Christ lag in Todesbanden by BachPlus

Various composers

BachPlus

Christ lag in Todesbanden

Price: € 19.95
Format: CD
Label: Evil Penguin
UPC: 0608917721829
Catnr: EPRC 0031
Release date: 07 June 2019
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1 CD ✓ in stock	€ 19.95	Buy

Label
Evil Penguin

UPC
0608917721829

Catalogue number
EPRC 0031

Release date
07 June 2019

"Wonderfully small and intimate."

Luister, 04-10-2019

Album

Artist(s)

Composer(s)

Press

About the album

Our fetishist regard for John Sebastian Bach as the pinnacle of Western art music obscures the fact that his talent was spawned by at least three generations of gifted predecessors. We celebrate this lineage by exploring the musical family archive Bach discovered in 1735. Among the hidden gems are intensely moving Geistliche Konzerte by his cousin Johann Christoph Bach, and the latter’s father Heinrich Bach. In his earliest preserved cantata Christ lag in Todesbanden, Johann Sebastian superbly imitates the polyphonic motet style of these foregoers, which was going out of fashion, though Bach seems to have cherished it enough to revisit the cantata on several occasions in later years. The Belgian ensemble BachPlus brings homage to Bach’s undying love of a dying art, in a recording which juxtaposes private devotion with protestant ecstasy.

Het fenomeen Johann Sebastian Bach blijft de mensheid al eeuwenlang intrigeren en fascineren. Dat geldt ook voor het Vlaamse ensemble BachPlus dat met het nieuwe album Christ lag in Todesbanden een hommage brengt aan Bachs onsterfelijke liefde voor een stervende kunst, in een opname waarin persoonlijke toewijding en protestantse vervoering elkaar ontmoeten.

Familieschatten

Onze fascinatie voor Bach, als het hoogst haalbare binnen de westerse kunstmuziek, vertroebelt het feit dat zijn talent voortgekomen is uit minstens drie generaties begaafde voorgangers. Maar het ensemble BachPlus vierde deze familielijnen uitbundig bij het doorspitten van het muzikale familie-archief dat Bach in 1735 ontdekte. Onder de verborgen juwelen bevonden zich intens ontroerende Geistliche Konzerte geschreven door Bachs neef Johann Christoph Bach, en diens vader Heinrich Bach.

In ere hersteld

In zijn vroegste bewaard gebleven cantate Christ lag in Todesbanden imiteert Johann Sebastian de polyfone motetstijl van zijn voorouders. Deze stijl was compleet uit de mode geraakt, maar is door Bach weer in ere hersteld. Hij koesterde de muziek dusdanig dat hij deze cantate in latere jaren voor heel wat gelegenheden vernieuwde.

BachPlus

De omvang van Bachs oeuvre, het menselijk overstijgende karakter van zijn composities en het bijna benaderen van ultieme schoonheid, beroerde de musici van BachPlus zozeer dat ze iedere maand bij elkaar kwamen om zijn muziek, en vooral de cantates, te herontdekken. Vandaag de dag zijn ze een gezelschap dat professionele concerten geeft met een frisse kijk op Bach en veroverden ze daarmee een bijzondere plaats in het muzikale landschap.

John Sebastian Bach wird als Höhepunkt der westlichen Kunstmusik betrachtet, dessen Talent von mindestens drei Generationen begabter Vorgänger hervorgebracht wurde. Wir feiern diese Herkunft, indem wir das 1735 entdeckte musikalische Familienarchiv Bach erkunden. Unter den verborgenen Juwelen befinden sich intensiv bewegende Geistliche Konzerte seines Cousins Johann Christoph Bach und dessen Vater Heinrich Bach. In seiner frühesten erhaltenen Kantate Christ lag in Todesbanden ahmt Johann Sebastian den polyphonen Motettstil dieser Vorgänger hervorragend nach, der aus der Mode kam, obwohl Bach ihn anscheinend genug geschätzt hat, um die Kantate in späteren Jahren mehrmals zu erneuern. Das belgische Ensemble BachPlus würdigt Bachs unsterbliche Liebe zu einer sterbenden Kunst in einer Aufnahme, die private Hingabe und protestantische Ekstase gegenüberstellt.

Artist(s)

