Last night I was lucky enough to see a live performance of Johann Sebastian Bach’s Christmas Oratorio at San Francisco Symphony Hall. The ensemble was called Bach Collegium Japan, a group founded to spread the music of Bach across Japan. This was their SF Symphony debut, and needless to say, they nailed it.
The music lifted me up and inspired me. I especially recommend the second cantata. The opening movement of that work, called Sinfonia, is subtle and expressive to a degree I have never seen in Bach. In this music he pulls the curtain back and shows us a glimpse of his soul, as well as a preview of an era of music he never lived to see but most certainly inspired.
Always under control of his faculties, his form, his harmonies, Bach is the ultimate master of “composed” music. He leads you where he wishes to lead you and brings you back again. In no hurry at all, Bach weaves together a lovely conversation between the a full baroque orchestra and the luxurious reedy softness of two oboes. Warm baking bread on Christmas morning, the snow falling softly outside the window, papa relaxing at the table with cup of cocoa. This music is home.
Here are a couple different performances. It’s fun to compare!
Here is a nice in depth explanation of the formula behind these cantatas, as well as Bach’s use of other composers’ chorale melodies, including melodies written by Martin Luther: http://bach.org/education/bwv-248/
You can never go wrong with an article by the mind-bogglingly knowledgeable program annotator for the SF Symphony, James M. Keller. Here is his eloquent dive into Bach’s Christmas Oratorio: http://www.sfsymphony.org/Watch-Listen-Learn/Read-Program-Notes/Program-Notes/JS-Bach-Christmas-Oratorio-BWV-248.aspx
