page_title: Great Eighteen Chorale Preludes
section_title: Chorale Preludes BWV 651–668
hierarchical_section_title: Great Eighteen Chorale Preludes / Chorale Preludes BWV 651–668
caption_attribution_description: English: Autograph page of BWV 651, Komm, heiliger Geist
context_page_description: The Great Eighteen Chorale Preludes, BWV 651–668, are a set of chorale preludes for organ prepared by Johann Sebastian Bach in Leipzig in his final decade, from earlier works composed in Weimar, where he was court organist. The works form an encyclopedic collection of large-scale chorale preludes, in a variety of styles harking back to the previous century, that Bach gradually perfected during his career. Together with the Orgelbüchlein, the Schübler Chorales, the third book of the Clavier-Übung and the Canonic Variations, they represent the summit of Bach's sacred music for solo organ.
context_section_description: BWV 651 Fantasia super Komm, Heiliger Geist [Come, Holy Ghost], canto fermo in Pedale (cantus firmus chorale) play 
  Over the pedal chorale melody sweeps an exuberant toccata, conveying the "rushing mighty wind" of the Holy Spirit; a second ornamented subject symbolises the Hallelujas at the culmination of the hymn.
    BWV 652 Komm, Heiliger Geist [Come, Holy Ghost], alio modo a 2 Clav. e Pedale (ornamental chorale) play 
  The ornate chorale melody sings out above a lyrical and calm three-part sarabande, with flowing semiquavers marking the Hallelujas of the coda, in this, the longest of the chorale preludes.
    BWV 653 An Wasserflüssen Babylon [By the waters of Babylon], a 2 Clav. e Pedale (ornamental chorale) play 
  The hymn "An Wasserflüssen Babylon" is a paraphrase of Psalm 137, a lament in exile in Babylon. The gentle ritornellos of the accompanying parts in the two upper parts and pedal of this sarabande, anticipate the ornamented chorale in the tenor, evoking the mournful tone of the hymn, the "organs and harps, hung up on willow trees", based on Psalm 137. In a famous concert in 1720 on the great organ in St Catherine's Church in Hamburg, Bach had improvised for almost half an hour on the same hymn tune as a tribute to the church's organist Johann Adam Reinken and his celebrated fantasy on the same theme.
    BWV 654 Schmücke dich, o liebe Seele [Adorn yourself, dear soul], a 2 Clav. e Pedale (ornamental chorale) play 
  The soberly ornamented, but melismatic, chorale, Schmücke dich, o liebe Seele, in the soprano alternates with the dance-like ritornellos of the two intertwining lower parts above a pedal bass; the unearthly counterpoint between the four different parts creates an air of great serenity, a "rapturous meditation" on the rite of communion. The adornment in the title is illustrated by the French-style ornamentation of the upper parts.
    BWV 655 Trio super Herr Jesu Christ, dich zu uns wend [Lord Jesu Christ, turn to us], a 2 Clav. e Pedale (chorale trio) play 
  Similar in texture to movements from the organ trio sonatas, this jubilant and lively concerto-like chorale prelude echos the "eternal joy and blissful light" of the last verse. The chorale prelude's progression through the keys of G, D, E minor, B minor, D and finally G, is reminiscent of Vivaldi concertos. The two manual solo parts and pedal continuo are based on elements from the cantus firmus, which is heard in its entirety in the pedal part of the recapitulation.
    BWV 656 O Lamm Gottes unschuldig [Oh innocent lamb of God], 3 Versus (chorale partita) play 
  The first verse of this Good Friday hymn, is a subdued prelude in four parts based on the cantus firmus, which appears explicitly in the soprano line over the flowing quaver accompaniment; in the second verse the cantus firmus moves to the alto line and the quaver figures become more lively; in the final verse, the pedal finally appears to take up the cantus firmus, beneath a four-part fugal counter-subject in triplets, first in a forthright angular figuration, then in hammered repeated notes leading to an anguished chromatic passage, indicative of the crucifixion, and finally in peaceful flowing quavers.
    BWV 657 Nun danket Alle Gott [Now Thank We All Our God] (Leuthen Chorale), a 2 Clav. e Pedale, canto fermo in Soprano (cantus firmus chorale) play 
  This chorale prelude closely follows the model of Pachelbel, with a diversity of imitative elements in the lower parts, beneath the unadorned cantus firmus of the soprano line.
    BWV 658 Von Gott will ich nicht lassen [I will not forsake the Lord], Canto fermo in Pedale (cantus firmus chorale) play 
  The ornate three-part keyboard accompaniment is derived from the opening notes of the hymn and a separate "joy motif" that permeates the piece, exquisitely "winding above and around [the chorale melody] like a luxurious garland of amaranth." Only four lines of the cantus firmus are heard in the tenor pedal, the chorale prelude closing with a seemingly timeless bell-like coda over a pedal point, perhaps illustrating the final lines of the hymn, "after dea
caption: Autograph manuscript of BWV 651 with Bach's motto "J.J.", Jesu juva
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