("Where are you heading?", literally: "Where do you go?"), 166, is a church cantata by

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 wo ...

. 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 ...

for Cantate, the fourth Sunday after

Easter Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...

, and first performed it on 7 May 1724.

History and words

Bach composed the cantata in his first year in

for the Fourth Sunday after Easter, called Cantate. The prescribed readings for the Sunday were from the

Epistle of James The Epistle of James). is a general epistle and one of the 21 epistles ( didactic letters) in the New Testament. James 1:1 identifies the author as "James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ" who is writing to "the twelve tribes ...

, "Every good gift comes from the Father of lights" (), and from the

Gospel of John The Gospel of John ( grc, Εὐαγγέλιον κατὰ Ἰωάννην, translit=Euangélion katà Iōánnēn) is the fourth of the four canonical gospels. It contains a highly schematic account of the ministry of Jesus, with seven "sig ...

, Jesus announcing the Comforter in his Farewell Discourse (). We do not know the identity of the person who was writing Bach's librettos during his first year in Leipzig. The poet, whoever he or she was, begins by posing a question, a quotation from the gospel. The answer to the question is the theme of the cantata, which explores the direction in which life should go. The poet inserted as movement 3 the third stanza of

Bartholomäus Ringwaldt Bartholomäus Ringwaldt (c. 1530 – probably May 9, 1599) was a German didactic poet and Lutheran pastor. He is most recognized as a hymnwriter. Biography Bartholomäus Ringwaldt was born in Frankfort-on-the-Oder, Germany. From 1543, he studied ...

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hy ...

"" (1582) and as the closing chorale the first stanza of Ämilie Juliane von Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt's "" (1688).

Scoring and structure

The cantata in six movements is scored for four vocal soloists ( soprano, alto,

tenor A tenor is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The low extreme for tenors is wide ...

and bass), a four-part choir only for the closing chorale,

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. ...

, two

violin The violin, sometimes known as a '' fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone ( string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument ( soprano) in the family in regu ...

viola ; german: Bratsche , alt=Viola shown from the front and the side , image=Bratsche.jpg , caption= , background=string , hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow , range= , related= *Violin family ...

and basso continuo. The

cantus firmus In music, a ''cantus firmus'' ("fixed melody") is a pre-existing melody forming the basis of a polyphonic composition. The plural of this Latin term is , although the corrupt form ''canti firmi'' (resulting from the grammatically incorrect tre ...

of movement 3 is typically sung by the soprano of the choir. # Arioso (bass): # Aria (tenor): # Chorale (soprano): # Recitative (bass): # Aria (alto): # Chorale:

Music

The question "Where do you go?", comes from a particular context (John 16:5: "but now I am going to him who sent me. None of you asks me, 'Where are you going?"). Bach gives the question on its own to the bass as the addressing the listener directly. This simple question is one of the shortest lyrics for a movement in a Bach cantata. The tenor aria survives in an incomplete form. It was first published completely in the ''

Neue Bach-Ausgabe The New Bach Edition (NBE) (german: Neue Bach-Ausgabe; NBA), is the second complete edition of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, published by Bärenreiter. The name is short for Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750): New Edition of the Complete W ...

''. The soprano sings the

of movement 3 on the melody of "" completely unadorned and is accompanied by the violins and viola in

unison In music, unison is two or more musical parts that sound either the same pitch or pitches separated by intervals of one or more octaves, usually at the same time. ''Rhythmic unison'' is another term for homorhythm. Definition Unison or per ...

, "of great vigour and determination, urged on by steady continuo quavers". The last aria, in great contrast, illustrates mostly the word "" (laughs), although the text warns that a fall may come "" (when fortune winks). The laughter is pictured in "the various oscillating semi-quaver figures in the strings" and in

melisma Melisma ( grc-gre, μέλισμα, , ; from grc, , melos, song, melody, label=none, plural: ''melismata'') is the singing of a single syllable of text while moving between several different notes in succession. Music sung in this style is refer ...

s on the word "". The final chorale on the melody of "" is set for four parts.

Recordings

* ''Die Bach Kantate Vol. 32'',

Helmuth Rilling Helmuth Rilling (born 29 May 1933) is a German choral conductor and an academic teacher. He is the founder of the Gächinger Kantorei (1954), the Bach-Collegium Stuttgart (1965), the Oregon Bach Festival (1970), the Internationale Bachakademie ...

