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St John Passion structure
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St John Passion structure
The structure of the St John Passion (German: Johannes-Passion), BWV 245, a sacred oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach first performed in Leipzig on Good Friday 1724, is "carefully designed with a great deal of musico-theological intent". Some main aspects of the structure are shown in tables below.
The original Latin title Passio secundum Joannem translates to "Passion according to John". Bach's large choral composition in two parts on German text, written to be performed in a Lutheran service on Good Friday, is based on the Passion, as told in two chapters from the Gospel of John (John 18 and John 19) in the translation by Martin Luther, with two short interpolations from the Gospel of Matthew (in the earliest version, one is from the Gospel of Matthew and one from the Gospel of Mark). During the vespers service, the two parts of the work were performed before and after the sermon. Part I covers the events until Peter's denial of Jesus, Part II concludes with the burial of Jesus. The Bible text is reflected in contemporary poetry and in chorales that often end a "scene" of the narration, similar to the way a chorale ends most Bach cantatas. An anonymous poet supplied a few texts himself, quoted from other Passion texts and inserted various stanzas of chorales by nine hymn writers. Bach led the first performance on 7 April 1724 in Leipzig's Nikolaikirche. He repeated it several times between 1724 and 1749, experimenting with different movements and changing others, which resulted in four versions (with a fifth one not performed in Bach's lifetime, but representing the standard version). The Passion, close to Bach's heart, has an "immediate dramatic quality".
The gospel account by John narrates the story in five "scenes". The corresponding movement numbers are given from the Neue Bach-Ausgabe (NBA).
Part I
Part II
Some musicologists regard movement 24 as the conclusion of scene 3, the aria "Eilt, ihr angefocht'nen Seelen" which locates the action from the courthouse to Golgotha, the calvary. Others, including Alfred Dürr, regard the scene as ending with the last comment by Pilate.
Bach incorporated two short interpolations from the Gospel of Matthew (in Version I, one from Matthew and one from the Gospel of Mark), Matthew 26:75 after John 18:27, describing the weeping of Peter, and Matthew 27:51–52 after John 19:30, describing the tearing of the temple curtain (in Version I, this was replaced by Mark 15:38). The narrator is the Evangelist, a tenor. Jesus and all other male characters are sung by a bass (including Peter and Pilate) or tenor (servant); female characters (such as the Maid) are sung by a soprano, while the people who are often summarily called die Jüden (the Jews), the servants of the High Priest, and the soldiers are sung by a four-part chorus (SATB) in dramatic turba movements. The "immediate, dramatic quality" of the "kind of musical equivalent of the Passion Play" relies on the setting of the interaction between the historical persons (Jesus, Pilate, Peter, Maid, Servant) and the crowd ("soldiers, priests, and populace").
At eleven moments in the Passion, stanzas from Lutheran chorales reflect the narration. Possibly Bach had an influence on their selection. He set them all in common time for four parts, the instruments playing colla parte with the voices.
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St John Passion structure
The structure of the St John Passion (German: Johannes-Passion), BWV 245, a sacred oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach first performed in Leipzig on Good Friday 1724, is "carefully designed with a great deal of musico-theological intent". Some main aspects of the structure are shown in tables below.
The original Latin title Passio secundum Joannem translates to "Passion according to John". Bach's large choral composition in two parts on German text, written to be performed in a Lutheran service on Good Friday, is based on the Passion, as told in two chapters from the Gospel of John (John 18 and John 19) in the translation by Martin Luther, with two short interpolations from the Gospel of Matthew (in the earliest version, one is from the Gospel of Matthew and one from the Gospel of Mark). During the vespers service, the two parts of the work were performed before and after the sermon. Part I covers the events until Peter's denial of Jesus, Part II concludes with the burial of Jesus. The Bible text is reflected in contemporary poetry and in chorales that often end a "scene" of the narration, similar to the way a chorale ends most Bach cantatas. An anonymous poet supplied a few texts himself, quoted from other Passion texts and inserted various stanzas of chorales by nine hymn writers. Bach led the first performance on 7 April 1724 in Leipzig's Nikolaikirche. He repeated it several times between 1724 and 1749, experimenting with different movements and changing others, which resulted in four versions (with a fifth one not performed in Bach's lifetime, but representing the standard version). The Passion, close to Bach's heart, has an "immediate dramatic quality".
The gospel account by John narrates the story in five "scenes". The corresponding movement numbers are given from the Neue Bach-Ausgabe (NBA).
Part I
Part II
Some musicologists regard movement 24 as the conclusion of scene 3, the aria "Eilt, ihr angefocht'nen Seelen" which locates the action from the courthouse to Golgotha, the calvary. Others, including Alfred Dürr, regard the scene as ending with the last comment by Pilate.
Bach incorporated two short interpolations from the Gospel of Matthew (in Version I, one from Matthew and one from the Gospel of Mark), Matthew 26:75 after John 18:27, describing the weeping of Peter, and Matthew 27:51–52 after John 19:30, describing the tearing of the temple curtain (in Version I, this was replaced by Mark 15:38). The narrator is the Evangelist, a tenor. Jesus and all other male characters are sung by a bass (including Peter and Pilate) or tenor (servant); female characters (such as the Maid) are sung by a soprano, while the people who are often summarily called die Jüden (the Jews), the servants of the High Priest, and the soldiers are sung by a four-part chorus (SATB) in dramatic turba movements. The "immediate, dramatic quality" of the "kind of musical equivalent of the Passion Play" relies on the setting of the interaction between the historical persons (Jesus, Pilate, Peter, Maid, Servant) and the crowd ("soldiers, priests, and populace").
At eleven moments in the Passion, stanzas from Lutheran chorales reflect the narration. Possibly Bach had an influence on their selection. He set them all in common time for four parts, the instruments playing colla parte with the voices.
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