A Moment of Bach

Mass in B minor: Credo in unum Deum

A solitary voice: "I believe in one God."

Then a second voice: "I believe in one God."

Then another, then another, then another: "I believe in one God..." soon the whole room is full of people confessing their shared faith.

Bach sets this simple text (the beginning of the Nicene Creed) to a simple seven-note tune, but spirals it out into a seven-voice fugue that ranks up there with the most complex pieces of harmonic work of the baroque era.  And yet, despite the remarkable density of the counterpoint, the music sounds effortless and light.

"Credo in unum Deum" from the Mass in B minor, Netherlands Bach Society, conducted by Jos Van Veldhoven: https://youtu.be/3FLbiDrn8IE?t=3254

 

BONUS: More Cello Suite no. 1 details with Alec Santamaria

In this short bonus episode, we continue our discussion with Alec but go into greater technical detail. At the beginning Christian narrates the topics for discussion to come. To hear Alec play through the minuets uninterrupted, go to the main Episode 22 at 57:25. To get more context for this bonus episode, we recommend you first listen to Episode 22 in its entirety. 

Alec Santamaria is a violist, violinist, and teacher based in Los Angeles. He is the viola teacher at Renaissance Arts Academy and Wildwood Music Camp, and holds the Richard Rintoul Viola Chair at the American Youth Symphony, where he has played for eight seasons. He received his bachelor’s degree in music performance, with a minor in philosophy, from UCLA. You can watch his full recital of the Bach cello suites 1-4 on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2UL0P3-lRm4&list=PL2UoptuvHCJGD0MvF7cQUHTVP15oOYELH&index=1

Cello Suite no. 1 in G major (with Alec Santamaria)

Our second guest Alec Santamaria brings his viola to show us how violists can play the Bach cello suites! We delve into tuning for baroque music, perfect pitch, the viola and aspects of its technique when playing Bach, and Alec’s narration of his “moments” from the most famous part of any of the suites -- the G major prelude (and other topics too!).

Alec Santamaria is a violist, violinist, and teacher based in Los Angeles. He is the viola teacher at Renaissance Arts Academy and Wildwood Music Camp, and holds the Richard Rintoul Viola Chair at the American Youth Symphony, where he has played for eight seasons. He received his bachelor’s degree in music performance, with a minor in philosophy, from UCLA. You can watch his full recital of the Bach cello suites 1-4 on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2UL0P3-lRm4&list=PL2UoptuvHCJGD0MvF7cQUHTVP15oOYELH&index=1 

 

For a bit more of the interview, check out our bonus episode released shortly after this one. 

English Suite No. 1 in A major: Sarabande

Join us as we uncover the complexity under the surface of the seemingly simple music of Bach's English Suite in A major.

The harpsichord is an elegant yet austere instrument.  It has only a fraction of the power and versatility of a pipe organ, and none of the soft/loud sensitivity of the piano, yet, it is elegant in its simplicity.  We remark on how the harpsichordist seems to activate the very core of this music in her interpretation, adding ornamentation and stretching time.  She proves here that the harpsichord can be wonderfully expressive.

Netherlands Bach Society video of the Sarabande from English Suite No. 1, played by Aline Zylberajch: https://youtu.be/GihzDys7Qpg?t=978

 

Der Herr denket an uns (BWV 196): fugue (Er segnet...)

What is counterpoint? What’s a fugue, and why is that musical structure so tied to the idea of Bach’s work? The answer lies not only in the most towering and imposing works of fugue, but also the most simple and graceful. This early wedding cantata features a small moment of fugue so sublimely perfect that it seems like it must have always existed. As it flows along like an inevitable river, each of its parts begin separately but go through an identical natural progression of musical material as all the others. The words point to a blessing upon a newly formed family. 

https://youtu.be/YNjAHgMMsFs?t=140

https://www.bachvereniging.nl/en/bwv/bwv-196/

Hey! Are you still reading this episode description? Do you want to try and listen for each subject entry in the fugue? This fugue is perfect for it. From the beginning to the end of the fugue, the subject entries are in this order: 

• Soprano (solo; NBS uses soloists for the first batch of subject entries!)
• Alto soloist
• Tenor soloist
• Bass soloist
• Violin 2
• Violin 1
• Cello (in a rare case for Baroque music, this cello is separate from the main bass part)
• Alto singers WITH viola 
• Soprano singers with violin 2
• Bass singers with cello and other bass instruments
• Tenor singers with viola
• Soprano singers with violin 2
• By the time that last entry ends, everything from the fugue turns into concluding material until the end. 

