Thomas Crawford leads the American Classical Orchestra in a program of much-loved Bach cantatas. 

Program:
Cantata No. 42  Am Abend aber desselbigen Sabbats
Cantata No. 18  Gleichwie der Regen und Schnee vom Himmel fällt
Cantata No. 36  Schwingt freudig euch empor

Corrine Byrne, soprano
Sherezade Panthaki, soprano
Sylvia Leith, mezzo-soprano
Daniel Moody, countertenor
Brian Giebler, tenor
Lawrence Jones, tenor
Edmund Milly, bass-baritone
Joseph Parrish, bass-baritone
Marc Schachman, oboe and oboe d’amore

Bach’s church cantatas (Bachkantaten) comprise a body of over 200 surviving works, the first dating from 1707, the year Bach moved to Mühlhausen. Most date from his early years in Leipzig, where, at the age of thirty-eight, he became the director of music at Thomaskirche. There, and later at other Leipzig churches, Bach was tasked with conducting the orchestra, choir, and soloists in cantatas for Sunday services and on holy days. Over the years, he regularly composed a cantata a week—each quoting a reading prescribed by the Lutheran liturgical calendar. It is believed that he composed his final cantata in 1745, five years before his death.

Am Abend aber desselbigen Sabbats BWV 42 (On the evening, however, of the same Sabbath). Part of his second annual cycle—composed in Leipzig for the first Sunday after Easter, 8 April 1725. It is the only cantata in this cycle that does not use a chorale. 

During his early years in Weimar (likely 1711), Bach composed Gleichwie der Regen und Schnee vom Himmel fällt, BWV 18 (Just as the rain and snow fall from heaven) for the second Sunday before Lent. Written in five movements, this cantata is unusual for its use of violas but no violin. Among its texts: the Parable of the Sower from the Gospel of Isaiah and a litany of Martin Luther.

Schwingt freudig euch empor, BWV 36 (Soar joyfully upwards) —composed in Leipzig for the first Sunday of Advent, 1731, For this, the composer borrowed material from an earlier congratulatory cantata, composed to a libretto by the Leipzig poet Picander. In this work, Bach turns secular into sacred—not a stretch for him, as faith permeated all aspects of his life. This cantata is unique in its structure, combining arias and chorale without recitatives.

Tickets, priced at $75, $55, and $35, are available to purchase now online or by calling ACO at 212.362.2727, ext. 4.