Bach: Cantata No. 139 “Wohl dem, der sich auf seinen Gott” / Nikolaus Harnoncourt

Chorale cantata based on a hymn by Johann Christoph Rube. The first chorale fantasy, “Wohl dem, der sich auf seinen Gott” is a very heartwarming piece accompanied by two oboes d’amore and string ensemble, beginning with a gentle ritornello. The each line of the chorus is sung by a cantus firmus of the soprano, and with the other voices intertwined in counterpoint. The second piece is the tenor aria “Gott ist mein Freund; was hilft das Toben”. The violin soloist’s obbligato and the somewhat humorous passages of basso continuo movement make this piece enjoyable. Since there are some bars where the rhythmic contrast are rather weak, the inference that the obbligato in this aria was probably originally written for two melody instruments is probably correct. Harnoncourt recorded it in its original Instrumentation. Following the alto recitative, the bass aria “Das Unglück schlägt auf allen Seiten” is sung in oboe d’amore unison and violin obbligato. In the ritornello, the oboe d’amore and bassoon move in dotted notes, while only the lone violin moves in sixteenth notes. After the Orgelpunkt, the piece turns into a sixteenth-eighth time vivace, and even after returning to four-quarter time, the tempo, time signature, and tone change rapidly in accordance with the lyrics. This is a movement in which the dramatic effect prevails. After the soprano recitative accompaniment, the piece closes with the chorale “Dahero Trotz der Höllen Heer!”　#baroque #bach #cantata #片山俊幸 https://excelkobo.net/bachwerke/archive/BWV0139.pdf