O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort I, BWV 60

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Composed in November of 1723, Bach O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort, BWV 60 became an enormous favorite among the fin de siècle intelligentsia in Vienna. The final chorale, perhaps the most extreme of any chorale setting, was the backbone of the Berg Violin Concerto. The Austrian expressionistic poet, painter and playwright Oskar Kokoshka, sketched an astonishing series of drawings based upon the cantata and its dialogue between Fear and Hope. The content of this dialogue is one of the most intense, neurotic and enmeshed thirteen minutes of music ever written. This exploration into the human psyche seemed to fascinate Bach as is evident in a few other cantatas (BWV 26, 70, 90) that precede Advent.
In the first movement the icy-cold chorale "O Ewigkeit du Donnerwort" appears in the alto voice (fear), doubled by a horn, above trembling strings and a hysterical tenor. An even more unstable recitative follows in which Fear sings a tragic, agonizing and forever searching melisma on the word “torture." This leads directly to the bony and unpleasant duet with violin and oboe d'amore. Jagged dotted rhythms and slippery scale passages live together in an uneasy truce. Hope, significantly, has the final word; his melodic line continuing after Fear has spoken. In the recitative/arioso that follows, the voice of the Holy Ghost appears more as an arbiter than a comforter. The opening whole tone scale and disjunct phrase lengths of the final chorale are hair-raising in their instability. The text, however, does offer some kind of comfort in its acceptance of death.
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©Craig Smith, with additions by Ryan Turner
Bach Cantata BWV 60 was an enormous favorite among the fin de siecle intelligentsia in Vienna. The final chorale, perhaps the most extreme of any chorale setting, was the backbone of the Berg Violin Concerto. Oskar Kokoshka sketched an astonishing series of drawings based upon the cantata and its dialogue between fear and hope. The drawings are mostly autobiographical and the female figure in the drawings bears too much resemblance to Alma Mahler to be coincidental. Kokoshka and Alma Mahler had one of the most scandalous affairs in turn-of-the-century Vienna. The content of our dialogue between fear and hope does seem tailor-made for the neuroses of Freudian Vienna. It is one of the most intense and immeshed thirteen minutes of music ever written. In the first movement the icy-cold chorale "O Ewigkeit du Donnerwort" appears in the alto voice above trembling strings and an hysterical tenor. An even more unstable recitative leads to the bony and unpleasant duet with violin and oboe d'amore. Jagged dotted rhythms and slippery scale passages live together in an uneasy truce. The voice of the Holy Ghost appears more as an arbiter than a comforter. The famous final chorale's words offer some kind of comfort but the music is hair-raising in its instability.
©Craig Smith
Ryan Turner, conductor
Carrie Cheron, alto | Fausto Miro, tenor | Andrew Padgett, bass | Heidi Braun-Hill, violin | Jennifer Slowik, oboe d'amore
Seth Torres, audio engineer

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Cantata BWV 60
O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort[II]
English Translation in Interlinear Format
Cantata BWV 60 - O eternity, you word of thunder
Dialogue
Event: 24th Sunday after Trinity
Readings: Epistle: Colossians 1: 9-14; Gospel: Matthew 9: 18-26
Text: Johann Rist (Mvt. 1); Franz Joachim Burmeister (Mvt. 5); Anon (Mvts. 2-4); Genesis 49: 18 (Mvt. 1); Revelation 14: 13 (Mvt. 4)
Chorale Texts: O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort | Es ist genug
Persons: Fear (Alto), Hope (Tenor), Christ (Bass)
1
Chorale [Alto] and Aria [Tenor]
Corno, Oboe d'amore I/II, Violino I/II, Viola, Continuo
Fear (Alto):
O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort,
O eternity, you word of thunder,
O Schwert, das durch die Seele bohrt,
o sword, that pierces through my soul,
O Anfang sonder Ende!
o beginning that has no end!
O Ewigkeit, Zeit ohne Zeit,
O eternity, time without time,
Ich weiß vor großer Traurigkeit
out of great sorrow I do not know
Nicht, wo ich mich hinwende.
where I should turn.
Mein ganz erschrocken Herz erbebt,
My heart completely terrified shudders
Daß mir die Zung am Gaumen klebt.
so that my tongue sticks to my gums.
Hope (Tenor):
Herr, ich warte auf dein Heil. (Genesis 49:18 = Psalm 119 : 166)
Lord, I wait for your salvation
2
Recitative [Alto, Tenor]
Continuo
Fear (Alto):
O schwerer Gang zum letzten Kampf und Streite!
O how hard is th way to the last battle and conflict!
Hope (Tenor):
Mein Beistand ist schon da,
My help is already here,
Mein Heiland steht mir ja
my Saviour stands by me
Mit Trost zur Seite.
with consolation at my side.
