New-York tribune., 1903-04-09
MUSIC.
another Bach FestiraI at Beth
lehem.

Mr J. Fred Wolfe and his Bach choir are prepar-
ihs d FESTIVAL OF Baehs music at Bethlehem. Penn,
which Is even more ambitious in plan than the
aILalr winch excited the interest Of the entire mus
cal world two years ago Then three Of the master
pieces OF the composer were given in their entirety
namely the Christmas Oratorfo" st Matthew
Passion and minor Mass These works to
be repeated this year. but with them q be
sorted = number OF the church cantatas. This is
70 be done however. without disturbance Of what
may be called the religious scheme Of the festival
Il was remarked in this journal years
that Mr. Wolfe. BY producing three large works
in the order indicated. had seemed he guided
hy an appreciation Of the spiritual bond which
blended the trinity OF composition into a beautiful
and imposing unity. To devout minds the three
days hymniHE was a memorial Of Christ's birth
Christs suffering and death and the commemora-
tive rite through which the Divine sacrifice
applied 10 the regeneration and sanctihcation Of
mankind-Oratorio. Passion Mass. This year there
are to he six days of service and music. the cond
tions Of the festival being such as to entile
be called a religious service quite much
artistic enterta tainn1ent- The first two days 10
embody the glsdsome Christmas feeling; the next
two the gloom of The Passion, the last two of
uitant Easter joy. The general division Of the
plan is as follows:
Monday. May Il. ?. m.-The cantata. 'wachet
auf ruff die Stimme." a sort of prelude to
the entire festival the work having been composed
for the twenty-seventh Sunday after Trinity which
Immediately precedes the Advent and Christmas
seasons. The cantata viii be followed by the song
Of the Virgin Mary. the famous "Aagnihcat IN D.
one Of the most beautiful Of Bach's works
Tuesday. May Z. 4 P. m.-Parts I, IL and III of
the Christmas Oratorio'; p m. parts ", and
VI
Wednesday. May 13. 2 m.-The second Bran
deRburg Concerto crosse as prelude and TO mark
q transition the sombre music which Is 10 fol-
low. Then two solo cantatas, "schage doch. ge-
wlinschte Stunde'' and 'Ich will den Kreutzstab
gerne tragen-' Concerning these works and the
others Of their kind on the programme something
will be said presently
Thursday. May IA. P m.-Part l OF the PASSION
according to St Matthew; p. n, part II
Friday May 15. 3 p m.-The cantatas written re-
spectively for Easter and Ascension Day)' Der
HirnmeI acht. die Erde JubiliTet and GOT 1ahreL
auf nit jsuchsen.'
Saturday. May 1s. p r.-"Kyrie" and Gloria"
Of the Mass in minor; p m. "Credo" to the
end
There will thus be nine sessions during the week
one on each day the festival period and three in
the afternoons Of Tuesday. Thursday and satur-
day It is an ambitious programme. but one that
has been skilfuly arranged. and will present no
difficulties to the enthusiastic singers OF Bethie-
hem who are doubtless prepared by this time 10
sing the Mass without book and were letter per-
feet in the Oratorio and Passion two years ago
Who the solo singers viii be is not vet known
nor does II signify under the conditions which pre-
vail at Bethlehem where the spirit and the ensern-
HE Of the performances are the things of chief mo-
u1ent The orchestra is 70 he that Of Philadelphia
and the archaic instruments made for the New
/ ork Oratorio Society will be used as before
a few w6rds on the works in the scheme
The cantatas belong 70 style Of composition which
was in vogue two centuries ago in Germany Iney
were called 'Kirchercantaten." and were written
for use at the various church festivals and sun
DAYS Of the year. ach Of these caHtatas had lor
a fundamental subject the theme which formed
the burden Of the service for that particuar-oiay
and was marked out by the appropriate cospei les
son In them the chorales. themselves an out
growth Of the German Protestant idea Of congrega-
tionaI worship. played an important part words
and melody Of appropriate chorale were re-
-sined as the foundation OF the service. but pe-
tween the stanzas were placed prose recl'atiVes
and etrical airs, ariosos, for solo voices II le
"a tI1re OF commentaries on the sentiment OF the
hymn o- the Gospel The cantatas or, rather their
--o-Ee were written by the German preachers and
r,7,bisbed IN series, each one OF which covered q
wear To compose music for them was the outy u
every Protestant church musician Bach is sup
nose5 70 have composed about three hundred OF
them IN the performance OF MS oul-eS a. -0ii'o
and elsewhere.
The first Of the cantatas 20 he performed at betn-
leheu7 was composed in 17S1, when year hao
ryzeuty-severth Sunday after Trinity IN ia rare
5a in the ecclesiastical year For this reason ana
because Of It's poeucalIy and mysteriously solemn
r-ozne1 saws SDirta. Bach's hiographer' f7ach
felt himself prompted TO compose for II d c.ed1.
of the very highest order" The Gospel OF Ile uaS
heing the parable Of the ten Virgins tMatIhe" AAF
"a, r7ach chose the hymn, "Sleepers, wake
80 7s calling Of which Mendelssohn made such
sre uss in his st. Paul" The chorale Is one oI
-1a 4nes- and most impressive products OF Frol-
o-..-+ b,-rnnologv Words and melody ooth oy
47,-Fri- Nicoai were first printed in q hymn pooh
,sTIaz ..F>-au audenspIegel des Ewigen Lebens COY
Asirror Of Everlasting Life, Frankfort 1855 me
t,s,er-v IN the lines devoted TO the solos ana TWO
80 4S drawn largely from Solonons Song Inc
-. -,-o can+a+as are for solo voice and orchestra
.,,,s,r the second ends with q choraIe- Inc nrst
a., = oor+a+s for mourning. and is supposed 10 nave
- written for Bach's daughter. Catherine VINO
- -, .1+o 1oice-the voice for which the music Is
written throughout In II Bach mas lnl1oo"oeu d
III obh,pato which fact, together with the o1ner
- +tere is no place in the church service LOT
-, -iece has led 10 the conclusion that II vas
sta5 ike other specimens Of Bach S worA' LOT
+be glorfacation of God in the rafnhy ei'oie MI
ToIle's translation begins
..-+-fl.e on strike. Observation-Disclosures
-9-e.- oh break. Iong-looked-for day.
- -a.o,5 cantata II, with cross-staI, glaoly
Sr - y-ss composed for the nineteenth sun
ae+a trinity in 1881 or 1872. II is for pass SOLO
Us &C. .Lo,,eb e ends with a chorale, Bacn hiiisen
a an - :. ..c-antata Voce sofa StroTnenu-
The Easter cantata, ,H .uto.s
.s--la heavens laugh. the earth ltselI reJO'o10'
.6 brdding nature bursts in song,
-~,oet.ion Of Bach's Weirnar period, ana was
= =. 7-75 It has q peculiarly imposing lIs'ru
- ,r+roduction, the orchestra cohtaniiis -
-..a lHeI@ 4o,r oboes bassoon and tympanl oesloes
-. ,,s,Is1 quota Of strings. God goeth up W.
.o,,-,ry, was composed for Ascension lay 1''''