Designed for the music lover in need of a better understanding of the dramatic thrust of Bach’s four major works for voices and instruments, this guide is based on extensive program notes prepared for the renowned Baldwin-Wallace College Bach Festival, an annual event with a tradition of presenting the four masterworks in cyclical fashion going back to the festival’s founding in 1933 by Albert Riemenschneider. Giving priority to the most prominent auditory and dramatic features of the music, it guides the listener through each work, movement by movement, and with an integrated presentation of commentary and text-translation. Particular attention is given to the interaction of text and music, suggesting reasons for Bach’s musical choices.
The libretti are rendered according to the new critical edition of Bach’s works (Neue Bach-Ausgabe). Scriptural texts appear in italics; chorale (hymn) texts are printed in bold. The book also includes a helpful glossary of terms, an index of movements, and a bibliography.