Bankrolling Herr Bach

Cantata 195 is a wedding cantata in which Bach uses a double choir setting. This cantata was performed at least 3 times during Bach’s life. We know that Bach, per usual, adapted and adjusted the piece each time, but all we have is a full score of the last version. We don’t know who the […]

WTC II – E minor & F major

Finally, some reasonable keys! Today we’ll look at sets No. 10 and 11 in the Well-Tempered Clavier book II: E minor and F major respectively. The performance is by John Butt – a renowned Bach scholar from England, who not only is an organist and harpsichordist but also conducts the Scottish baroque ensemble Dunedin Consort. […]

Singing a modern song

What is a “motet”? The term shares its root with the French “mot” – “word”. It’s a composition which lays emphasis on its text. Eminently occasional, texts were assembled to suit a particular purpose, such as a feast, wedding or funeral. They were sourced from the Bible or from hymns, usually in Latin. Musically, they […]

The Venetian heritage

Heinrich Schütz (1585 – 1672) is regarded as one of the most important German composers before Bach. Schütz studied with Giovanni Gabrieli in Venice, and his early works reflect the grandiose Italian style of his teacher and also influences of Monteverdi, whom he met later in life. Schütz successfully blended the monodic, florid Italian style […]