Gächinger Kantorei Gächinger Kantorei (Gächingen Chorale) is an internationally known German mixed choir, founded by Helmuth Rilling in 1954 in Gächingen (part of St. Johann close to Reutlingen) and conducted by him until 2013, succeeded by Hans-Christoph Radema ...

Bach-Collegium Stuttgart Bach-Collegium Stuttgart is an internationally known German instrumental ensemble, founded by Helmuth Rilling in 1965 to accompany the Gächinger Kantorei in choral music with orchestra. Its members are mostly orchestra musicians from Germany and ...

Helen Watts Helen Watts (7 December 19277 October 2009) was a Welsh contralto. Early life Helen Josephine Watts was born in Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire, Wales. Her father was a pharmacist, Tom Watts and moved to live above his shop at 26 Market Street, Ha ...

Aldo Baldin Aldo Baldin (1 January 1945 - 5 January 1994) was a Brazilian opera and concert-hall tenor. His recordings include a number of Bach cantatas. Life Born in Urussanga, Santa Catarina, he was taught singing and cello by Heloisa Nemoto Vergara and J ...

, Wolfgang Schöne,

Hänssler Hänssler-Verlag is a German music publishing house founded in 1919 as Musikverlag Hänssler by Friedrich Hänssler Senior (died 1972) to publish church music. The company is now based in Holzgerlingen. Since 1972 Hänssler Verlag has also publis ...

1978 * ''J. S. Bach: Das Kantatenwerk – Sacred Cantatas Vol. 9'', Gustav Leonhardt,

Tölzer Knabenchor The Tölzer Knabenchor (Tölz Boys' Choir) is a German boys' choir named after the Upper Bavarian city of Bad Tölz and since 1971 based in Munich. The choir is ranked among the most versatile and sought-after boys' choirs in the world. Histor ...

Collegium Vocale Gent Collegium Vocale Gent is a Belgian musical ensemble of vocalists and supporting instrumentalists, founded by Philippe Herreweghe. The group is dedicated to historically informed performance. Founding and program Collegium Vocale Gent was founded ...

Leonhardt Consort Leonhardt-Consort, also known as the Leonhardt Baroque Ensemble, was a group of instrumentalists which its director, the keyboard player Gustav Leonhardt founded in 1955 to play baroque music. The Consort was active until around 1990, although some ...

, soloist of the Tölzer Knabenchor,

Paul Esswood Paul Lawrence Vincent Esswood (born 6 June 1942) is an English countertenor and conductor. He is best known for his performance of Bach cantatas and the operas of Handel and Monteverdi. Along with his countrymen Alfred Deller and James Bowman ...

Kurt Equiluz Kurt Equiluz (13 June 1929 – 20 June 2022) was an Austrian classical tenor in opera and concert. He was a member of the Vienna State Opera as a tenor buffo from 1957 until 1983, remembered for roles such as Pedrillo in Mozart's ''Die Entfüh ...

, Max van Egmond,

Teldec Teldec (Telefunken-Decca Schallplatten GmbH) is a German record label in Hamburg, Germany. Today the label is a property of Warner Music Group. History Teldec was a producer of (first) shellac and (later) vinyl records. The Teldec manufacturing ...

1987 * ''J. S. Bach: Complete Cantatas Vol. 9'',

Ton Koopman Antonius Gerhardus Michael Koopman (; born 2 October 1944), known professionally as Ton Koopman, is a Dutch conductor, organist, harpsichordist, and musicologist, primarily known for being the founder and director of the Amsterdam Baroque Orches ...

Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir The Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir is a Dutch early-music group based in Amsterdam. The Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir was created in two stages by the conductor, organist and harpsichordist Ton Koopman. He founded the Amsterdam Baroq ...

Bernhard Landauer Bernhard Landauer (born 20 July 1970) is an Austrian countertenor in opera and concert, who is active internationally in both historically informed performance and contemporary music. Life and career Bernhard Landauer was born in Innsbruc ...

, Christoph Prégardien,

Klaus Mertens Klaus Mertens (born 25 March 1949, in Kleve) is a German bass and bass-baritone singer who is known especially for his interpretation of the complete works of Johann Sebastian Bach for bass voice. Career Klaus Mertens took singing lessons ...

