Bach Christmas Oratorio 1-3

RECORDINGS OF THE WORKS

Johann Sebastian Bach: Juleoratoriet, BWV 248

The concert plays an excerpt of the work.

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Bach Christmas Oratorio 1-3

Description

Sankt Petri Kantori, the baroque orchestra originalerne.org, Oksana Lubova – soprano, Sigrid Thordsen – alto, Gerald Geerink – tenor, Rasmus Kure Thomsen – bass, Jonathan Sievers – conductor Tickets at billetsalg.dk Sankt Petri Kantori will perform all 6 cantatas over the course of 2 concerts together with the baroque orchestra originalerne.org and professional vocal soloists. Cantatas 1-3, which were written for the first three days of Christmas, are performed on 11 December. The lesser-known cantatas 4-6, which were written for the Sundays after Christmas and Epiphany, are performed on 28 January 2027 as a festive conclusion to the Christmas season, which in the traditional understanding lasts until Candlemas. Bach's music reaches far and contains a great variety of musical forms of expression. The biblical words of the Evangelist's narrative and a few choruses from the crowd (turba choruses) are framed by reflective arias and profound chorales, in which Bach uses older, traditional hymn melodies. In the arias Bach draws on every emotional register, from the imposing bravura aria "Großer Herr, und starker König” (”Great Lord and mighty King”), to the humble and pastoral ”Schlafe mein Liebster” (”Sleep, my beloved”). The highlights of the Christmas Oratorio are the many virtuoso choruses, such as the festive opening chorus ”Jauchzet frohlocket” ("Shout for joy, rejoice, celebrate the days") with its characteristic five timpani strokes, or the thought-provoking chorus in the fourth cantata ”Fallt mit Danken, fallt mit Loben” (”Fall to your knees with thanks and praise”), which gains a festive brilliance through the orchestration with two hunting horns. The Christmas Oratorio dates from Bach's mature years as Thomaskantor in Leipzig, and in every movement it is thoroughly worked out with great formal sense and musical abundance. Through an artful use of keys and an organic sequence of recitatives, ariosi, arias, chorales and choruses, the work is experienced as one great whole. In the first and last cantata Bach uses the beautiful chorale melody ”Befal du dine veje”, thereby creating a greater coherence between the two outer cantatas. Price: 175/100