Himmelskönig, sei willkommen
BWV 182 performed by the Netherlands Bach Society
conducted by Johanna Soller
Oude Kerk Charlois, Rotterdam
Behind the music
Story
Story
Texts
Texts
Credits
Credits
A royal entrance
Bach marks his debut as a concertmaster with an exceptional cantata
25 March 1714; Palm Sunday as well as the Feast of the Annunciation. The painted wooden ceiling of the ‘Himmelsburg’, the court chapel in Weimar, is open and daylight streams in through the skylights. Twelve metres above the monumental altar, half hidden on the cosy organ balcony, a 29-year-old Johann Sebastian Bach glances down on the heads of the ducal court. Most probably with a mix of nerves and self-confidence, as today he is finally making the transition from organist to concertmaster. Himmelskönig, sei willkommen, the first of his monthly cantatas, had to be – and would be – a hit.
Later, in Leipzig, Bach was able to use more musicians – as for the revivals of BWV 182 in 1724 and 1728 – but in Weimar the space was simply too limited. Yet on this double holy day, all the stops were pulled out: four singing parts, solos for recorder and himself (!) on violin, two violas, a partly independent cello part, and continuo for organ and double bass. The gospel reading for the day made its own contribution: riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, Jesus was received as a king by his disciples, who are unaware that less than a week later he would die on the cross. (Regality also dominates the Feast of the Annunciation, which for Luther revolved more around Jesus as the king of heaven than around his mother.)
In three arias, the cantata zooms in on the question of how the listener can prepare for the promised eternal life. After a brief quote from Psalm 40, interpreted as Jesus’ own words, the bass sings about the ‘starkes Lieben’ that drove the Redeemer to sacrifice himself for mankind. The alto then asks everyone to lay their heart at the feet of Jesus and wear their faith like an ‘unbeflecktes Kleid’. Finally, the tenor already cites the coming ‘Kreuzige’ and calls on people to remain true to the banner of Christ’s cross, even in times of hardship.
Around this sermonising core, Bach writes four beautifully balanced tutti sections. First come a sonata and an opening chorus, which can be taken together as a French overture: a stately (instrumental) beginning with dotted rhythms, followed by a flowing fugue, which Bach makes extra long in ABA form. After the arias, but not at the end as was customary later on, we hear a verse from the much-used chorale text ‘Jesu Leiden, Pein und Tod’ by Paul Stockmann, from 1633. Just as in ‘O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig’ from the St Matthew Passion, for example, the three expressive lower voices always prepare for the entrance of the soprano, who spans the chorale melody above the musical web in long notes. As a counterpart to the impressive opening, Bach guides the listener in a cheerful closing chorus towards the ‘Salem der Freude’, a heavenly Jerusalem. Hear how it is always the bass who starts off ‘Er gehet voran’; an old Baroque tradition, whereby this voice represents Jesus himself.
- BWV
- 182
- Title
- Himmelskönig, sei willkommen
- Instrument
- recorder
- Genre
- cantatas
- City
- Weimar
- Lyricist
- Salomo Franck
- Occasion
- The Feast of the Annunciation
- First performance
- 25 March 1714 (Palm Sunday)
Supported by
Extra videos
Vocal texts
Original
1. Sonata
2. Chor
Himmelskönig, sei willkommen,
laß auch uns dein Zion sein!
Komm herein!
Du hast uns das Herz genommen.
3. Rezitativ (Bass)
Siehe, ich komme;
im Buch ist von mir geschrieben;
deinen Willen, mein Gott, tu ich gerne.
4. Arie (Bass)
Starkes Lieben,
das dich, großer Gottessohn,
von dem Thron
deiner Herrlichkeit getrieben!
daß du dich zum Heil der Welt
als ein Opfer fürgestellt,
daß du dich mit Blut verschrieben!
5. Arie (Alt)
Leget euch dem Heiland unter,
Herzen, die ihr christlich seid!
Tragt ein unbeflecktes Kleid
eures Glaubens ihm entgegen;
Leib und Leben und Vermögen
sei dem König itzt geweiht.
6. Arie (Tenor)
Jesu, laß durch Wohl und Weh
mich auch mit dir ziehen!
Schreit die Welt nur "Kreuzige!",
so laß mich nicht fliehen,
Herr, vor deinem Kreuzpanier;
Kron und Palmen find ich hier.
7. Chor
Jesu, deine Passion
ist mir lauter Freude,
deine Wunden, Kron und Hohn
meines Herzens Weide;
meine Seel auf Rosen geht,
wenn ich dran gedenke.
In dem Himmel eine Stätt
uns deswegen schenke.
8. Chor
So lasset uns gehen in Salem der Freuden,
begleitet den König in Lieben und Leiden.
Er gehet voran und öffnet die Bahn.
Translation
1. Sonata
2. Chorus
Welcome, king of heaven;
Let us, too, be your Zion.
Come in;
You have captured our heart.
3. Recitative (Bass)
Look, I [Jesus] come;
in the book [of holy scripture] is written of me:
Your will, my God, I do gladly.
4. Aria (Bass)
[It was a] strong act of love
That impelled you, great son of God,
From the throne of your glory.
[A] strong act of love [it was],
That you set yourself forth
As a sacrifice, for the salvation of the world;
That with blood you committed yourself [to salvation].
5. Aria (Alto)
Lay yourselves [as “garments”] beneath the savior,
You hearts that are Christian.
Offer up a spotless garment
Of your faith to him;
Let body and life and means
Now be consecrated to the king.
6. Aria (Tenor)
Jesus, through weal and woe
Let me, too, go with you.
If the world cries only “crucify,”
Let me not bolt,
Lord, from your banner of the cross;
Crown and palms will I find here.
7. Chorus
Jesus, your Passion
Is pure joy to me;
Your wounds, crown [of thorns], and scorn
[Are] my heart’s pasture;
My soul walks on roses
When I reflect on it [your Passion];
Grant us a place in heaven
Because of it.
8. Chorus
So let us go into the Jerusalem of joy,
Accompany the king in love and suffering;
He goes on ahead and opens up the pathway [for us].
transl. © Daniel R. Melamed and Michael Marissen
For the annotated version of the text and translation, see here.
Credits
-
- Release date
- 3 April 2025
-
- Recording date
- 28 June 2024
-
- Location
- Oude Kerk Charlois, Rotterdam
-
- Organ and direction
- Johanna Soller
-
- Soprano
- Kristen Witmer
-
- Alto
- Alex Potter
-
- Tenor
- Guy Cutting
-
- Bass
- Matthias Winckhler
-
- Violin
- Evgeny Sviridov
-
- Viola
- Deirdre Dowling, Anneke van Haaften
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- Cello
- Lucia Swarts
-
- Double bass
- Robert Franenberg
-
- Recorder
- Benny Aghassi
-
- Harpsichord
- Siebe Henstra
-
- Director and editor
- Bas Wielenga
-
- Music recording
- Guido Tichelman, Pim van der Lee, Lilita Dunska
-
- Music edit and mix
- Guido Tichelman
-
- Camera
- Martijn Struijf, Tijmen Veerman, Wesley Schipper
-
- Lights
- Zen Bloot, Sander Radstaake, Stijn Ooms, Yannick van de Graaf
-
- Assistant director
- Ferenc Soeteman
-
- Project manager nep
- Ron Vermeulen
-
- Assistant music recording
- Marloes Biermans
-
- Producer film
- Lisanne Marlou de Kok
-
- Producer concert
- Imke Deters, Stephan Esmeijer
-
- Supported by
- MWH4impact
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