The heart and the coins

Like Cantata 162, BWV 163 was also composed in Weimar, this one for the 23rd Sunday after Trinity. Its first performance was on November 24, 1715. We don’t know conclusively that Bach presented the cantata in Leipzig, since we don’t have surviving parts or any other document to prove it. Scholars believe that a 1723 […]

Goldberg Variations III

Let’s resume our journey through the “Goldberg Variations”, this time with the 2015 recording by Pieter-Jan Belder on a Ruckers copy by Titus Crijnen. As Bach continues to explore different styles throughout the set, Variation 7 is constructed as a Gigue – the animated dance that traditionally closes instrumental suites. The dotted rhythm within each […]

The cancelled debt

This cantata was composed for the 22nd Sunday after Trinity, with its first and only documented performance on October 24, 1723, during Bach’s first year in Leipzig. Scholars believe that some content could have come from material composed previously for Weimar. The Gospel for this Sunday is Matthew 18: 23-35, which talks about being pardoned […]