Weimar cantata (Bach)

Johann Sebastian Bach worked at the ducal court in Weimar from 1708 to 1717. The composition of cantatas for the Schlosskirche (court chapel) on a regular monthly basis started with his promotion to Konzertmeister in March 1714.[1]

Church cantatas

From 1714 to 1717 Bach was commissioned to compose one church cantata a month. His goal was to compose a complete set of cantatas for the liturgical year within four years. In the course of almost four years there he thus covered most occasions of the liturgical year.[2]

The first version of Liebster Gott, vergisst du mich, BWV 1136 (formerly BWV Anh. 209), a lost cantata the libretto of which was written by Georg Christian Lehms and published in 1711 for the seventh Sunday after Trinity, may have been composed in Weimar.[3]

Before 1714
See also: Lost council election cantatas by Johann Sebastian Bach § Mühlhausen, and Bach's early cantatas

Apart from some Weimar cycle cantatas which may have been composed before they were adopted into that cycle (BWV 18, 21, 54 and 199):

  • Lost council election cantatas for Mühlhausen:
    • 1709: second council election cantata for Mühlhausen, BWV 1138.1 (formerly BWV Anh. 192)[4]
    • 1710: third council election cantata for Mühlhausen, BWV 1138.2 (formerly BWV deest)[5]
  • Doubtful work:

Weimar cycle

The expression "Weimar cycle" has been used for the cantatas composed in Weimar from 1714 (which form the bulk of extant cantatas composed before Bach's Leipzig time).[7][8]

Cantatas 54 and 199 were performed within the cycle but possibly composed earlier. BWV 18 and 21[9] may also have been composed before 1714.

Passions
Further information: Passions (Bach)

Passions performed in the Weimar period, however not considered to be passion cantatas, thus not generally listed in the Weimar (cantata) cycle:

Secular cantatas
See also: List of secular cantatas by Johann Sebastian Bach § History

Bach composed the first version of his secular cantata Was mir behagt, ist nur die muntre Jagd, BWV 208 (Hunting Cantata) for performance on 23 February 1713.[16]

References
  1. Koster, Jan. "Weimar 1708–1717". let.rug.nl. Retrieved 16 December 2011.
  2. Dürr, Alfred (2006). The Cantatas of J. S. Bach: With Their Librettos in German-English Parallel Text. Translated by Richard D. P. Jones. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-929776-4.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link) pp. 13–20
  3. "Liebster Gott, vergisst du mich BWV 1136; BWV Anh. I 209". Bach Digital. Leipzig: Bach Archive; et al. 2020-07-21.
  4. "Zweite Mühlhäuser Ratswahlkantate BWV 1138.1; BWV Anh. 192". Bach Digital. Leipzig: Bach Archive; et al. 2018-08-07.
  5. "Dritte Mühlhäuser Ratswahlkantate BWV 1138.2". Bach Digital. Leipzig: Bach Archive; et al. 2018-07-31.
  6. "Lobe den Herrn, meine Seele BWV 143". Bach Digital. Leipzig: Bach Archive; et al. 2019-05-14.
  7. Joshua Rifkin (2001). Liner notes to Three Weimar Cantatas, Dorian 93231
  8. Richard D. P. Jones (2006). The Creative Development of Johann Sebastian Bach, Volume I: 1695-1717: Music to Delight the Spirit. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780191513244, p. 212
  9. Work 00024 at Bach Digital website
  10. Works 00024 and 00025 at Bach Digital website
  11. Work 00079 at Bach Digital website
  12. Work 00021 at Bach Digital website
  13. Work 00100 at Bach Digital website
  14. BWV2a, p. 454
  15. Work 01502) at Bach Digital website
  16. BDW 00261 at Bach Digital website
Church cantatas by Johann Sebastian Bach by chronology
Preceded by
Bach's early cantatas		 Weimar cantatas
1708–17		 Succeeded by
Köthen: Lobet den Herrn, alle seine Heerscharen, BWV Anh. 5
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