BWV 244: St. Matthew Passion
St. Matthew Passion, BWV244 | A Deeper Dive
Bach composed three Passion settings, using narratives from different Gospel readings. Only two have survived to the present day: the St. John (originally composed in 1724) and the St. Matthew (1727, revised 1729).The St. Mark Passion, from 1731, is lost but can be partially reconstructed from an existing libretto and some extra-musical evidence that points to parody technique, or the re-use of older musical material to set the libretto. Apparently Bach never set the Passion narrative from the fourth Gospel, St. Luke.
While a musical Passion setting performed on Good Friday was commonplace in Lutheran liturgy by Bach’s time, the sheer scope of these two works sets them apart from contemporary works. Both the St. John and the St. Matthew exceed2.5 hours in length, with the St. Matthew being the single longest integral work by the composer. This length is achieved largely through non- Biblical interpolations – the framing choral movements that open and close the piece(and Part I), the chorales, and principally the poetic, contemplative solo arias. In the Matthew Passion, these movements are what define the overall character of the piece, and its deeply personal, emotional quality.
St. John and St. Matthew Passions - a comparison
How do these two Passion settings compare? They share many elements in common: a tenor narrator (Evangelist) who sings the text of the Gospel in secco recitative, along with named characters who also sing Gospel words; opening choral movements that “set the scene” and are large-scale fugal structures, along with closing funereal choruses in a “madrigal” style (more lyrical and homophonic); Lutheran chorale verses sprinkled throughout the narrative; and movements for solo voices that comment on the events just described. Yet the two Passions give very different impressions.
The St. John Passion is governed by a highly symmetrical super-structure derived from the repetition of musical material in the “turba” choruses (music for the full ensemble with text from the Gospel). In addition, the central scene of Pilate’s judgment of Jesus dominates the second half of the piece; the integrity of this scene is not interrupted by any arias. As a result, the aria movements are clustered largely at the ends of narrative events, creating a dramatic pace with reflective commentary relegated to smaller portions of the overall piece.
The St. Matthew Passion has a different large-scale organization. There are many more aria movements, mostly preceded by elaborate arioso introductions; these occur throughout the narrative and comment on events more immediately. Instead of a large-scale musical structure, Bach deploys a massive double ensemble texture, dictated by the libretto. The librettist of the St. Matthew Passion was Christian Friedrich Henrici, a Leipzig poet who was a frequent collaborator with the Bach. He used the pen name Picander, signaling his affinity with Greek classicism. Picander imposes a unity on the work through the organization of movements as well as poetici magery. A frequent device appearing in the arioso and aria texts is oxymoron, or paradoxical contrast: consider the juxtaposition of large and small spaces in the aria “Ich will dir mein Herze schenken” or the sweet/bitter taste of “Gerne will ich mich bequemen.” These elegant poetic conceits are beautifully matched by Bach’s harmonic virtuosity; oxymoronic imagery draws forth myriad musical analogues of simultaneous consonance and dissonance which becomes an overarching element of unity in the work.
Dialogues Across Space and Time
A notable element of the St. Matthew Passion is the designation of two complete orchestras and choruses. This creates acoustic, visual, and dramatic tension as the two ensembles collaborate, communicate, and alternate with each other throughout the piece. It has often been noted that the double chorus writing in the St. Matthew Passion is atypical; rather than employing antiphonal sonorities throughout, some movements are in a dialogue format while others begin with the two choirs in opposition and then quickly combine them into a four-voice texture. Picander designates Chorus/Orchestra I as “Töchter Zion” -the Daughters of Zion - while Chorus/Orchestra II is named “Gläubige Seelen” - Faithful Souls. Aria soloists are drawn from either chorus, but findinga musical or textual rationale for the difference between the two groups is not obvious.
