Dec 08 Pp. 22-23.Indd 22 11/12/08 11:06:46 AM Ers Buxtehude, Reinken, and Bruhns
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BWV 1128: A recently discovered Bach organ work Joel H. Kuznik Latest Bach manuscript discovery: He resigned over confl icts, particularly Wo Gott der Herr nicht bei uns hält, with Philipp Spitta, but got even in 1878, BWV 1128 in a sense, by sharing the composition The discovery of a Bach manuscript with Spitta’s rival Carl Hermann Bittner, always raises curiosity and excites expect- whose Vol. IV of his second edition of ant interest. This latest work, an organ “J. S. Bach” (Dresden 1880 / Berlin 1881) chorale fantasia just discovered in March, includes “141. Wo Gott der Herr nicht is a reminder that new revelations can bey uns hält. Fantasia sopra il Chorale come at any time from any source. G-moll. (Königsberger Bibliothek.)” For Bach’s copy of the Calov Bible was whatever reason the chorale fantasia was found in an attic in Frankenmuth, Mich- not included in the Gesamtausgabe, so igan in 1934, but forgotten until after Wolfgang Schmieder in his Bach-Werke- WWII, in 1962. More recently in 1999, Verzeichnis (Leipzig 1950) put a fragment after a 20-year detective hunt worthy of it in an appendix (BWV Anh. II 71). of a spy mystery and with a tip from an After Rust’s death in 1892, a large East German librarian, Christian Wolff part of his collection went to his student, tracked down C.P.E. Bach’s estate, with Erich Prieger (1849–1913), who wrote 5,100 musical manuscripts, to Kiev. an extensive essay in 1885 on “Wilhelm Originally in the Berlin State Library, Rust and His Bach Edition.” Prieger’s the Russian army absconded with this collection in turn was put up for auc- treasure trove of manuscripts after the unanswered questions. Much like studies chael Pacholke with a foreword by tion after WW I in three sections, one of war. Included were works by Johann Se- in genealogy, one can trace documented Hans-Joachim Schulze. 2008, Ortus which went in 1924 to the Cologne book bastian, among which were his last work, history back only so far and, in this case, Musikverlag, Kassel, 24 pp., €13.50; dealer M. Lempertz and refers to many a motet he apparently prepared for his only to the mid-nineteenth century, 100 <www.ortus-musikverlag.de/>. copies of “Bachiana” from the 18th and own funeral. years after Bach. The second review on 19th centuries, including in Lot No. 157 In 2004 an aria by Bach was found in the CD, featuring both the organ fantasia Contents with Rust’s collection of manuscripts. Weimar in a box of birthday cards among and the cantata based on the same cho- Prologue by Schulze, musicologist In summary, the transmission was holdings of the Anna Amalia Library, just rale, was released on June 13, 2008 at the and former director of the Bach-Archiv from Wilhelm Friedemann to Johann months before it was destroyed by fi re. opening concert of the Leipzig Bachfest Leipzig. Critical report on Source A Christian to Kötschau, and then from Two years later in 2006 from the same and shares Ullrich Böhme’s experience (Halle, Martin Luther University, Uni- Gotthold to the Königsberg Library to Weimar library, researchers also found of studying and preparing a fi rst perfor- versity-State Library of Sachsen-Anhalt, Rust to Prieger, and ultimately from Co- Bach’s oldest manuscripts in his own hand: mance of a Bach work. How many have with signature) and Source B (Leipzig, logne to . organ works by Buxtehude and Reinken had that opportunity! Bach-Archiv, no signature) with score he copied at the age of fi fteen. Most re- Obviously this is not the end of the variants noted. Chorale melody from Discovery cently in March of 2008, a newly discov- story. No doubt surprises and discover- Wittenberg (1533, perhaps 1529) and When on March 15, 2008 the Leipzig ered organ work was found in an estate ies still await detection by sharp-sighted eight-verse text by Justus Jonas (1493– auction fi rm of Johannes Wend offered sale in Leipzig, in a sense, right under the scholars and through pure serendipity. 