The Neumeister Collection is a compilation of 82
chorale preludes found in a manuscript copy produced by
Johann Gottfried Neumeister (1757–1840). When the
manuscript was rediscovered at the Yale University in
the 1980s it appeared to contain 31 previously unknown
early chorale settings by Johann Sebastian Bach, which
were added to the BWV catalogue as Nos. 1090–1120 and
published in 1985.
This is another of the Bach chorale preludes unearthed
in 1985 by Christoph Wolff, who discover...(+)
The Neumeister Collection is a compilation of 82
chorale preludes found in a manuscript copy produced by
Johann Gottfried Neumeister (1757–1840). When the
manuscript was rediscovered at the Yale University in
the 1980s it appeared to contain 31 previously unknown
early chorale settings by Johann Sebastian Bach, which
were added to the BWV catalogue as Nos. 1090–1120 and
published in 1985.
This is another of the Bach chorale preludes unearthed
in 1985 by Christoph Wolff, who discovered the
Neumeister Collection at the Yale Library. Most of the
Neumeister Bach works are believed to date to the years
1700 - 1708, and this one, "Ehre sei dir, Christe, der
du leidest Not" (May You Be Praised, Christ, for You
Suffer Pain), was probably written in the earliest
years of that span. It exhibits the influence of both
Pachelbel and Buxtehude and is somewhat unusual in its
consistent use of what German writers call
Vorimitation: thematic material is anticipated
throughout the work in an imitative, fugue-like manner.
For all its seemingly rigid formal qualities, this work
presents the chorale theme in a majestic and
imaginative way, growing from modest textures at the
outset to grander and more colorful ones later on. As
the work progresses, its mood takes on a more ecstatic
manner, the music a fuller and more complex character.
In the end, this approximately two-minute chorale
prelude will likely strike Baroque enthusiasts as a
compelling even if still youthful work from the pen of
the young Bach.
This is one of 38 Bach works rediscovered in 1985 by
musicologist Christoph Wolff at the Yale Library.
Johann Gottfried Neumeister assembled 82 chorales by
various composers, but after his death in 1840, the
collection passed hands and eventually found its way to
Yale, where it was filed away and consigned to
oblivion. This chorale prelude, "Aus tiefer Not schrei
ich zu dir" (Out of the Depths I Cry to You), is an
attractive work that employs a chorale theme used
earlier by composer Georg Böhm (1661 -- 1733). Bach's
G major chorale prelude here uses a technique called
vorimitation, where imitation of the thematic material
anticipates the theme itself. The chorale melody is
given a majestic, if slightly somber treatment in the
first half of the work, while the music becomes more
animated and more contrapuntal in the latter part.
Still, even though the stately character of the piece
yields somewhat to a livelier, almost ecstatic manner,
the mood of the piece remains largely serene and
subdued. This attractive chorale prelude has a duration
of about two minutes
Although originally written for Organ, I created this
Transcription of the Chorale Prelude "Wenn dich
Unglück tut greifen an" (Should tragedy befall thee,
fight on!) BWV 1104 for Pipe Organ (2 Manuals w/o
Pedals).
PARTITION