Bach Cantatas, Vol. 2 - F. Werner (Erato 10-CD)

the conflict between the "no longer" ofthe motet and sacred concerto on the one hand, and the "not
yet" of the later cantatas on the other. The following analysis also shows clearly the progression
towards a "finale".
Sinfonia, leading to the chorus:
"Aus der Tiefe rufe ich" (From the deep, Lord, cried I), Lento
"Herr, höre meine Stimme" (Lord, O harken to my calling), Vivace; = motet
Bass solo with oboe and continuo: "So du willst, Herr" (If thou, Lord, shouldst), Andante; = sacred
concerto with cantus firmus chorale
Chorus: "Ich harre des Herrn" (I wait for the Lord), Adagio
"Meine Seele harret" (my soul is waiting), Largo; = 6s161
Tenor solo with continuo: "Meine Seele wartet" (there my soul is waiting), sacred concerto with
cantus firmus chorale
Chorus: "Israel", Adagio
"hoffe auf den Herrn" (hope ye in the Lord), Un poc' allegro
"denn bei dem Herrn ist Gnade" (for with the lord there is mercy), Adagio; oboe obbligato
"und viel Erlösung bei ihm" (and full redemption with Him), Allegro; figurations
"und er wird Israel erlösen" (and unto Israel redemption), final fugue
CD9
Gottes Zeit ist die allerbeste Zeit, BWV 106 is a mourning cantata (hence the title Actus tragicus)
without any connection with the ecclesiastical year. It is one of Bach's most famous cantatas, not
least because the interpretation of the text is clothed in that highly pictorial musical language typical
of Bach's early cantatas (the work probably dates from 1707, when he was at Mühlhausen). It is a
"pre-madrigal" work, almost entirely constructed from biblical texts and hymn stanzas. The
inspiration which Bach drew from this potent language enabled him to produce, as Alfred Dürr puts
it, a work of genius such as even great masters do not often achieve, and which enabled him, when
he was only twenty-two, at a stroke to leave his contemporaries far behind. The development of the
text, the idea ofdeath under the old and the new covenant, according to the law and the Gospel, is