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Easter Oratorio

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Easter Oratorio
BWV 249
Oratorio by J. S. Bach
Nikolaikirche, Leipzig
Native nameOster-Oratorium (Kommt, eilet und laufet)
OccasionEaster
Cantata textPicander?
Based onBWV 249a
Performed1 April 1725 (1725-04-01): Leipzig
Movements11
VocalSATB soloists and choir
Instrumental
  • 3 trumpets
  • timpani
  • 2 oboes
  • oboe d'amore
  • bassoon
  • 2 recorders
  • transverse flute
  • 2 violins
  • viola
  • continuo

The Easter Oratorio (German: Oster-Oratorium), BWV 249, is an oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach, beginning with "Kommt, eilet und laufet" (Come, hurry and run).[1] Bach composed it in Leipzig, using music from a congratulatory cantata, Entfliehet, verschwindet, entweichet, ihr Sorgen, BWV 249a, or Shepherd Cantata, that he had performed on 23 February for Christian, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels. The text of the secular cantata is by Picander, who possibly also adapted it for the church cantata for Easter Sunday. Bach performed this first version of the oratorio on Easter Sunday, 1 April 1725.

Unlike Bach's other oratorios, the Easter Oratorio features no original Biblical text sung by an Evangelist narrator, but is an action between four Biblical characters assigned to the four voice parts. The work in eleven movements is festively scored with a Baroque instrumental ensemble of three trumpets, timpani, two oboes, oboe d'amore, bassoon, two recorders, transverse flute, strings and continuo. In the 1725 version, the chorus sang only the final movement. Bach revised the work for several performances. Bach held the work in high esteem; he wrote a new autograph score For Easter 1738, then called it Oratorio. For a performance in the 1740s he rewrote the music of the outer sections of the third movement for choir.

History

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Bach composed a Tafel-Music, Entfliehet, verschwindet, entweichet, ihr Sorgen, BWV 249a, or Shepherd Cantata, in 1725 for the 43rd birthday of his patron, Christian, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels, performed on at Schloss Neu-Augustusburg [de] on 23 February 1725.[2][3] The author of the Shepherd Cantata was Picander,[2][4] in their first documented collaboration.[5][6] It seems likely that Picander also wrote the text for the Easter cantata, and that Bach planned to reuse the music from the start.[7][8][9] Picander would write in 1728 about their collaboration: "I flatter myself that the lack of poetic charm may be compensated for by the loveliness of the music of our incomparable Kapellmeister Bach, and that these songs may be sung in the main churches of our pious Leipzig."[10] The Shepherd Cantata, an interaction of two shepherds and two shepherdesses and termed a Tafelmusik, was probably performed as musical theatre.[6]

Bach used its music, composing new recitatives, for a church cantata for Easter Sunday. It can be considered an Easter play, following a custom of "scenic representation of the Easter story".[11][12] The work is opened by two instrumental movements that are probably taken from a concerto of the Köthen period.[11] The cantata was first titled: Kommt, gehet und eilet.[13][14]

After performing the second version of his St John Passion in Leipzig on Good Friday 1725, Bach led the first performance of the Easter cantata with the Thomanerchor on 1 April 1725,[7][13] in the morning service at the Nikolaikirche where Salomon Deyling gave the sermon, and in a vespers service at the Thomaskirche, with a sermon given by Johann Gottlob Carpzov.[13]

Bach seems to enjoy the work[12] and performed the work at least three more times, polishing details each time.[7][8] For a performance in 1738, he wrote a new autograph score and called the work Oratorio.[7] At this point he omitted the assignment of characters to the music and noted only the voice parts.[8] In a later version in the 1740s, the third movement was expanded from a duet to a four-part chorus.[8][11][15] It was repeated in 1749,[15] after the last performance by Bach of his St John Passion.[8]

Music

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Plot, structure and scoring

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Unlike Bach's later Christmas Oratorio, the Easter Oratorio has no Evangelist narrator providing Biblical text. The plot is based on the Gospel of Luke, 24:1–13. It features four characters assigned to the four voice parts: the disciples Simon (tenor) and John (bass), appearing in the first duet hurrying to Jesus' grave and finding it empty, meeting there Mary Magdalene (alto) and "the other Mary", Mary Jacobe (soprano).[7][14]

