On the night before the 500th anniversary of the Reformation Tenebrae will perform a programme of Bach, Schütz and Reger to commemorate the close relationship between these German composers and the Lutheran church.

Every evening after supper, the Reformer and Theologian Martin Luther would gather his family together to sing motets. Luther also provided a German-texted Mass, chorales, supported congregational and community singing and retained two movements of the Latin Ordinary for Services to create the “Lutheran Mass”. In similar fashion, Bach and his family would make music together at home and in considering the over-riding musical needs of the Lutheran Church, the composer provided cantatas, passions, oratorios….and five Lutheran Masses.

This programme features motets by Bach, Heinrich Schütz and Max Reger, plus one of Bach’s settings of the shorter Mass, the Mass in F BWV 233, movements of which are reworkings from earlier cantatas, including Cantata BWV 102 (Trinity 10, Leipzig 1726) and BWV 40 (Christmas, Leipzig 1723).

Programme

Max Reger Der Mensch lebt und bestehet Op. 138
J.S. Bach Jesu, meine Freude BWV 227
Heinrich Schütz Das ist je gewißlich wahr SWV 277
J.S. Bach Komm, Jesu, komm BWV 229
Max Reger Nachtlied Op. 138
INTERVAL
J.S. Bach Lutheran Mass in F BWV 233
J.S. Bach Singet dem Herrn eine neues Lied BWV 225

Artist Information

Tenebrae Consort
Steinitz Bach Players
Nigel Short Conductor

Artist(s)

Nigel Short, Tenebrae Consort