Ach Gott, wie manches Herzeleid (Oh God, how much
heartache), BWV 3,[a] is a church cantata by Johann
Sebastian Bach. He composed the chorale cantata in
Leipzig for the Second Sunday after Epiphany and first
performed it on 14 January 1725. It is based on the
hymn published by Martin Moller in 1587.
Bach composed the cantata in his second year as
Thomaskantor in Leipzig as part of cantata cycle of
chorale cantatas, for the second Sunday after Epiphany.
The work is based on a hymn withou...(+)
Ach Gott, wie manches Herzeleid (Oh God, how much
heartache), BWV 3,[a] is a church cantata by Johann
Sebastian Bach. He composed the chorale cantata in
Leipzig for the Second Sunday after Epiphany and first
performed it on 14 January 1725. It is based on the
hymn published by Martin Moller in 1587.
Bach composed the cantata in his second year as
Thomaskantor in Leipzig as part of cantata cycle of
chorale cantatas, for the second Sunday after Epiphany.
The work is based on a hymn without evident connection
to the prescribed readings. It is a meditation on Jesus
as a comforter in distress, based on a medieval model.
An unknown librettist reworked the ideas of the 18
stanzas in six movements, retaining the words of
stanzas 1, 2 and 18 as movements 1, 2 and 6. Similarly,
Bach retained the choral melody in three movements, set
as a chorale fantasia in the opening chorus with the
bass singing the cantus firmus, as a four-part setting
with interspersed recitatives in the second movement,
and in the closing chorale. He scored the cantata for
two oboes d'amore, strings and continuo, with an added
trobone to support the bass in the first movement, and
a horn to support the soprano in the last movement.
Bach composed the cantata in his second year as
Thomaskantor in Leipzig as part of his second annual
cycle, planned to consist only of chorale cantatas
based on Lutheran hymns. He wrote the cantata for the
second Sunday after Epiphany. The prescribed readings
for the Sunday were taken from the Epistle to the
Romans (we have several gifts – Romans 12:6–16) and
from the Gospel of John (the Marriage at Cana – John
2:1–11).
The cantata is a chorale cantata based on the hymn "Ach
Gott, wie manches Herzeleid" in 18 stanzas attributed
to Martin Moller (1587). It is a paraphrase of the
Latin "Jesu dulcis memoria", a medieval hymn attributed
to Bernard of Clairvaux, a meditation on Jesus as a
comforter and helper in distress. The unknown
librettist retained the words of stanzas 1, 2 and 18 as
movements 1, 2 and 6. In movement 2, stanza 2 is
expanded by paraphrases of stanzas 3–5, while
movement 3 is a paraphrase of stanza 6; movement 4
incorporates ideas from stanzas 7–14, and movement 5
relies on stanzas 15 and 16.In movement 2, stanza 2 is
expanded by paraphrases of stanzas 3–5. Movement 3 is
a paraphrase of stanza 6. Movement 4 incorporates ideas
from stanzas 7–14. Movement 5 relies on stanzas 15
and 16. The poet did not relate his text to the reading
from John 1:2.
Bach structured the cantata in six movements. An
opening chorus and a closing chorale frame a sequence
of alternating recitatives and arias. The first
recitative is unusual: the chorus sings one line of the
hymn's four lines, continued each time by a soloist in
words of the poet. The last aria is a duet. Bach scored
the work for four vocal soloists (soprano (S), alto
(A), tenor (T), bass (B)), a four-part choir and a
Baroque instrumental ensemble of horn (Co) to double
the cantus firmus in the closing chorale, trombone (Tb)
to reinforce the bass in the opening chorus, two oboes
d'amore (Oa), two violins (Vl), viola (Va), and basso
continuo. The autograph score bears the title:
"Dominica 2 post Epiphanias / Ach Gott! Wie manches
Hertzeleyd. / à / 4 Voci. / 2 Hautb: d'Amour / 2
Violini / Viola. / e Continuo / di J. S. Bach", which
means "Sunday 2 after Epiphany ... for four voices, 2
oboes d'amore, 2 violins, viola and continuo by J. S.
Bach".
Source: Wikipedia
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ach_Gott,_wie_manches_He
rzeleid,_BWV_3).
The recitative, "Wie schwerlich läßt sich Fleisch und
Blut" (How difficult it is for flesh and blood),
combines the hymn tune sung by the four-part choir,
with interpolated text sung by the soloists in turn.
The lines of the hymn are separated by a joyful
ostinato motif derived from the chorale tune. The
musicologist Julian Mincham writes that the "hybrid
recitative provides an excellent example of Bach's
experiments of investing long texts with sustained
musical interest".
I created this arrangement of the Recitative and
Chorale: "Wie schwerlich läßt sich Fleisch und Blut"
(How difficult it is for flesh and blood) for Woodwind
Quintet (Flute, Oboe, Bb Clarinet, French Horn &
Bassoon).