BachPlus

BachPlus is a project which was founded in 2010 by soprano Elisabeth Hermans and keyboard player/conductor Bart Naessens. The core business of the project is focussed on the monthly organisation of a Bachcantata-concert (BachPlus Cantata Series) in the Baroque Jesuit church of Aalst (Belgium) and the impressive historic St. Bavo church in Aardenburg (Netherlands). In addition to these monthly performances of Bach cantatas the ensemble organises each year a bigger concert around a big composition of master J.S. Bach (Magnificat (BWV 243), B minor Mass (BWV 232), Weihnachts-Oratorium (BWV 248)... ) Lately the ensemble BachPlus enlarged his activities and became one of Belgiums leading Baroque-ensembles, specialised in the performance of Baroque music. It is frequently invited in Belgium and Europe with diverse programmes, mainly focussed on the oeuvre of J.S. Bach and contemporaries. The warm, intense friendly but very professional atmosphere that is breathing out of the performances, creates an intense and refreshing look on that immense interpreted work of J.S. Bachand contemporaries and enthralls the music-lovers from far and wide. This is why the BachPlus ensemble managed in a short time to acquire a big and honoured reputation throughout the (inter) national baroque music scene.
The ensemble BachPlus unites musicians from across Europe that built their vital and valuable experience of historical performance practice during playing at several renowned ensembles and/or through their own activities and initiatives. Founder-director and conductor Bart Naessens makes choices with them as close as possible to the performance practice of J.S. Bach's own period, steadily building (but with an ever healthy critical view) on the many valuable insights that the pioneering work of our predecessors have installed. Therefore the ensemble usually performs according to the one-to-a-part-principle in an original setting and off course, the musicians play on historical or historical model based instruments.
In addition to its own organisations, the ensemble will increasingly enlarge their activities on (inter-) national stages in order to share their interpretation and vision of the Baroque work with the widest possible audience. Both in pure orchestral form and in combination with the vocalists, the ensemble wishes to become one of Europes leading ensembles in the performance of Baroque music.

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Bart Naessens (conductor)

Composer(s)

Johann Sebastian Bach

Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer and musician of the Baroque period. He enriched established German styles through his skill in counterpoint, harmonic and motivic organisation, and the adaptation of rhythms, forms, and textures from abroad, particularly from Italy and France. Bach's compositions include the Brandenburg Concertos, the Goldberg Variations, the Mass in B minor, two Passions, and hundreds of cantatas. His music is revered for its technical command, artistic beauty, and intellectual depth. Bach's abilities as an organist were highly respected during his lifetime, although he was not widely recognised as a great composer until a revival of interest in and performances of his music in the first half of the 19th century. He is now generally regarded as one of the greatest composers of all time.

Bach's abilities as an organist were highly respected during his lifetime, although he was not widely recognised as a great composer until a revival of interest in and performances of his music in the first half of the 19th century. He is now generally regarded as one of the greatest composers of all time.

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Johann Christoph Bach

Johann Christoph Bach was son of Heinrich Bach and brother of Johann Michael Bach. Along with Johann Sebastian Bach, Johan Christian Bach and Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach he is one of the more famous Bachs. He was organist in Arnstadt, Eisenach and Ohrdruf. One of his most famous works is his cantata Meine Freundin du bist schön, based on the Song of Songs. This work, and several other works of his, have been collected in the 'Altbachische Archiv', which was compiled by Johann Sebastian Bach. This archive was rediscovered in 1999, after years of being neglected.

Johann Christoph Bach was son of Heinrich Bach and brother of Johann Michael Bach. Along with Johann Sebastian Bach, Johan Christian Bach and Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach he is one of the more famous Bachs. He was organist in Arnstadt, Eisenach and Ohrdruf. One of his most famous works is his cantata Meine Freundin du bist schön, based on the Song of Songs. This work, and several other works of his, have been collected in the "Altbachische Archiv", which was compiled by Johann Sebastian Bach. This archive was rediscovered in 1999, after years of being neglected.

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Heinrich Bach

Heinrich Bach was a German organist and composer. He was the great-uncle of Johann Sebastian Bach and grandfather of Maria Barbara Bach (Johann Sebastian's first wife). Heinrich Bach was the ancestor of the so-called Armstadt-line of the Bach family. After the early death of his father Johannes Bach, his older brother Johann Bach raised him en taught the young Heinrich to play organ. Together, they moved to Suhl, and later Schweinfurt.
In 1635, Heinrich became member of the Erfurter Ratsmusikanten-Compagnie, led by his brother. He stayed member until 1641, when he was assigned organist of the Liebfrauen- und Oberkirche in Arnstadt, a job he would fulfil until his death (more than 50 years later!). In 1642 he married to Eva Hoffmann, daughter of Johannes Christoph Hoffmann.
Besides organist, Heinrich Bach was also a composer. Next to several chorales for organ, the only work that has survived is his cantata Ich danke dir, Gott, which is based on psalm 139. This cantata is characterised by its typical 17th century instrumentation: a five-voiced string section (with two violas), and five vocalists (with two sopranos).

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Dietrich Buxtehude

Among the general public, Dieterich Buxtehude is mostly known due to the admiration Johann Sebastian Bach had for his organ and composing skills, for which Bach traveled to the North German city of Lübeck to stay with him for four months, no less. This says quite something about the quality of Buxtehude's performance, but even more so about the influence it had on Bach and all composers after him. Yet, nowadays Buxtehude's music does not need Bach to survive, as a matter of fact it is extraordinarily beautiful just by itself! Buxtehude was originally Danish, but he spent most of him life in Lübeck. His so-called 'Abendmusik', which was a series of evening concerts outside of the liturgy, grew famous. In the works he wrote for these occasions, his enormous fantasy and creative freedom truly shows. As an organ player, Buxtehude was widely famous. If you would listen to his Organ Preludes, you would quickly know why. Buxtehude manages to combine an unprecedented virtuosity with a large variety of styles and techniques. No wonder Bach traveled all that way to see him!

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