The work is structured in eleven movements, with two instrumental movements at the beginning. It is the only work among Bach's Passions and Oratorios that features no chorale.[7] The third movement opens the scene with two disciples moving towards the grave of Jesus. The following movements 4 to 10 alternate recitatives, in which the characters interact, with arias in which expresses emotional reaction.[7] The work is concluded by a chorus of praise. Originally the choir was present only in this final movement, but in the 1740s, Bach rewrote the opening duet, setting it partly for four choir. The music is festively scored with a Baroque instrumental ensemble of three trumpets (Tr), timpani, two oboes (Ob), oboe d'amore (Oa), bassoon (Bs), two recorders (Rec), transverse flute (Ft), two violins (Vn), viola (Va) and continuo (bc).[15][16]

In the following table of the movements, in the revised version, the scoring is taken from the Neue Bach-Ausgabe. The keys and time signatures are taken from Alfred Dürr's standard work Die Kantaten von Johann Sebastian Bach, using the symbol for common time (4/4). Dürr gives the duration as 47 minutes.[17] The timpani always play with the trumpets and are not mentioned.

No. Type Text (source) Vocal Brass and winds Strings Bass Key Time
1 Sinfonia 3Tr 2Ob Bs 2Vl Va Bc D major 3
8
2 Adagio Ft or Ob 2Vl Va Bc B minor 3
4
3 Chorus Kommt, eilet und laufet SATB 3Tr 2Ob 2Vl Va Bc 3
8
4 Rec. O kalter Männer Sinn S A T B Bc B minor common time
5 Aria Seele, deine Spezereien S Ft Bc B minor 3
4
6 Rec. Hier ist die Gruft A T B Bc common time
7 Aria Sanfte soll mein Todeskummer T 2Rec 2Vl Bc G major common time
8 Rec. Indessen seufzen wir S A Bc common time
9 Aria Saget, saget mir geschwinde A Oa 2Vl Va Bc A major common time
10 Rec. Wir sind erfreut B Bc common time
11 Chorus Preis und Dank SATB 3Tr 2Ob 2Vl Va Bc D major common time 3
8

Movements

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The music of the arias and the closing chorus, Nos. 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11, correspond to movements of the secular model, 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10, while the recitatives were newly composed for Easter.[7] John Eliot Gardiner and Yvonne Frindle pointed out that the arias resemble a dance suite.[18][8]

1 and 2

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The oratorio opens with two contrasting instrumental movements, a Sinfonia, an Allegro concerto grosso of the full orchestra with solo sections for trumpets, violins and oboes, and an Adagio, featuring a solo oboe and sigh motifs (Seufzermotive) in the strings.[7] Yvonne Frindle noted that the Allegro with trumpets and timpani meant the return of festive music after the "quiet time" of Lent.[8] The Adagio is reminiscent of a Venetian slow movement, according to Gardiner.[18] Bach exchanged the solo instrument to flauto traverso in the third version. The two movements may come from a lost concerto from Bach's Köthen period.It had been suggested that Bach derived the third movement from the same concerto, but this was rejected arguing that three movements in a row in triple metre occur in no Bach concerto.[7][11][18]

3

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The first movement to be sung is the third movement, "Kommt, eilet und laufet" (Come, hasten and run).[1] In the secular music, the music is always for two voices, first tenor and bass singing "Entfliehet, verschwindet, entweichet, ihr Sorgen" (Flee, dissolve, fade away, you cares), to which, after a middle section, soprano and alto respond with the same text.[1] The middle section is full of coloraturas that illustrate in the secular work laughter and mirth.[19]

The music for the Easter work began, in the 1725 version, as a duet of tenor and bass as the two disciples Simon and John running to the grave of Jesus. Upward runs illustrate their motion. In a 1740s version, Bach set its outer sections for choir, leaving the middle section as a duet.[5][11]

4

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All solo voices are involved in the first recitative, "O kalter Männer Sinn!" (O cold hearts of men!),[1] meeting at the empty grave.[14]

5

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The first of the arias is given to the soprano as Maria Jacobe, "Seele, deine Spezereien" (O soul, your spices).[1] While the secular original talked about "Hunderttausend Schmeicheleien" (A hundred thousand pleasantries),[20] the woman at the grave reflects that now, told that Jesus was no longer there, the ointments they brought for the corpse are no longer needed, and she imagines a laurel wreath for the victor.[14] Gardiner compared the music to a minuit, with an obbligato flute.[18]