Fear (Alto):
Die Todesangst, der letzte Schmerz
The agony of death, the last sorrow
Ereilt und überfällt mein Herz
overtakes and attacks my heart
Und martert diese Glieder.
and tortures these limbs.
Hope (Tenor):
Ich lege diesen Leib vor Gott zum Opfer nieder.
I lay this body down before God as an offering.
Ist gleich der Trübsal Feuer heiß,
Even though the fire of affliction is hot,
Genung, es reinigt mich zu Gottes Preis.
I am content, it purifies me for God’s praise.
Fear (Alto):
Doch nun wird sich der Sünden große Schuld vor mein Gesichte stellen
But now the great burden of my sins’ guilt stands before my face.
Hope (Tenor):
Gott wird deswegen doch kein Todesurteil fällen.
But God will not pass a judgement of death upon you because of your sins.
Er gibt ein Ende den Versuchungsplagen,
He sets an end to the torments of temptation
Dass man sie kann ertragen.
so that they can be endured.
3
Aria (Duet) [Alto, Tenor]
Oboe d'amore, Violino solo, Continuo
Fear (Alto):
Mein letztes Lager will mich schrecken,
My death bed will terrify me.
Hope (Tenor):
Mich wird des Heilands Hand bedecken,
I shall be covered by my Saviour’s hand.
Fear (Alto):
Des Glaubens Schwachheit sinket fast,
My weak faith is rapidly failing.
Hope (Tenor):
Mein Jesus trägt mit mir die Last.
My Jesus bears my burden with me.
Fear (Alto):
Das offne Grab sieht greulich aus,
The prospect of the open grave is terrifying.
Hope (Tenor):
Es wird mir doch ein Friedenshaus.
For me it will be a house of peace.
4
Recitative [Alto] and Arioso [Bass]
Continuo
Fear (Alto):
Der Tod bleibt doch der menschlichen Natur verhasst
But death remains hateful to human nature
Und reißet fast
and almost tears
Die Hoffnung ganz zu Boden.
hope right down to the ground.
Christ (Bass):
Selig sind die Toten; (Revelation 14:13)
Blessed are those who have died;
Fear (Alto):
Ach! aber ach, wieviel Gefahr
Oh! but Oh! What great danger
Stellt sich der Seele dar,
confronts the soul
Den Sterbeweg zu gehen!
as it goes along the path to death!
Vielleicht wird ihr der Höllenrachen
Perhaps the vengeance of hell
Den Tod erschrecklich machen,
will make death terrifying
Wenn er sie zu verschlingen sucht;
as he seeks to devour your soul;
Vielleicht ist sie bereits verflucht
perhaps my soul is already damned
Zum ewigen Verderben.
to everlasting destruction.
Christ (Bass):
Selig sind die Toten, die in dem Herren sterben;
Blessed are the dead who have died in the Lord.
Fear (Alto):
Wenn ich im Herren sterbe,
If I die in the Lord,
Ist denn die Seligkeit mein Teil und Erbe?
is blessedness really my share and inheritance?
Der Leib wird ja der Würmer Speise!
My body will be food for worms!
Ja, werden meine Glieder
Yes, my limbs will become
Zu Staub und Erde wieder,
dust and earth once more.
Da ich ein Kind des Todes heiße,
Since I am called a child of death,
So schein ich ja im Grabe an verderben.
it seems that I shall rot in the grave.
Christ (Bass):
Selig sind die Toten, die in dem Herren sterben, von nun an.
Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord, from now on.
Fear (Alto):
Wohlan!
Very well!
Soll ich von nun an selig sein:
Since from now on I shall be blessed,
So stelle dich, o Hoffnung, wieder ein!
come back, o Hope, once more!
Mein Leib mag ohne Furcht im Schlafe ruhn,
My body without fear may rest in sleep,
Der Geist kann einen Blick in jene Freude tun.
my spirit can already glimpse that joy.
5
Chorale [S, A, T, B]
Corno e Oboe d'amore I e Violino I col Soprano, Oboe d'amore II e Violino II coll'Alto, Viola col Tenore, Continuo
Es ist genug;
It is enough;
Herr, wenn es dir gefällt,
Lord, when it pleases you,
So spanne mich doch aus!
then grant me release!
Mein Jesu kömmt;
May my Jesus come
Nun gute Nacht, o Welt!
Now good night, o World.
Ich fahr ins Himmelshaus,
I am going to Heaven’s house
Ich fahre sicher hin mit Frieden,
I go confidently there with joy,
Mein großer Jammer bleibt danieden.
my great sorrow remains down below.
Es ist genug.
It is enough.