Unser Mund sei voll Lachens
BWV 110 performed by the Netherlands Bach Society
conducted by Jos van Veldhoven
Grote Kerk, Naarden
Behind the music
Story
Story
Extra videos
Extra videos
Texts
Texts
Credits
Credits
Glorious music
Bach greets the newborn Child in festive spirit
The opening chorus of this cantata immediately draws all the attention. Bach reused the music from his Orchestral Suite no. 4 in D major, BWV 1069, but added another choir and four soloists to it, to greet the newborn Child in festive spirit. Another interesting fact about this opening chorus, from conductor Jos van Veldhoven, is that it is one of the few pieces where Bach gives instructions for the alternation of solo and tutti sections.
The words of this cantata are a wonderful description of how God in his glory wants to get close to humble mankind on earth. The music fits the words perfectly. The glory, for example, is obviously heard in the opening chorus, but also in the recitative and the powerful aria ‘Wacht auf’ by the bass with a trumpet solo. In the heart of the cantata, the alto meditates on the wonders of the Christmas message: God giving up his own son in order to suffer for the salvation of mankind. The operative word here is love, so the oboe d’amore plays a prominent role alongside the alto. For the duet ‘Ehre sei Gott’, Bach refers back to the ‘Virga Jesse’ from his Magnificat of one year earlier. The austere final chorale is also particularly effective, providing a contrast with the grandeur of the preceding bass aria.
- BWV
- 110
- Title
- Unser Mund sei voll Lachens
- Genre
- cantatas
- Year
- 1725, revivals in 1728 and 1731
- City
- Leipzig
- Lyricist
- Georg Christian Lehms, 1711
- Occasion
- Christmas Day
- First performance
- 25 December 1725
- Special notes
- For the opening chorus, Bach used the Ouverture from his Orchestral Suite no. 4, BWV 1069, and for the 5th movement one of the 'Einlagen' (Virga Jesse) from the Magnificat.
Extra videos
Vocal texts
Original
1. Chor
Unser Mund sei voll Lachens
und unsre Zunge voll Rühmens.
Denn der Herr hat Grosses an uns getan.
2. Arie (Tenor)
Ihr Gedanken und ihr Sinnen,
schwinget euch anitzt von hinnen,
steiget schleunig himmelan
und bedenkt, was Gott getan!
Er wird Mensch, und dies allein,
dass wir Gottes Kinder sein.
3. Rezitativ (Bass)
Dir, Herr, ist niemand gleich.
Du bist gross, und dein Name ist gross
und kannst’s mit der Tat beweisen.
4. Arie (Alt)
Ach Herr, was ist ein Menschenkind,
dass du sein Heil so schmerzlich suchest?
Ein Wurm, den du verfluchest,
wenn Höll und Satan um ihn sind;
doch auch dein Sohn, den Seel und Geist
aus Liebe seinen Erben heisst.
5. Duett (Sopran, Tenor)
Ehre sei Gott in der Höhe
und Friede auf Erden
und den Menschen ein Wohlgefallen!
6. Arie (Bass)
Wacht auf, ihr Adern und ihr Glieder,
und singt dergleichen Freudenlieder,
die unserm Gott gefällig sein.
Und ihr, ihr andachtsvollen Saiten,
sollt ihm ein solches Lob bereiten,
dabei sich Herz und Geist erfreun.
7. Choral
Alleluja! Alleluja! Gelobt sei Gott,
singen wir all aus unsers Herzens Grunde.
Denn Gott hat heut gemacht solch Freud,
die wir vergessen solln zu keiner Stunde.
Translation
1. Chorus
Let our mouth be full of laughter
and our tongue of singing.
For the Lord hath done great things for us.
2. Aria (Tenor)
All you thoughts and meditations,
soar aloft at once,
climb swiftly heavenwards
and think what God has done!
He becomes man, merely
that we might be heaven’s children.
3. Recitative (Bass)
There is none like unto Thee, O Lord.
Thou art great, and Thy name is great
in might.
4. Aria (Alto)
Ah, Lord, what is man that Thou,
through such pain, would redeem him?
A worm, whom Thou dost curse,
when hell and Satan surround him;
but yet Thy Son, whom soul and spirit
out of love call their inheritance.
5. Duet (Soprano, Tenor)
Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace,
good will toward men!
6. Aria (Bass)
Awake, you veins and limbs,
and sing those songs of joy
which are pleasing to our God.
And you, you strings of deep devotion,
should offer Him such praise,
that heart and soul rejoice.
7. Chorale
Alleluia! Alleluia! All praise to God,
let us all sing from the depths of our hearts.
For God today has wrought such joy,
that we shall always remember.
Credits
-
- Release date
- 25 December 2016
-
- Recording date
- 17 December 2015
-
- Location
- Grote Kerk, Naarden
-
- Conductor
- Jos van Veldhoven
-
- Soprano
- Maria Keohane
-
- Alto
- Alex Potter
-
- Tenor
- Charles Daniels
-
- Bass
- Matthias Winckhler
-
- Ripieno soprano
- Lucie Chartin, Marie Heeschen
-
- Ripieno alto
- Elsbeth Gerritsen, Michaela Riener
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- Ripieno tenor
- Immo Schröder, Yves van Handenhove
-
- Ripieno bass
- Jelle Draijer, Michiel Meijer
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- Violin 1
- Shunske Sato, Annelies van der Vegt, Anneke van Haaften, Lidewij van der Voort
-
- Violin 2
- Sayuri Yamagata, Pieter Affourtit, Paulien Kostense
-
- Viola
- Staas Swierstra, Jan Willem Vis
-
- Cello
- Lucia Swarts, Richte van der Meer
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- Double bass
- Robert Franenberg
-
- Traverso
- Frank Theuns, Doretthe Janssens
-
- Oboe
- Martin Stadler, Peter Frankenberg, Yongcheon Shin
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- Bassoon
- Benny Aghassi
-
- Trumpet
- Robert Vanryne, Stephen Keavy, Mark Geelen
-
- Timpani
- Luuk Nagtegaal
-
- Harpsichord
- Siebe Henstra
-
- Organ
- Pieter-Jan Belder
-
- Director
- Joost Honselaar
-
- Assistant director
- Ferenc Soetman
-
- Music recording
- Guido Tichelman, Bastiaan Kuijt, Micha de Kanter
-
- Audiomontage -en mix
- Guido Tichelman
-
- Camera
- Jochem Timmerman, Rene Holbrugge, Martin Struif, Chris Reichgelt
-
- Lights
- Zen Bloot
-
- Lighting assistant
- Patrick Galvin
-
- Video engineer
- Justin Mutsaers
-
- Set technique
- Glenn van den Eerden
-
- Data handling
- Charlotte Storm
-
- Project manager nep
- Peter Ribbens
-
- Interview
- Onno van Ameijde
-
- Producer concert
- Marco Meijdam
-
- Producer film
- Jessie Verbrugh, Imke Deters
-
- Acknowledgements
- Angela Mast
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