J.S. Bach / Ich habe genug, BWV 82 (Herreweghe)

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

Cantata BWV 82: Ich habe genug (2 February 1727)

1. Ich habe genug (Aria: B)
2. Ich habe genug (Recitative: B) 07:25
3. Schlummert ein, ihr matten Augen (Aria: B) 08:26
4. Mein Gott! wann kömmt das schöne: Nun! (Recitative: B) 18:04
5. Ich freue mich auf meinen Tod (Aria: B) 18:47

Bass Soloist: Peter Kooy

Performed by Philippe Herreweghe and the Choir & Orchestra of La Chapelle Royale. Recorded by Harmonia Mundi in 1991.

"'Ich habe genug' was written for the Feast of the Purification of the Virgin (2 February - Candlemas Day), which in 1727 (the year of its composition) fell upon the fourth Sunday after Epiphany. It has been established that another cantata was performed on this occasion, BWV 83 (Erfreute Zeit im neuen Bande) written in 1724 and therefore belonging to the first of the five annual cycles of cantatas composed by Bach. The libretto of this new cantata (anonymous) is lacking in any reference to a biblical text. The early version in C minor was later subjected to a number of changes without, however, losing its character as a solo cantata. It was transposed into E minor for soprano in 1731, then, in 1735, revised again for mezzo-soprano with a transverse flute instead of an oboe, and finally it regained its original shape between 1745 and 1748 with a return to the bass soloist while the oboe was replaced by an oboe da caccia. The recitative 'Ich habe genug' (No. 2) and the aria, 'Schlummert ein' (No. 3) figure in the Notenbüchlein compiled for Anna Magdalena from 1725 on, but these pieces were not inserted before 1730, which proves that the version in the cantata score was written before that date. The cantata has no chorus and consists of no more than three arias and two recitatives. All the arias employ identical instrumental forces (concertante oboe, strings and continuo), which is unique in Bach; the recitatives are 'simple', but with passages in arioso style. The entire score is suffused with a personal and intimate tone (again in the first person), closely related to the Song of Simeon, addressing God after having taken the infant Jesus in his arms, 'For mine eyes have seen thy salvation' (Luke 2, 30) -- we are told that it had been revealed to Simeon by the Holy Ghost 'that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ' (Luke 2, 36). Of the whole Gospel narrative of Christ's presentation in the Temple (Luke 2, 22-32) the poet has retained only this aspect, with the result that the cantata becomes a contemplation of death considered as the liberation from the afflictions of this world and the uniting of the soul with its Savior. Each of the three arias follows a particular formal pattern. The first (A B B') is a page filled with sadness which has often been compared with the aria, 'Erbarme dich, mein Gott' from the St. Matthew Passion. The second, a lullaby which has made the cantata famous, is also comparable in mood to the great masterpiece written at the same period; it has the form of an expanded da capo aria (A BAC-A). The third aria, dance-like in character, is in a free da capo form." - Alberto Basso

Painting: Girl with Sunflowers, Michael Ancher