# Altbachisches Archiv

Altbachisches Archiv, also Alt-Bachische Archiv (ABA, old-Bachian archive), is a collection of 17th-century vocal music, most of which was written by members of the Bach family.

## History

Johann Ambrosius Bach, Johann Sebastian's father, supposedly started to collect compositions by his relatives. Johann Sebastian Bach's obituary starts with an overview of the composers whose works are contained in the Altbachisches Archiv. Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, Johann Sebastian's son and co-author of his obituary, retained the collection and gave it its name. After his death the largest part of the collection came, via Georg Pölchau [de], in the possession of the Sing-Akademie zu Berlin. All nine motets of the Sing-Akademie's part of the ABA collection, including BWV 1164, at the time attributed to Johann Christoph Bach, were published in the early 1820s.
The manuscripts of two compositions contained in the Sing-Akademie's part of the ABA collection were sold to the Royal Library in Berlin (later renamed as Berlin State Library): thus BNB I/B/11 and BWV 1164 were no longer in the Sing-Akademie's archives by the end of the 19th century. In 1935 Max Schneider, recovering ABA manuscripts scattered in the Sing-Akademie's archive, published a selection of these compositions, an edition which was reprinted in 1966. ABA numbers derive from this publication in two volumes. The original manuscripts of the Sing-Akademie's archive went lost during the Second World War, only to be rediscovered in Ukraine in 1999, after which they were returned to the Sing-Akademie, which in turn deposited the recovered manuscripts in the Berlin State Library for conservation.

