''Entfernet euch, ihr heitern Sterne'' (Disperse yourselves, ye stars, serenely!), 1156 (formerly ), is a birthday

cantata A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir. The meaning of ...

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

. He composed it in

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as wel ...

to celebrate the 57th birthday of the Elector of Saxony, King

Augustus II the Strong Augustus II; german: August der Starke; lt, Augustas II; in Saxony also known as Frederick Augustus I – Friedrich August I (12 May 16701 February 1733), most commonly known as Augustus the Strong, was Elector of Saxony from 1694 as well as Ki ...

, and it was performed for him on his birthday, 12 May 1727, on the

Marktplatz A marketplace or market place is a location where people regularly gather for the purchase and sale of provisions, livestock, and other goods. In different parts of the world, a marketplace may be described as a '' souk'' (from the Arabic), ' ...

, by students of the

University of Leipzig Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 Decemb ...

, with Bach directing. The king was also presented with the work's

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

, written by Christian Friedrich Haupt. The music to this secular birthday cantata by Bach is lost. It has been speculated from the surviving libretto, however, that several movements from the

Mass in B minor The Mass in B minor (), BWV 232, is an extended setting of the Mass ordinary by Johann Sebastian Bach. The composition was completed in 1749, the year before the composer's death, and was to a large extent based on earlier work, such as a Sanctu ...

are derived from it. A reconstruction has been created using the music of the Mass. The cantata is counted among Bach's works for celebrations of the

Leipzig University Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 December ...

, ''Festmusiken zu Leipziger Universitätsfeiern''.

Recordings

The reconstruction by Dr. Klaus Höfner has been recorded.

References

External links

* (libretto only) {{DEFAULTSORT:Entfernet euch ihr heitern Sterne BWV Anh 9 1727 compositions Secular cantatas by Johann Sebastian Bach Lost musical works by Johann Sebastian Bach Leipzig University