The emotional stimulation in Bach's sacred music, shared with secular opera, explains its enduring effectiveness for both devotional and non-devotional audiences.
Compositional Technique
Many of Bach's cantatas, including the three on this album, aim to stimulate a transformational emotional journey in the listener, often moving from despair to hope.
Performer Biography
Dunedin Consort, directed by John Butt, is a leading Baroque ensemble named after Din Eidyn, the ancient Celtic name for Edinburgh Castle.
Instruments
The original pitch for Bach's earlier music, like Cantata 106, was often a semitone above modern pitch (Chorton), a whole tone higher than the Kammerton used for his Leipzig works.
Recording & Production
This album was recorded in St Jude-on-the-Hill, Hampstead Garden Suburb, London, UK, from December 3-6, 2020.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Bach's cantatas were designed to reflect and embellish biblical readings, complementing the sermon by bringing emotional life to the images suggested in the texts.
Interpretation
For Cantata 106, the performers used the organ as the main bass carrier, a practice inherited from the 17th century, and added a string bass in tutti sections.
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