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JS Bach's Cousin's Lost Cantatas Rediscovered
19 Feb
Summary
- Johann Ludwig Bach's sacred cantatas are recorded for the first time.
- JS Bach meticulously copied his cousin's music, preserving it.
- One work was once mistakenly attributed to JS Bach himself.
Johann Ludwig Bach, a distant cousin of J.S. Bach, created sacred cantatas that have now received their first-ever recordings. These nearly five-and-a-half hours of music were preserved because J.S. Bach meticulously copied them, potentially saving them from being lost. J.L. Bach, who served as cantor and kapellmeister in Meiningen, demonstrated a remarkable gift for melody and a deep sensitivity to theological texts.
Capella Sollertia, under the direction of Johanna Soller, brings these works to vivid life with idiomatic performances. The collection includes an Easter cantata, 'Denn du wirst meine Seele nicht in der Hölle lassen,' which was once mistakenly attributed to J.S. Bach himself. This piece exemplifies J.L. Bach's mastery of Italianate arias with French courtly grace and imaginative word painting, enhanced by the sensitive use of trumpets and drums.
