Weihnachtskonzert

No artform can transport us so completely into other spheres as music. In his cantata «Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben» («Heart and Mouth and Deed and Life») BWV 147, Johann Sebastian Bach opens a portal to a better world right from the splendid opening chorus, while in his «Magnificat» BWV 243 thundering trumpets and an extraordinarily virtuosic choral movement only add to the effect. You may remember that the Magnificat is the famous song of praise in the Gospel of Luke that Mary sings when she visits her cousin Elizabeth and praises God – as protector of the poor and humble. Bach filled both the Magnificat and the cantata with wonderful, memorable solos from the singers as well as the orchestra players, especially the winds. BWV 147 also contains a true hit: the choral movement «Jesus bleibet meine Freude» («Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring»), which concludes both parts of the cantata and now lives a life of its own through countless adaptations.