Faith, baptism and the morning star

This cantata was composed for Ascension Day in 1724, with a second performance in 1731. The Gospel on this day is Mark 16, verses 14-20, and it includes two distinct narratives. In the first section, Jesus appears to his disciples, talks to them about the importance of faith and baptism, and encourages them go out […]

WTC II – A minor & B flat major

In the next installment of our journey through the second book of the Well-Tempered Clavier, let’s explore the next two sets – in A minor and B flat major. We’re going back to the 2013 recording by John Butt, on an instrument which is a copy of an early 1700 harpsichord believed to have been […]

A shield from persecution

Cantata 42 was composed for the first Sunday after Easter in 1725, and gets its title from the first line of the Gospel reading for that day, John 20:19-31. We don’t know who wrote the libretto, however they certainly drew from several sources in the process: the second movement is taken literally from the John’s […]