6

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In the second recitative, "Hier ist die Gruft" (Here is the grave),[1][14] Mary Magdalene shares with the disciples that an angel told her that Jesus was risen.[1]

7

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The second arie is sung by the tenor as Simon, "Sanfte soll mein Todeskummer nur ein Schlummer, Jesu, durch dein Schweißtuch sein" (Gentle shall my death-throes be only a slumber, Jesus, because of your shroud),[1] while the topic of the secular aria was the sleep of the sheep: "Wieget euch, ihr satten Schafe, in dem Schlafe" (Rock yourselves, you contented sheep, into sleep),[20] Simon imagines his death as peaceful now that the shroud makes him believe that Jesus is risen.[14] The gentle music of muted strings and recorders over a bass with a pedal-like calm pulse is reminiscent of a cradle song.[19] Gardiner compared it to a bourrée and pointed out that recorders were also used in the Actus tragicus funeral music.[18]

8

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In the third recitative, "Indessen seufzen wir" (Meanwhile we sigh),[1][14] the women express their desire to see Jesus again.[1]

9

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Mary Magdalene expresses in the alto aria "Saget, saget mir geschwinde, saget, wo ich Jesum finde" (Tell me, tell me quickly, say where I can find Jesus),[1] her desire to find Jesus, based on words from the Song of Songs.[7] In the secular model, "Komm doch, Flora, komm geschwinde" (Come, Flora, come quickly), Flora is called to bless the fields so that the peasants can pay their duties to the dedicatee of the music, Christian, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels. The piece opens with a concertante ritornello for oboe and strings; the voice picks up the oboe's theme, while the oboe accompanies.[19]

In the middle section of the Easter work the woman says that without her beloved, she is "ganz verwaiset und betrübt" (completely orphaned and desolate),[1]. This passage is, deviating from the secular model, set as adagio.[11] The words and emotions are close to those opening of Part Two of the St Matthew Passion. Gardiner, who compared the piece to a gavotte, saw the adagio phrase as "almost a blueprint of a Mozartian tragedienne's grief".[18]

10

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In the last recitative, "Wir sind erfreut, daß unser Jesus wieder lebt" (We are delighted that our Jesus lives again),[1][14] John summarises joy that Jesus lives again and calls for songs of joy.[1]

11

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In the final movement, the choir brings praise and thanks, "Preis und Dank bleibe, Herr, dein Lobgesang" (Praise and thanks remain, Lord, your hymn of praise).[1] In the secular work, the conclusion was a congratulation, beginning with "Glück und Heil bleibe dein beständig Teil!" (May Fortune and health remain your constant portion!).[1] The movement is structured in two contrasting sections, resembling the Sanctus composed for Christmas 1724 and later part of the Mass in B minor;[11] both pieces feature dotted rhythm in common time and mostly chordal vocal parts.[19] The second section recalls the opening Sinfonia in metre and fanfare motifs;[7] Gardiner compared it to a gigue.[18]

Manuscripts and publication

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The oldest sources of the Easter Oratorio are 14 manuscript parts, probably from the secular cantata, which were used for the performance for Easter 1725, probably with the score of the secular work with added lines of text.[7]

The new autograph score of 1738 is extant. It features unusually detailed markings for articulation and dynamics, as one of Bach's most beautiful scores, according to editor Ulrich Leisinger. Bach wrote the vocal parts again in 1743, and added a new principale part in 1749.[7]

The Easter Oratorio was published in the New Bach Edition (Neue Bach-Ausgabe, NBA) in 1977, edited by Paul Brainard; a critical report followed in 1981.[13] It was published by Carus-Verlag in 2003 as part of Stuttgarter Bach-Ausgaben, a complete edition of Bach's vocal works, edited by Leisinger.[7]

Recordings

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A list of recordings is provided on the Bach Cantatas Website.[21] Choirs with one voice per part (OVPP) and ensembles playing period instruments in historically informed performances are shown with a green background. Michael Wersin compared several recordings in 2014.[12]