1555) based on Psalm 124. Facsimiles Lot No. 153 with “manuscripts from the nose of the musicians at St. Thomas! of cover page and fi rst page of musical estate of Wilhelm Rust. Mostly composi- This is a double review. The fi rst dis- Bach, Johann Sebastian, Choralfan- score. Critical edition, based on Source tions of his own or arrangements of works cusses the organ score and reveals a fas- tasie für Orgel [2 Manuale und Ped- A: 85 bars, pp. 1–9. by Bach . ,” no one could have antici- cinating history of teacher-student trans- al] über “Wo Gott der Herr nicht bei pated that this included parts of Prieger’s mission, estate sales, alert and not-so-alert uns hält,” BWV 1128, First Edition, History collection and the chorale fantasia BWV librarians, savvy editors, guesswork and edited by Stephan Blaut and Mi- How is it that an organ work by Bach Anh. II 71. The Rust items were acquired was just discovered and authenticated by the University-State Museum of Hal- March 15, 2008 after it had passed through le/Salle, and fi nally due to the fastidious so many hands, including collectors, mu- work of two editors, Stephan Blaut and sicians, editors and auction houses? Michael Pacholke of Halle University, According to Schulze’s foreword, this the chorale fantasia was authenticated is what is known to date. The fi rst public and has become BWV 1128! record of this chorale fantasia is 1845, al- This edition is based on two 19th-cen- most 100 years after Bach’s death, listed tury manuscripts: “Source A” by Rust among organ pieces by “Sebastian Bach” and “Source B,” a copy made by Ernst in the estate auction for Johann Nico- Naumann sometime after 1890 in the laus Julius Kötschau (1788–1845), once collection of the Bach-Archiv Leipzig. MASSES FOR organist at St. Mary’s in Halle/Salle. Ac- Researchers, according to Schulze, are SPECTACULAR SOUNDS! cording to public record, he acquired the still hopeful that Kötschau’s copy sur- pieces in an 1814 auction along with the vived WW II and is still to be found, per- CHOIR AND ORGAN “Clavier-Büchlein of Wilhelm Friede- haps in a Russian library. mann” (1720), Bach’s son and once an On June 13, 2008, Ullrich Böhme, or- Three 20th-Century masterpieces of organist in Halle, who had passed the ganist, St. Thomas, played the fi rst Leipzig Vierne, Widor, and Langlais sung by scores on to his distant relative and performance of BWV 1128 at the opening the Vokalensemble and Men’s Voices of student Johann Christian (1743–1814), concert of the Bachfest, which included known as the “Clavier-Bach.” Kötschau, Bach’s Cantata 178 on the same chorale, Cologne Cathedral directed by Eberhard who apparently was reluctant to share sung by the St. Thomas Choir. The same Metternich and accompanied by the two his prize collection, eventually relented, day a CD by Rondeau Production with fi rst loaning it to Mendelssohn (1840) both compositions and works by Rust was Klais organs played by Winfried Bönig and and then Leipzig publishers C. F. Peters released. The score by Ortus was pub- Ulrich Brüggemann. Also includes solo (1843). However, there is no evidence lished on June 10, showing how rapidly that anyone recognized the signifi cance new works can be distributed worldwide. organ works by Vierne and Hakim. of what they saw. The chorale still exists in German The first recording of the new In the 1845 auction of Kötschau’s es- hymnals, but apparently has not survived tate, the manuscript, along with other in American Lutheran usage. The work, Bombardewerk, added in 2006! Bach works, was acquired by Friedrich a large-scale fantasia believed to date August Gotthold (1778–1858), a former from 1705–1710, is of moderate diffi cul- 3!#$-5,4)#(!..%,(9"2)$#$s member of the Sing-Akademie Berlin ty in four contrapuntal voices scored for and then director of the Collegium in Rückpositiv, Oberwerk and Pedal. After Königsberg, East Prussia. In 1852, in or- an introductory section, the ornamented IN STOCK FOR IMMEDIATE SHIPMENT! der to preserve his collection, he donated chorale appears in the R.H. beginning it to the Königsberg Library, but it only with bar 12, proceeding verse by verse NOW CHOOSE FROM OVER 5,000 TITLES! drew attention 25 years later when Jo- with interludes, chromaticism and echo seph Müller, in spite of opposition from sections. It concludes with a coda in a ORDER ONLINE: www.ohscatalog.org superiors, prepared a catalogue, which fl urry typical of stylus phantasticus, all of UPS shipping to U.S. addresses, which we recommend, is $7.75 for your entire order. on p. 93 lists “24 books of organ compo- which should make this “new work” very Library rate shipping is $4.50 for your entire order. sitions by J. S. Bach,” of which fascicle exciting indeed for Bach fans. No. 5 lists “Fantasia Sopra il Corale ‘Wo Shipping outside the U.S. is $4.50, plus the cost of air postage, charged to your Visa or MasterCard. Gott der Herr nicht bey uns hält’ pro Or- Bach, Johann Sebastian, Wo Gott gano à 2 Clav. e Pedale.” der Herr nicht bei uns hält. The This got the attention of Wilhelm Rust Newly Discovered Organ Work: ORGAN HISTORICAL SOCIETY (1822–1892), who had it sent on a library Choralefantasia BWV 1128. Organ P.O. Box 26811 Richmond, VA 23261 loan to Berlin, where he copied it.