Who are the “Daughters of Zion”? Scholars have heard resonances of the Song of Songs in the texts for Chorus I, giving them the role of “Bride of Christ” and witness, potentially, of the events from Jesus’ own time;Chorus II, by contrast, is seen as believers from contemporary (Bach’s- or our) time.Certainly the opening chorus, where the “Daughters of Zion” call to the “Faithful Souls” to “behold - help us lament”while the “Faithful Souls” seem to need instruction (“who” “what” etc.) would fit this model. Elsewhere the ChorusI soloists react with immediacy to various scenes, while Chorus II accompanies with a chorale or supportive words. Delving deeper into the arias given to each soloist group, the arias for Chorus II soloists are often in response to negative figures or actions (Judas, high priests, Roman soldiers) while Chorus I arias generally reflect on virtuous characters (the woman of Bethany,Peter, Simon, Joseph of Arimathea). These associations have sometimes inspired performances that assign arias to particular historical figures, thus ‘dramatizing’ the Passion. A close reading of the aria texts, however, reveals that the actual speaking voice is always a believer from contemporary times, not a witness from Jesus’s time.
Following this train of thought further, it appears that Bach and Picander are adding a dimension of time to the conventional linear narrative of the Passion.The dialogue movements not only call across the breadth of the chancel space, but call forward and backward in temporal space, linking the worship, devotion, and grief of centuries of Christians together. The very asymmetry of the structure– with many more solo movements from Chorus I than Chorus II, the lack of true antiphonal writing in the large choruses, and the poetic content for each of the two groups – serves to draw the listener in to an enigmatic puzzle.
Juxtaposition
While the overall length of the St. Matthew Gospelis greater than the St. John, the impression left by Bach’s setting is that there is less narrative and more musical commentary. He creates this effect by inserting arias more frequently, and also by their length and musical intensity. Even more vividly, Bach and Picander employ juxtaposition to enhance the emotional impact of the aria movements. Arias are placed n dialogue with the narrative; with chorales; and even with other arias, weaving a second layer of meaning around the Gospel narrative. A striking example of simultaneous juxtaposition is the tenor arioso and aria “O Schmerz...Ich will bei meinem Jesum” in Part I. The Chorus I soloist expresses anguished witness to Jesus’ spiritual crisis in Gethsemane; voices of believers from Chorus II respond with the salvific outcome of the events described.
Another type of juxtaposition is sequential. Two moments illustrate this technique: the first is the pairing of the great Chorus I alto and violin aria “Erbarme dich,”which is placed at the moment of Peter’s denial of Jesus;s hortly afterwards a parallel aria from Chorus II, for bass and violin, responds to the remorse and suicide of Judas - “Gebt mir meinem Jesum wieder.” In both cases the arias break into the narrative without an arioso introduction and address the immediacy of the events - Peter crying out for mercy; Judas trying to undo his betrayal by tossing the silver coins back.
The most memorable and heartbreaking exampleof sequential juxtaposition is the placement of the profoundly beautiful soprano aria “Aus Liebe.” During Jesus’ trial before Pilate, the Roman governor asks what crime he is being accused of. Before the narrative can continue, the arioso breaks in to declaim all the loving, miraculous deeds of Jesus, continuing in the aria to reveal the Savior’s decision to accept death out of love for humanity. Bach intensifies the stasis by setting the aria without any bass instruments, so the sound of the voice, flute, and English horns floats as if suspended in time,a futile attempt to halt the inevitable march towards crucifixion. At the end of this respite, the combined choirs resume their Gospel response to Pilate, screaming “let him be crucified.”
Why is it great?
The sustained level of inspiration of the St. MatthewPassion is ultimately what places it on such a lofty pedestal. The emotional, poetic, and musical intensity sweeps the listener along; there are no letdowns or slow moments; the inevitable conclusion of the Passion narrative pulls us forward almost in real time. By Jesus’s burial, the comforting final aria “Mache dich, mein Herze, rein” releases a cathartic flood of grief worthy of any Greek tragedy. Bach has produced a supreme work of religious faith that communicates profound human truths aboutl ove, hatred, guilt, and forgiveness; the transcendence of the work is also its utter humanness.
©Pamela Dellal 2024