The Chattanooga Bach Choir's 2018-19 Barnett & Company Cantata Series concludes Sunday, March 31 at 5 p.m., with music celebrating the Feast of the Annunciation (March 25), featuring Bach’s Cantata BWV 1, Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern (How Beautifully the Morning Star Shines), along with Morten Lauridsen’s a cappella motet, Ave Maria, and Dietrich Buxtehude’s chorale fantasia on Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern (BuxWV 223) for organ. Completing the program are the Andante & Rondo from W.A. Mozart’s Horn Concerto No. 4 in E-flat Major, K. 495, performed by featured young artist Janelle Wigal Wagoner, French horn. Joining the Bach Choir are solo artists Maria Rist, soprano; James Harr, tenor; Zachary Cavan, bass; and Karla Fowkes, organ.
Artistic Director David Long notes, “During his years as Thomaskantor in Leipzig, Bach, was expected to write cantatas not only for every Sunday (except during Lent), but also for important feast days. Our cantata on March 31, Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern (How Beautifully the Morning Star Shines) was written for the Feast of the Annunciation and was first performed on Sunday, March 25, 1725. For this Marian feast, remembering the mother of Jesus, Bach created a brilliant and joyful work based on the hymn by Philipp Nicolai, evoking the sparkling morning star through dance-like rhythms, rapturous solos, and a jubilant final chorale. The cantata is scored for soprano, tenor and bass soloists, four-part mixed choir, and an orchestra including 2 horns, 2 oboes da caccia (we use English horns), 2 violin soloists, strings and continuo. We contrast Bach’s lively cantata, with a serene contemporary work, American composer Morten Lauridsen’s a cappella motet Ave Maria, written in 1997, which features lush harmonies, polyphonic textures, divisi into multiple parts, and his trademark “gentle” dissonances. The program opens with Dietrich Buxtehude’s virtuosic chorale fantasia on Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern, performed by our wonderful organist, Karla Fowkes. We are also delighted to showcase a talented young musician in our area, Janelle Wigal Wagoner, performing the Andante and Rondo from Mozart’s Horn Concerto No. 4. The Bach Choir is pleased to present these concerts featuring Bach cantatas and other works as musical respites in our daily lives, especially during the Lenten season.”
The Bach Choir’s Barnett & Company Cantata Series explores J.S. Bach’s more than 200 cantatas written for every Sunday in the church year. Artistic Director David Long presents a brief musical explanation of the featured cantata placing each work in its liturgical context and surrounds each with complimentary music to complete the program.