In the foreseeable future, and when time permits, I would like to write and post studies of Bach's Sacred Cantatas. This will be an extremely long endeavor, as Bach composed two-hundred cantatas in his lifetime; four annual cycles in conjunction with the Lutheran liturgical calendar. These of course are organized in the Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis (BWV), starting from one to two-hundred. His Cantatas are also often organized chronologically, separated by the years Bach worked in Mühlhausen, Weimar, Köthen, and Leipzig. Obviously, these Cantatas were performed during the Church service and assist as an aid and complement to the liturgical date and the Biblical reading for the day. For example, the Cantatas composed for Easter Sunday are very epic, fast, etc. celebrating the Resurrection of Jesus. In these studies, I plan to focus more on the history and theological significance of the Cantatas, rather than just the musical structure, although that will be touched on. Also, to make my studies a little more unique, for each Cantata a work of art, done by me, will be posted as an artistic interpretation of the Cantata. Anything that I reference and the recordings I use will be cited if anyone is curious. Bach's Cantatas are my daily bread, and serve for me as almost a Christian devotional. They are incredibly powerful pieces of music and I suggest to anyone to give them a listen.
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