, Antoine Marchand 1998 * ''Bach Cantatas Vol. 24: Altenburg/Warwick'',

John Eliot Gardiner Sir John Eliot Gardiner (born 20 April 1943) is an English conductor, particularly known for his performances of the works of Johann Sebastian Bach. Life and career Born in Fontmell Magna, Dorset, son of Rolf Gardiner and Marabel Hodgkin, Ga ...

Monteverdi Choir The Monteverdi Choir was founded in 1964 by Sir John Eliot Gardiner for a performance of the ''Vespro della Beata Vergine'' in King's College Chapel, Cambridge. A specialist Baroque ensemble, the Choir has become famous for its stylistic convic ...

English Baroque Soloists The English Baroque Soloists is a chamber orchestra playing on period instruments, formed in 1978 by English conductor Sir John Eliot Gardiner. Its repertoire comprises music from the early Baroque to the Classical period. History The English B ...

, Robin Tyson, James Gilchrist, Stephen Varcoe, Soli Deo Gloria 2000 * ''J. S. Bach: Cantatas Vol. 19 (Cantatas from Leipzig 1724)'',

Masaaki Suzuki is a Japanese organist, harpsichordist and conductor, and the founder and music director of the Bach Collegium Japan. With this ensemble he is recording the complete choral works of Johann Sebastian Bach for the Swedish label BIS Records, for wh ...

Bach Collegium Japan Bach Collegium Japan (BCJ) is composed of an orchestra and a chorus specializing in Baroque music, playing on period instruments. It was founded in 1990 by Masaaki Suzuki with the purpose of introducing Japanese audiences to European Baroque music ...

Robin Blaze Robin Blaze (born 1971 in Manchester) is an English countertenor. Early life The son of Peter Blaze, a professional golfer, and Christine, Blaze and his brother Mark grew up in Shadwell, near Leeds, and was educated at Leeds Grammar School, ...

Makoto Sakurada is a Japanese tenor in opera and concert. Biography Makoto graduated from the Tokyo University of the Arts. He went to study in Italy in 1997, and continues to work there. He has recorded Bach cantatas in the complete set directed by Masaaki Su ...

Stephan MacLeod Stephan MacLeod is a Swiss bass and conductor focused on Baroque music in historically informed performance who has performed internationally. He was first bass of the Huelgas Ensemble for five years and took part in the complete recording of Ba ...

, BIS 2001 * ''J. S. Bach: Kantate BWV 166 "Wo gehest du hin?"'',

Rudolf Lutz Rudolf Lutz (born 1951) is a Swiss organist, harpsichordist, conductor and composer. Education Lutz studied at the Zurich University of the Arts, in Zürich and at the University of Music and Performing Arts, Vienna. Career From 1973 he was ...

, Vokalensemble der Schola Seconda Pratica, Schola Seconda Pratica, Guro Hjemli,

Terry Wey Terry Wey (born 15 September 1985) is a classical countertenor, specialising in historically informed performance. As a boy soprano, he was a soloist of the Wiener Sängerknaben. Born in Bern in a Swiss-American family of musicians, Wey began hi ...

Gerd Türk Gerd Türk is a German classical tenor. Biography Gerd Türk received his first musical training as a choir boy at the cathedral of Limburg. He studied in Frankfurt and then at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis with Richard Levitt and René Jaco ...

, Markus Volpert, Gallus Media 2008

Notes

References

Sources

*
Wo gehest du hin? BWV 166; BC A 71 / Sacred cantata (5th Sunday of Easter)

Bach Digital Bach Digital (German: ), developed by the Bach Archive in Leipzig, is an online database which gives access to information on compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach and members of his family. Early manuscripts of such compositions are a major foc ...

Cantata BWV 166 Wo gehest du hin?
history, scoring, sources for text and music, translations to various languages, discography, discussion, Bach Cantatas Website

English translation,

University of Vermont The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a public land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is among the oldest universities in the United ...

BWV 166 Wo gehest du hin?
text, scoring,

University of Alberta The University of Alberta, also known as U of A or UAlberta, is a Public university, public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford,"A Gentleman of Strathcona – Alexande ...

* * Luke Dah
BWV 166.6
bach-chorales.com {{DISPLAYTITLE:''Wo gehest du hin?'' BWV 166 Church cantatas by Johann Sebastian Bach 1724 compositions