5 - Case studies in ensemble music

Summary

J. S. Bach: St Matthew Passion BWV 244

The performance of a ‘Passion set to music’ at Vespers on Good Friday, initiated in 1721 by Bach's predecessor Johann Kuhnau, quickly became the highlight of Leipzig's musical calendar. Divided into two parts which pivoted upon the Passion sermon, Bach's St Matthew Passion represents the culmination of this Lutheran tradition, designed not only to present the most important Gospel text of the year (thus substituting for the Gospel reading) but also to interpret it, incorporating rhetorical embellishments of the story and making relevant theological points to the congregation. Bach's collaboration with the amateur poet Christian Friedrich Henrici (whose pseudonym was Picander) can be traced back to 1725 and their setting was probably first performed in its earliest version on 11 April 1727; it was probably also given on 15 April 1729 in a version approximating to the copy made by Bach's son-in-law Johann Christoph Altnikol and was certainly performed again on 30 March 1736 and in the early 1740s.

Text and edition

When contemplating an edition on which to base an historical performance of Bach's St Matthew Passion, performers will do no better than consult the ‘Urtext’ edition based on J. S. Bach, Neue Ausgabe sämtlicher Werke, prepared by Alfred Dürr using preliminary work by Max Schneider. This edition has also been published as a miniature study score (Bärenreiter), and the vocal score and complete orchestral parts are also readily available.