Well-deserved reward

This cantata for soprano, solo oboe and strings was composed with a libretto by an unknown author, but possibly attributable to Picander (Christian Friedrich Henrici), a frequent Bach collaborator in Leipzig. Its premiere date was February 9, 1727, and the gospel for that Sunday (third before Lent) is the Parable of the Workers in the […]

The deep strings

The Brandenburg Concertos had their origins as individual pieces, in times prior to their compilation in the collection of six that Bach dedicated to the Margrave of Brandenburg in 1721. In particular, Concerto No. 6 dates from the period that Bach spent in the service of Prince Leopold of Anhalt-Cöthen, who was an avid amateur […]

Incognito fights

The attribution of this motet has had several comings and goings. In its first publication in 1802 it was attributed to Johann Sebastian Bach, but later it was considered a composition by his second uncle, Johann Christoph. Modern scholars, however, attribute it back to JSB based especially on the second part of the first movement. […]

Guests of the Lamb

This cantata was originally composed for a funeral service for the chamberlain and judge Johann Christoph von Ponickau, held on February 6, 1727 in the town of Pomßen, near Leipzig. Ponickau had died a few months earlier, in October 1726. The text is by Picander, a pseudonym for Christian Friedrich Henrici (Bach’s assiduous collaborator in […]