Ich liebe den Höchsten von ganzem Gemüte
BWV 174
The power of love. Specifically, the love of a God who sacrificed his son in atonement for the sins of man. And, specifically, the power of that love to cause even the doors of Hell to tremble (the closing lines of the recitative). This is the message of the text of Cantata BWV 174, Ich liebe den Höchsten von ganzem Gemüte.
Based on what is probably the single most instantly recognizable passage in the Bible, John 3:16 (the complete cited text actually includes verses 16-21), Picander’s adaptation emphasizes the reciprocity of the relationship — not only God’s love for man, but the need for man to love and honor God (as specified in verse 18).
Fresh in the novelty of having the additional resources of the instrumentalists of the Collegium Musicum at his disposal, Bach fashioned a work that manages to be both expansive and compact — expansive in the presentation of a lengthy orchestral introduction and two substantial arias (for alto and bass); compact in the number (5) and arrangement of the movements.
The familiarity of the introduction, an adaptation of the first movement of Brandenburg #3, is tempered by the reworking of the soundscape associated with it. This is one of those movements where the music seems to be the same, but in the reworking somehow becomes something entirely different. It is instructive to listen to the gently swinging string arrangement of the Brandenburg original before listening to the first movement of BWV 174 with its additional horns and woodwinds. The expanded tonal palette and the entirely new writing for the horns replace intimacy with declamatory animation. For anyone who doesn’t want, or doesn’t have, the means to go back and listen to the entire Brandenburg opening (and in Bach’s time that would have been everybody!), Bach conveniently works a brief reminder of the original into BWV 174 — his own homage to the spirit of the original, perhaps — by dropping the additional winds for a few moments in mm. 78-86.
The following alto aria (with a gorgeous oboe duet accompaniment) provides enough heft to offset and balance the weight of the instrumental opening. It also embodies the reciprocity I mentioned above of the love between God and man — “I love the Almighty with all my heart/He also loves me exceedingly.” The “I love him” appears 12 times (including the da capo repeats) while the “He loves me” appears 16 times — not equal perhaps, but numerous enough on both sides to underline the two-way nature of the relationship. The liner notes to Gardiner’s recording include an intriguing reference to thematic compression in this aria that I have yet to pursue, but will, unless someone can explain it first — “...at one point he compresses his material in a way one normally associates with Beethoven.” Where and how does this occur?
The bass follows, appropriately enough, after this demonstration of power, with a call to action in stentorian tones in a duet with the unison strings: if you want Jesus to stand up for you, you must stand up for him. You must maintain your faith in him to the end. Dürr points out here the contrast between the instrumental-style obbligato and the vocal-style bass.
The concluding chorale is another testament to man’s love for Jesus: “I love thee with my heart, O Lord.” The same melody which concludes the St. John Passion, it originated as the first strophe of Martin Schelling’s 1569 Herzlich lieb hab ich dich, and the descending opening motif in the soprano mirrors that of the previous bass aria.
There’s a lot to talk about here. Please do! All five movements merit examination. The music is quite striking and recorded performances show a lot of differentiation in approaches to performance. In another arena entirely, Ulrich Siegle in an essay — “Bach and the domestic politics of Electoral Saxony” — in the Cambridge Companion to Bach raises the issue of Leipzig political discord and infighting influencing the performance date and venue for this cantata (Monday instead of Sunday; the Thomaskirche instead of the Nikolaikirche). There’s also a wealth of information on the website at http://www.bach-cantatas.com/BWV174-D.htm .
I hope everyone will feel free to respond.
Highlights
What was probably my favorite exchange of the entire summer occurred during discussion of this cantata. In response to an observation re. dactylic rhythms in the first movement, I wrote:
“The opening movement also displays a plethora of anapests that are frequently set off as isolated three-note figures. They start out immediately in the first measure with the woodwinds and move to the horns by the fifth measure. In fact, it is somewhat difficult to tell whether we're actually talking about dactyls or anapests. The isolated anapestic three-note figures in the winds overlap and reinforce the dactyls in the strings.”
A fellow BCML member, Doug Cowling, responded:
Stephen Benson wrote:
< The opening movement also displays a plethora of anapests that are frequently set off as isolated three-note figures. >
I like the phrase "A Plethora of Anapests" -- Sounds like the title of a P.D. James murder mystery...
"Inspector Dalgleish leaned in closer to the body slumped over the organ bench then straightened up.
"What is it, Inspector?" the patrolman asked.
"Anapests," Dalgleish mused. "Anapests killed the Kapellmeister."
My comments with respect to recordings: “[F]or me, Gardiner's version of the Sinfonia motors along at an energetic clip with a decided air of spontaneity and a relaxed rhythmic bounce that suggest that the players are enjoying themselves. Details are clearly projected, helped along by players who seem to be listening to each other as ideas are passed around amongst the different sections. Subtle dynamic shifts are applied discriminately and result in an immensely satisfying performance. This was a real team effort. Koopman's more homogenized recording, to my ears, has less transparency than the Gardiner, thus obscuring details and producing a smoother, but less interesting, mix. Leusink's horns have a lot of fun, but the rest sounds somewhat labored and comes off as relatively prosaic.
I'm not completely satisfied with any of the three versions I have of the alto aria, probably because of my disappointment with the relatively quick tempo of the Koopman, whose alto, Bogna Bartosz, has the voice quality I find most attractive of the three soloists, the other two being Nathalie Stutzman for Gardiner and Sytse Buwalda for Leusink. Surprisingly, I find myself choosing to listen most frequently to Buwalda, a singer for whom I usually have little patience. Now, if I could pair Bartosz with either Gardiner or Leusink...
In the bass aria, I like the voice of Herbert Brauer (included in the examples on the website), but, as a package, Klaus Mertens with Koopman is more satisfying. Gardiner's recitative with tenor Christoph Genz and his concluding chorus, with its superior clarity and dynamics, both get my vote. Overall, and primarily because I enjoy his Sinfonia so much, I will choose to listen to Gardiner's performance. I will, however, keep looking for a performance of the alto aria that, for me, matches the beauty of the music. (I have yet to hear the Hamari recording so highly praised during the first round of discussions.)”
I have since acquired the Rilling recording with the Hamari aria mentioned above, and I find it a welcome addition to my collection. His sinfonia is pretty, but lacks substance; I prefer the greater intensity and focus of Gardiner’s version. I’ve also acquired a greater appreciation for Stutzman’s aria with Gardiner, particularly for the effortless natural quality of the oboe duet accompaniment. I will listen to both — Gardiner’s for its clarity, energy, and instrumentalist distinction; Rilling’s for the singing.
As for the question relating to Gardiner and his reference to Beethoven’s thematic compression, I’m still looking for answers. One respondent provided a suggestion that seemed to me to incorporate more diminution than compression. When I think of Beethovenian compression, I think more of his stripping the flesh away and exposing a skeleton rather than simply shortening note values. I’ll work on it....
Sunday, July 6, 2008