Recordings of Easter Oratorio
Title Conductor / Choir / Orchestra Soloists Label Year Choir type Orch. type
J. S. Bach: Oster-Oratorium BWV 249[12] Marcel Couraud
L'ensemble vocal et instrumental de Stuttgart
Erato 1956 (1956)
Oratorio de Pâques Fritz Werner
Heinrich-Schütz-Chor Heilbronn
Pforzheim Chamber Orchestra
Erato 1964 (1964)
Osteroratorium BWV 249 Wolfgang Gönnenwein
Süddeutscher Madrigalchor
Süddeutsches Kammerorchester
HMV 1965 (1965)
J. S. Bach: Easter Oratorio; Cantata BWV 10[12] Karl Münchinger
Wiener Akademiechor
Stuttgarter Kammerorchester
Decca 1968 (1968)
Die Bach Kantate Vol. 11[12] Helmuth Rilling
Gächinger Kantorei
Bach-Collegium Stuttgart
Hänssler 1981 (1981)
J. S. Bach: Cantatas BWV 11 "Ascension" · "Himmelfahrts-Oratoriun"; BWV 249 Easter" · "Pâques" · "Oster-Oratorium" Gustav Leonhardt
Orchestra & Choir of the Age of Enlightenment
Philips 1993 (1993) Period
J. S. Bach: Christ lag in Todes Banden; Oster-Oratorium · Easter Oratorio (BWV 4, 249)[12] Andrew Parrott
Taverner Consort & Players
Virgin Classics 1993 (1993) OVPP Period
J. S. Bach - Easter Oratorio BWV 249; Cantata BWV 66 "Erfreut euch, ihr Herzen[12][22] Philippe Herreweghe
Collegium Vocale Gent
Harmonia Mundi 1994 (1994) Period
Oster-Oratorium BWV 249 Philippe Herreweghe
Collegium Vocale Gent
Brilliant Classics 1994 (1994) Period
Easter Oratorio Ton Koopman
Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir
Erato 1998 (1998) Period
J. S. Bach: Magnificat · Easter Oratorio[12] Paul McCreesh
Gabrieli Consort
Archiv Produktion 2001 (2001) OVPP Period
J.S. Bach: Easter Oratorio · Ascension Oratorio[12] Masaaki Suzuki
Bach Collegium Japan
BIS 2004 (2004) Period
J. S. Bach: Cantatas for the Complete Liturgical Year Vol. 13: "Oster-Oratorium" (Cantatas BWV 249, 6)[23] Sigiswald Kuijken
La Petite Bande
Archiv Produktion 2009 (2009) OVPP Period
J. S. Bach: Easter Oratorio, BWV 249[9] Frans Brüggen
Cappella Amsterdam
Orchestra of the 18th Century
Glossa 2011 (2011) Period
Bach: Easter Oratorio; Actus Tragicus[18][24] John Eliot Gardiner
Monteverdi Choir
English Baroque Soloists
  • Hannah Morrison
  • Margaret Bragle
  • Nicholas Mulroy
  • Peter Harvey
 Soli Deo Gloria 2013 (2013) Period
J. S. Bach: Osteroratorium · C. P. E. Bach: Danket dem Herrn / Heilig[12] Frieder Bernius
Kammerchor Stuttgart
Barockorchester Stuttgart
Carus 2014 (2014) Period

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Dellal 2025.
  2. ^ a b Bach Digital secular 2025.
  3. ^ Wolf 2021.
  4. ^ Dürr & Jones 2006, pp. 273–274.
  5. ^ a b Maul 2025.
  6. ^ a b Grychtolik 2019.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Leisinger 2003.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g Frindle 2021.
  9. ^ a b Veen 2013.
  10. ^ Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment 2025.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g Dürr & Jones 2006, p. 274.
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Wersin 2014.
  13. ^ a b c d Bach Digital cantata 2025.
  14. ^ a b c d e f g h Dürr & Jones 2006, p. 273.
  15. ^ a b c Bach Digital oratorio late 2025.
  16. ^ Dürr & Jones 2006, pp. 271–230.
  17. ^ Dürr & Jones 2006, p. 271.
  18. ^ a b c d e f g h Gardiner 2014.
  19. ^ a b c d Dürr & Jones 2006, p. 809.
  20. ^ a b Dellal 2 2025.
  21. ^ Oron 2024.
  22. ^ Vernier 2000.
  23. ^ Henkel 2011.
  24. ^ Quinn 2014.

Cited sources

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Further reading

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  • Markus Rathey: Bach's Major Vocal Works: Music-Drama-Liturgy. London: Yale University Press, 2016, 138–165
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