You could also try sticking with ANY entry through all four (!) of its chunks of musical material (subject and following three “countersubjects”) up until near the end when they leave the pattern to start concluding the music. It’s worth a few repeated listenings. Try it!

• The fugue subject is the simple falling melody on the words "Er segnet das Haus Israel."
• Countersubject 1 begins with fast notes and has the words "er segnet das Haus Aron."
• Countersubject 2 is the most active, filled with all fast notes on mostly just the word "segnet."
• Countersubject 3 is a simple rising melody to complement the subject. Its text is "...das Haus Aron, das Haus Aron."

Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring (with Eric Clausen)

Our first guest episode!  We chat about one of the greatest and most enduring pieces of music ever written, "Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring."  Eric Clausen, a Lutheran pastor and Alex and Christian's brother-in-law, shares his perspective on church music and how this piece became so meaningful for him.  We talk about Bach's life as a church musician, how these cantata texts can have more in common with contemporary praise music than "traditional" hymns, and music's enduring power to enrich the soul.

Thanks to Eric for his guest appearance on A Moment of Bach! Check out his podcast, "The Faithful Forebearers" here: http://faithfulforebearers.com/

Cantata "Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben" (BWV 147) performed by the Netherlands Bach Society: https://youtu.be/h97JE4--p84

Or, go straight to movement 10: https://youtu.be/h97JE4--p84?t=1633

O ewiges Feuer, o Ursprung der Liebe (BWV 34): aria opening

The orchestra is full of countless sound combinations. In Bach's time, the orchestra was smaller and these new expressions mostly hadn't yet been explored. But in the "Wohl euch" aria from the Pentecost cantata O ewiges Feuer, o Ursprung der Liebe, Bach experimented with a new language in tone color with violins and flutes. The Pentecost story of the cantata is a sort of reverse Tower of Babel; apostles were given a gift of the Spirit's fire and could suddenly communicate in many languages. Bach, a Protestant, took advantage of writing the church's vocal music in the people's language of German rather than the obtuse Latin of traditions past. Similarly, his orchestration -- way ahead of its time -- points to a new way of "speaking" to us musically.

https://youtu.be/-QA-Tc8Vw80?t=475
www.amomentofbach.com
www.bachvereniging.nl/en

St. Matthew Passion: "Gebt mir meinen Jesum wieder!" aria (mvt. 42)

You will be humming this one for days!  Even if you didn't know of this particular aria before hearing this episode of A Moment of Bach, it's impossible not to be charmed by this sprightly tune on a first listen.  But there is also some fury and swift anger in the music -- the words are "Give me my Jesus back!" and they are shouted at the soldiers who have arrested Jesus on the night of His betrayal. 

"Gebt mir" aria (Sayuri Yamagata, violin; Sebastian Noack, bass): https://youtu.be/ZwVW1ttVhuQ?t=5722

Chorale: Christus, der ist mein Leben

Let's call this one "How to Break a Chorale."

A Bach chorale is a pure, simple expression of a hymn tune. Sometimes it contains complex harmony, but the harmony is always in support of a song that the people knew, and the texture is simple and chordal. This is why today's moment feels like a bolt of lightning from the blue! It's a chorale for a few seconds...before it stretches apart at the seams. Four separate, strange tones tear the fabric of the chorale at the word "death." The chorale reemerges happily and hopefully.

 

Chorale: https://youtu.be/5hFwikTsYs0

Brandenburg Concerto No. 3: movement 3

It's our third and last episode of the Brandenburg 3 miniseries.  The last movement of Brandenburg 3 is full of nonstop excitement and rhythmic drive.  Come with us as we talk about the complexity (and simplicity!) of the rhythmic layers, and the way that inverted chords breathe fresh life into the music, and the moment -- the moment we both picked -- Bach's own viola solo.

Netherlands Bach Society performing the third movement of Brandenburg Concerto No. 3; Shunske Sato, artistic leader: https://youtu.be/qr0f6t2UbOo?t=370

Thank you for listening to A Moment of Bach!