''Entfliehet, verschwindet, entweichet, ihr Sorgen'' (Fly, vanish, flee, o worries), BWV 249a, is a secular 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 ...

. First performed in 1725, the work is also known as "Shepherd Cantata" or "Shepherds' Cantata" (german: Schäferkantate). Bach reworked the music in his ''

Easter Oratorio The ''Easter Oratorio'' (), 249, is an oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach, beginning with ("Come, hasten and run"). Bach composed it in Leipzig and first performed it on 1 April 1725. History The first version of the work was completed as a ca ...

''.

History

The cantata was written in 1725 for the 43rd birthday of

Christian, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels Christian, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels (23 February 1682 in Weissenfels – 28 June 1736 in Sangerhausen), was a duke of Saxe-Weissenfels-Querfurt and member of the House of Wettin. He was the sixth (but second surviving) son of Johann Adolf I, Du ...

. Bach had composed ''Was mir behagt, ist nur die muntre Jagd'', BWV 208 for the 31st birthday of the same patron. It was first performed at on 23 February 1725. In 1725 Bach was working in Leipzig and the text was written by

Picander Christian Friedrich Henrici (January 14, 1700 – May 10, 1764), writing under the pen name Picander, was a German poet and librettist for many of the cantatas which Johann Sebastian Bach composed in Leipzig. Henrici was born in Stolpen. He stud ...

, a librettist he met there. The text was published, and thus survived. The music is lost but can be reconstructed from a related work, the

, which Bach also premiered in 1725. The German researcher

Friedrich Smend Friedrich Smend (26 August 1893 – 10 February 1980) was a German Protestant theologian and librarian at the Preußische Staatsbibliothek in Berlin, publishing a catalogue of the writings of Adolf von Harnack. He was a liturgist, teaching as pr ...

determined that the order of movements was not changed in the Easter Oratorio, and that therefore the music of the Shepherd Cantata could be reconstructed. The missing recitatives were added by musicologist

Hermann Keller Hermann Keller (20 November 1885 – 17 August 1967) was a German Protestant church musician and musicologist. Life Born in Stuttgart the son of an architect, he followed his father's profession by also studying architecture in Stuttgart and Mun ...

. It is not known if the two instrumental movements opening the oratorio were already part of the cantata.

Scoring and structure

The simple story shows four shepherds leaving their flock to congratulate. The shepherds are Doris (soprano), Sylvia (alto), Menalcas (tenor) and Damoetas (bass). The orchestra is festively scored for three

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

timpani Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a membrane called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally ...

, two

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. ...

s, bassoon, two recorders, transverse flute, two violins,

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. #Sinfonia: Allegro – Adagio #Aria à duetto (tenor, bass; da capo: soprano, alto): ' #Recitative (soprano, alto, tenor, bass): ' #Aria (soprano): ' #Recitative (soprano, alto, tenor, bass): ' #Aria (tenor): ' #Recitative (alto, bass): ' #Aria (alto): ' #Recitative (bass): ' #Aria à Quartetto (soprano, alto, tenor, bass): '

Music

The tenor aria is accompanied by muted violins doubled by recorders, suggesting a lullaby as well as pastoral music.

Recording

''J.S. Bach: Schäferkantate BWV 249a · Doppelkonzert nach BWV 1060'', Edith Mathis,

Hetty Plümacher Hedwig Mathilde Plümacher (3 December 1919 – 3 June 2005) was a German operatic singer who appeared on stage as Hetty Plümacher. A long-term member of the Staatstheater Stuttgart, she also performed at international festivals and major opera ...

Theo Altmeyer Theo Altmeyer (16 March 1931 – 28 July 2007) was a German classical tenor. Although he was a successful opera singer, he is chiefly remembered for his work as an oratorio soloist. He possessed a rich and lyrical voice that he employed with grea ...

Jakob Stämpfli Jakob Stämpfli (23 February 1820 – 15 May 1879) was a Swiss politician and member of the Swiss Federal Council (1854–1863). He was elected to the Federal Council of Switzerland on 6 December 1854, and handed over office on 31 December 186 ...

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 ...

& Figuralchor der Gedächtniskirche Stuttgart,

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 ...

, conductor

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 ...

, Cantate-Musicaphon 1967

Literature

Alfred Dürr Alfred Dürr (3 March 1918 – 7 April 2011) was a German musicologist. He was a principal editor of the Neue Bach-Ausgabe, the second edition of the complete works of Johann Sebastian Bach. Professional career Dürr studied musicology and Clas ...

: ''Johann Sebastian Bach: Die Kantaten.'' Bärenreiter, Kassel 1999 (in German) * Markus Rathey: ''Bach's Major Vocal Works: Music-Drama-Liturgy.'' London: Yale University Press, 2016, 138–165 *

Christoph Wolff Christoph Wolff (born 24 May 1940) is a German musicologist. He is best known for his works on the music, life, and period of Johann Sebastian Bach. Christoph Wolff is an emeritus professor of Harvard University, and was part of the faculty sinc ...

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 ...

: ''Die Welt der Bach-Kantaten''. Verlag J. B. Metzler, Stuttgart, Weimar 2006 (in German)

Notes

References

External links

Cantata BWV 249a Entfliehet, verschwindet, entweichet, ihr Sorgen
Bach Cantatas Website {{DEFAULTSORT:Entfliehet verschwindet entweichet ihr Sorgen BWV 249a Secular cantatas by Johann Sebastian Bach 1725 compositions Lost musical works by Johann Sebastian Bach