## Compositions

Altbachisches Archiv :
| ABA | BNB | Composer | Composition | Genre | Scoring | BD |
| I, 1 | I/An/11 | Johannes Bach (Johann Michael Bach?) | Sei nun wieder zufrieden [choralwiki; scores] | motet (aria) | SSAT+ATTB Bc | 08736 |
| I, 2 | I/B/43 | Johannes Bach (Johann Michael Bach?) | Unser Leben ist ein Schatten [choralwiki; choralwiki; scores] | motet | SSATTB+ATB | 08740 |
| I, 3 | I/An/12 | Johannes Bach | Weint nicht um meinen Tod [choralwiki] | motet (aria) | SATB | 08741 |
| I, 4 | — | Johann Michael Bach? | Unser Leben währet siebenzig Jahr [choralwiki] | motet | SATT Bc | 08743 |
| I, 5 | I/B/39 | Johann Michael Bach | Das Blut Jesu Christi [choralwiki; scores] | motet | SATTB Cnt 3Tbn Bc | 08744 |
| I, 6 | I/B/40 | Johann Michael Bach | Herr, wenn ich nur dich habe [choralwiki; scores] | Geistliches Konzert (funeral motet, 14 November 1690) | SATTB | 08745 |
| I, 7 | I/B/41 | Johann Michael Bach | Ich weiß, dass mein Erlöser lebt [choralwiki; scores] | Geistliches Konzert | SATTB Bc | 08748 |
| I, 8 | — | Johann Michael Bach | Sei lieber Tag willkommen [choralwiki; scores] | motet | SSATTB Bc | 08749 |
| I, 9 | I/B/42 | Johann Michael Bach | Nun hab' ich überwunden [choralwiki; scores] | motet | SATB+SATB Bc | 08750 |
| I, 10 | — | Johann Michael Bach | Halt, was du hast [choralwiki; scores] | motet | SATB+ATTB Bc | 08864 |
| I, 11 | — | Johann Michael Bach | Fürchtet euch nicht [choralwiki; scores] | motet | SATB+SATB Bc | 08752 |
| I, 12 | — | Johann Michael Bach | Herr, du lässest mich erfahren | motet | SATB+ATTB Bc | 08756 |
| I, 13 | — | Johann Michael Bach | Dem Menschen ist gesetzt einmal zu sterben | motet | SATB+ATTB Bc | 08757 |
| I, 14 | — | Johann Michael Bach | Herr, ich warte auf dein Heil | motet | SATB+SATB Bc | 08758 |
| I, 15 | I/An/10 | Adam Drese (not Heinrich Bach) | Nun ist alles überwunden | motet (aria) | SATB | 09090 |
| I, 16 | I/B/12 | Johann Christoph Bach | Es ist nun aus mit meinem Leben | motet (aria) | SATB Bc | 08760 |
| I, 17 | I/B/16 | Johann Christoph Bach | Mit Weinen hebt sichs an [choralwiki] | motet | SATB Bc | 08762 |
| I, 18 | — | Johann Christoph Bach | Der Mensch, vom Weibe geboren [scores] | motet | SSATB Bc | 08763 |
| I, 19 | — | Johann Christoph Bach | Sei getreu bis in den Tod [choralwiki] | motet | SSATB Bc | 08764 |
| I, 20 | I/B/10 | Johann Christoph Bach | Der Gerechte, ob er gleich [choralwiki; scores] | motet (funeral, 1675) | SATTB Bc | 08850 |
| II, 1 | — | Heinrich Bach | Ich danke dir, Gott | church cantata (Trinity XVII) | SSATB+SSATB 2Vl 2Va Bc | 08787 |
| II, 2 | I/B/3 | Georg Christoph Bach | Siehe, wie fein und lieblich ist (after Ps. 133) | church cantata / vocal concerto (birthday), 6 September 1689) | ttb Vl 3Vdg Vne Org | 08789 |
| II, 3 | — | Johann Michael Bach | Es ist ein großer Gewinn | church cantata (unknown occ.) | s Vlp 3Vl Bc | 08792 |
| II, 4 | I/B/37 | Johann Michael Bach | Ach, wie sehnlich wart' ich der Zeit [choralwiki] | church cantata (unknown occ.) | s 5Str Org | 08794 |
| II, 5 | I/B/38 | Johann Michael Bach | Auf, lasst uns den Herren loben [scores] | church cantata / Aria (unknown occ.) | a 4Str Bc (Vne, Org) | 08796 |
| II, 6 | — | Johann Michael Bach | Liebster Jesu, hör mein Flehen [choralwiki] | church cantata (Reminiscere) | SATTB 2Vl 2Va Bc | 08798 |
| II, 7 | — | Johann Michael Bach | Ach bleib bei uns, Herr Jesu Christ | church cantata (unknown occ.) | SATB 2Vl 3Va Bc | 08800 |
| II, 8 | I/An/9 | Johann Michael Bach (old attribution: Johann Christoph Bach) | Die Furcht des Herren | church cantata (new council) | ssatbSATB 2Vl 2Va Bc | 08802 |
| II, 9 | I/B/15 | Johann Christoph Bach | Meine Freundin, du bist schön [scores] | church cantata (wedding) | satbSATB Vl 3Va Bc | 08804 |
| deest | I/B/9 | Johann Christoph Bach? | Ach, dass ich Wassers genug hätte [choralwiki; scores] | church cantata / lamento (unknown occ.) | a Vl 3Vdg Bc | 09088 |
| deest | I/B/11 | Johann Christoph Bach | Es erhub sich ein Streit [scores] | Geistliches Konzert | satbbSATTB 4Tr Tmp Bss 2Vl 4Va Bc | 08956 |
| deest | I/B/13 | Johann Christoph Bach | Herr, nun lässest du deinen Diener in Frieden fahren [choralwiki] | motet | SATB+SATB Bc | 11049 |
| deest | I/B/14 | Johann Christoph Bach | Lieber Herre Gott, wecke uns auf [choralwiki; scores] | motet | SATB+SATB Wws Strs Bc | 09092 |
| deest | I/B/17 | Johann Christoph Bach | Unsers Herzens Freude hat ein Ende [choralwiki] | motet | SATB+SATB Bc | 09119 |
| deest | — | Johann Sebastian Bach (Johann Christoph Bach?) | Ich lasse dich nicht, du segnest mich denn (BWV 1164 = BWV Anh. 159) | motet | SATB+SATB | 01470 |
| deest | — | Johann Christoph Bach | Fürchte dich nicht [choralwiki; scores] | motet | SATTB Bc | 09850 |