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Subject Area: Music
Subject Area: Religion

PREFATORY NOTE - Johann Sebastian Bach, Bach’s Chorals, vol. 2 The Hymns and Hymn Melodies of the Cantatas and Motetts [1917]

Edition used:

Bach’s Chorals. Part I: 2 The Hymns and Hymn Melodies of the Cantatas and Motetts, by Charles Sanford Terry (Cambridge University Press, 1915-1921). 3 vols. Vol. 2.

Part of: Bach’s Chorals, 3 vols.

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BACH’S CHORALS

PART I

THE HYMNS AND HYMN MELODIES OF THE “PASSIONS” AND ORATORIOS

“A little volume on the sources of the Chorales, the utility of which is out of all proportion to its modest bulk.”

—Mr Ernest Newman in the Birmingham Post.

“An invaluable work of reference.”

—Guardian.

“A great mass of interesting information, collected from all available sources, and brought together for the first time in this convenient form.”

—Yorkshire Post.

“This useful work of reference.”

—Musical Times.

“The result of an extensive amount of research and erudition.”

—Standard.

“A careful piece of musical archaeological enquiry, done with thoroughness and care.”

—Scotsman.

“A scholarly piece of work.”

—Oxford Magazine.

“An invaluable volume of reference, and as such it will quickly become a standard work.”

—Music Student.

“A perfect storehouse of information.”

—Musical News.

PART III

THE CHORALS OF THE ORGAN WORKS (In the Press)

PREFATORY NOTE

IN Part I of this work the Hymns and Hymn melodies of the “Passions” and Oratorios have been dealt with. In the present volume those of the Cantatas and Motetts are considered. The Hymn melodies of the Organ Works are reserved for Part III.

The author approaches the Chorals from the historical rather than an aesthetic standpoint. His object is to reveal the origin and authorship of the Hymns and Hymn melodies which, like jewels, decorate Bach’s concerted Church music. The melodies are printed here in their earliest form and, where possible, Bach’s variations of them are traced to an earlier tradition or attributed to himself. In similar manner, the text of his Hymn stanzas, as printed by the Bachgesellschaft, has been collated with the originals in Philipp Wackernagel’s Das deutsche Kirchenlied von der altesten Zeit bis zu Anfang des XVII Jahrhunderts (Leipzig, 5 vols. 1864-77) or Albert Fischer and W. Tümpel’s Das deutsche evangelische Kirchenlied des siebzehnten Jahrhunderts (Gütersloh, 1904-16). The few Hymns which are not in those collections are marked with an asterisk in the following pages. The author has not had the opportunity to examine their original texts elsewhere.

Since all but a few of the Cantatas are published only with German texts, it has seemed advisable to provide an Appendix of translations of the Hymn stanzas, upwards of two hundred and fifty in number, which Bach uses in the Cantatas and Motetts. Wherever it is available, the text of Novello & Co.’s and Messrs J. & W. Chester’s Editions has been used, with the permission of the two firms.

Six melodies that occur in the “Passions” and Oratorios are not found in the Cantatas or Motetts. They are printed in an Appendix. This volume therefore contains all the Choral tunes used by Bach in his concerted Church music.

In the Introduction, besides other topics relative to the subject of this work, there will be found a section on Bach’s original Hymn tunes. The subject is one which hitherto has not received adequate attention. Schweitzer does not deal with it, and Spitta’s chapter is unreliable.

The author thanks the Rev. James Mearns, Mr Herbert Thompson, Mr Ernest Newman, and especially Mr Ivor Atkins, for the valuable help they have given him. He also acknowledges material aid from the Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland towards the publication of this work.

C. S. T.

  • King’s College,
    Old Aberdeen.

January, 1917.