to mask the usual hiatuses (Harnoncourt style) between the words. As well, Harnoncourt's usual tendency to 'die' on the last note of a chorale line, is not so evident here.

Doug Cowling wrote (April 29, 2005):
BWV 31: Boys Choirs

Eric Bergerud wrote:
< The chorus is a little different. Both Leusink [11] and Rotzsch [6] have boys choirs to make music with. But comparing the respective results with that of Harnoncourt [5] isn't easy. Rotzsch's forces are, unless I'm really deaf, larger, older and more fully supported by a likewise larger orchestra. The sound is certainly more pleasant, but the Thomanerchor is getting a lot of support. I will stand correction here, but I would say the same thing is true with Leusink's forces. Either Leusink has one very good boy alto or Buwalda dominates the opening chorus. Both are in their own way very good music, but they don't sound like Harnoncourt. Perhaps they are simply better. >
Evidently the new pope's brother was the director of the Regensburger Domspatzen, perhaps the best boys choir in Germany. Perhaps we'll see a little Bach in the Sistine Chapel sometime: I certainly don't want to hear the ragazzi of the papal choir taking on "Lobet den Herrn".

Robert Sherman wrote (April 29, 2005):
[To Doug Cowling] I understand the Catholic Church doesn't allow Bach because he belonged to the Church That Must Not Be Named. Or am I wrong? I hope so.

Neil Halliday wrote (April 29, 2005):
BWV 31/1 (Mvt. 1)

For a polished HIP version of the Sonata, listen to the Heinrich Schütz Ensemble recording: http://www.bach-cantatas.com/Mus/BWV31-Mus.htm

Interestingly, this has the same brisk tempo as Werner's performance [3]; both vividly capture the incredible animation in Bach's score.

Doug Cowling wrote (April 29, 2005):
Robert Sherman wrote:

< I understand the Catholic Church doesn't allow Bach because he belonged to the Church That Must Not Be Named. Or am I wrong? I hope so. >
The Sistine Choir hardly ever sings anything of historical significance even from the Italian patrimony -- not a note of Palestrina at the recent funeral and election. Most of the music is the pseudo-Renaissance schlock which Italian church musicians churn out by the basketful. Some Bach organ works were played however.

An interesting point. The only time that a concerted mass has ever been heard in St, Peter's was a liturgical performance of the Mozart "Coronation Mass" led by Herbert Von Karajan who brought the Berlin Philharmonic and Chorus to Rome for the occcasion. Italian church musicians were not happy about a "noisy" Viennese mass in "their" church.

Eric Bergerud wrote (April 29, 2005):
BWV 31: Pope & Boys Choirs

Doug Cowling wrote:
< Evidently the new pope's brother was the director of the Regensburger Domspatzen, perhaps the best boys choir in Germany. Perhaps we'll see a little Bach in the Sistine Chapel sometime: I certainly don't want to hear the ragazzi of the papal choir taking on "Lobet den Herrn" >
Anyone else notice that after Benedict's first mass to the Cardinals as he exited the organ played Handel? And then as he was greeting the people in St. Peter's square after his installation, the organist played Bach? Some things have changed.

Robert Sherman wrote (April 29, 2005):
[To Doug Cowling] Doug, thanks.

BTY, the Karajan Coronation Mass you refer to was recorded live, and it's quite good. Kathleen Battle's performance is the only one I've heard to rival Maria Stader with Markevitch from the 1950s. The recording quality is a lot better than I thought it would be, without the diffuseness and excessive reverb that spoils many church recordings.

Boy Peherson wrote (April 29, 2005):
Robert Sherman wrote:
< I understand the Catholic Church doesn't allow Bach because he belonged to the Church That Must Not Be Named. Or am I wrong? I hope so. >
The Roman Catholic Church today enjoys using J.S. Bach as well as other Lutheran Hymns for worship. For instance, the traditional St Borromeo's Church in Los Angeles used the great Gerhardt/Hassler Lutheran hymn "O Scared Head, Now Wounded" forthe eucharistic apex of thier service on this past Palm Sunday. The post-Vatican II tradition in the Roman Catholic church is to allow for forms of music that don't directly conflict with church teaching. The church has around one billion members(!), so it would be impossible to put that church's music forms into a particular box.

Cantata BWV 31: Complete Recordings | Recordings of Individual Movements | Discussions: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Back to the Top

Last update: ýFebruary 29, 2008 ý22:26:50