This CD, as can be seen above, consists of a variety of pieces, most of
them tiny, based on or around the seven choral melodies listed. The
composers are in part contemporaries of Martin Luther (1483-1546) but
several lived in the 16
th, 17
th or even the
18
th centuries.
It can often be forgotten that Martin Luther was not only a reforming
figure of the German Protestant Church pinning his famous articles to the
church door at Wittenberg but that he was also a musician of no little
experience and had also been a boy chorister at Mansfeld. He certainly wrote
melodies like
Ein Feste Burg but these others are, more than
likely, also by him. Only a couple of months ago I was at an evening service
at a church in Bavaria where I was thrilled to be lustily singing
Ein
Feste Burg with the enthusiastic congregation proving that these old
hymns live on.
Luther’s contemporaries were men like Johann Walter (d.1570) who probably
only helped with or harmonised the melodies in their original form. Dr.
Thomas Rheindorf in one of the essays writes about Luther’s expertise also
as a poet and in the writing of chorale texts. He romantically comments that
some texts demonstrate that “passions and feelings seem to rise up in the
poet’s soul”. However it was later composers who really put these tunes on
the map: J. S. Bach for one and even an earlier, Michael Praetorius. Indeed
it was the conductor Matthias Grünert’s special aim here to highlight
Praetorius’ role in the dissemination of the chorales. In the other essay in
the booklet Ruprecht Langer writes that “As the son of a preacher who in
turn was a pupil of the great church song poet Johann Walter, Praetorius had
a focused eye on the intimacy of the congregation and the significance of
the textual content”. So what we have recorded here are several sacred
concertos by Praetorius featuring, obviously a group of soloists. There are
also motets featuring the choir alone and dances from Praetorius's
well-known collection entitled ‘Terpsichore’.
Each of the seven sections incorporates six tracks and based on one of the
chorales spans out as follows. First, an organ chorale generally by Scheidt,
a friend and colleague of Praetorius, then a motet followed by a sacred
concerto. After this comes a choral harmonisation and that is followed by
another organ version. Each section ends with a brief dance by
Praetorius.
The chorales used extend across the church year.
Nun komm
translates as ‘Now come Saviour of the gentiles recognised as the child of
the virgin’.
Vom Himmel Hoch is also a Christmas hymn;
Gelobet
seist is a hymn of praise also for Christmas.
Christ lag in Todes
Banden is for Holy Week or Lent.
Komm Heiliger Geist, Herre
Gott is for Pentecost or Whitsunday.
Vater unser Im
Himmelreich is a prayer newly composed by Luther but based on the
Lord’s Prayer “Confirm our faith and hope in thee”.
Ein Feste Burg
is a general hymn of faith in God’s strength and love.
The disc is therefore planned in a fascinating and unique way.
The choir sound typically of their area and nation. I love the clarity of
their intonation and diction as well as their balance. Women sing the treble
line throughout and they must be at least thirty strong. The instrumental
group consists of nine players including organ, brass and strings and they
accompany the concerti movements. It's good that they have an
opportunity to show themselves off in the delightful performances of the
dances. The soloists are adequate although often fail to bring the concerti
quite to life. Whereas the church acoustic helps the choir this effect does
not extend to the soloists singing against the instrumental background.
Inside the booklet is a photo of what is really an excellent parish choir
peeking out from underneath blue umbrellas. There is also a worthwhile but
curious double central page spread drawing attention to the ‘Endowment for
the preservation of Church monuments in Germany’ - no less of a concern
there than it is in the UK.
The two essays are mostly well translated and the texts are given in
German and English in a sensible translation by Frederick Hedge. There are
biographies and photos.
All in all a really intriguing and pleasurable collection of German early
baroque pieces.
Gary Higginson
Track listingTracks 1-6
Nun Komm, der
Heiden Heiland
Tracks 7-12
Vom Himmel Hoch, da komm ich her
Tracks 13-18
Gelobet seist du, Jesu Christ
Tracks 19-24
Christ lag in Todesbanden
Tracks 25-30
Komm Heiliger Geist, Herre Gott
Tracks 31-36
Vater under im Himmelreich
Tracks 37-42
Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott
