Cantata 90, for the 25th Sunday after Trinity, was premiered on November 14th, 1723, a few months after Bach’s arrival in Leipzig to occupy the post of Thomaskantor. The autograph score doesn’t indicate the intended instrumentation, so scholars and performers have had to make some assumptions. Strings, continuo and voices are obvious, but it’s not clear if the orchestra included oboes, as was the regular practice. The bass aria requires a melodic obbligato instrument which was likely a trumpet – and a very virtuosic one, at that. In terms of the vocal soloists, the alto, tenor and bass have solo movements, while the soprano only takes part in the closing chorale.
The Gospel for this Sunday is Matthew 24: 15-28, a section of the so called “Olivet Discourse” or “Discourse on the Mount of Olives”, in which Jesus describes events related to the end of the world. The libretto, by an unknown poet, is only loosely related to the Gospel reading, but does refer to the fate of the sinners and their standing in the Last Judgement. The arias include stronger and accusatory language, while the recitatives soften the tone and prompt repentance, with the second one carrying the inflexion point. The closing chorale is a prayer-like stanza of a hymn by Martin Moller (1584).
The cantata opens with a powerful “da capo” aria for the tenor, passionate and full of coloraturas, matched by the rapid passages with leaps and scales of the first violins. Matching its strong libretto, the music is very theatrical, including muscular rhythms, chromaticisms for emphasis (“sündlichen”, “sinful”) and even pauses mid-word on “schrecklich” (“terrible”). Truly a “fury aria” in the best Italian operatic tradition, in which the tenor takes the role of the preacher. Julian Mincham calls it “a masterpiece of rhythmic and harmonic distraction and agitation”.
A secco recitative for the alto follows, which reminds us of Bach’s unparallelled ability to craft just the right melodic lines to illustrate and follow the affect of a piece of text. Listen for the harmonic twist in the cadence after the first four lines, as he sets up the question (“Ah! Is your heart not moved?”), or the way he highlights the very last word (“vergebens”, “wasted”) with an upward leap of a ninth.
The recitative leads to an impressive bass aria with a very virtuosic trumpet obbligato part, illustrating the image of the “avenging judge”. The voice mimics the idiomatic trumpet calls in thirds. Again, the energetic music matches the strong language, especially in the B section, on expressions such as “mörderisch Haus” (“slaughterhause”).
The second recitative, set for the tenor, is in charge of delivering the inflexion point. The language turns positive and reassuring, if not softer. It leads to the closing chorale, a collective prayer to the melody of “Vater unser in Himmelreich” (the Lord’s Prayer), used by Bach also in other cantatas. He leaves us with a very unexpected and charming harmonic twist on the word “Stündelein” (“little hour”).
