The chorale that sparked inspiration over the centuries
Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern
Few chorales have provided as much musical inspiration, historically, as Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern (How beautifully shines the morning star). Bach-lovers will be interested to learn that the composer of this much-loved hymn, Philip Nicholai, also composed the chorale Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme. Both of these hymns captured the imagination of Bach, as well as that of many other composers before and after him.
Nicholai (1556-1608) was a Lutheran theologian, poet, and composer who lived nearly100 years before Bach, and, like Bach, was steeped in the strong Lutheran traditions of central Germany. His most famous publication is a devotional work, Der Freudenspiegel der ewigen Lebens (The Mirror of Joy of Eternal Life), published in 1599, and it is this work that contains the two chorales. Both of the melodies were known before Nicholai’s time, however, and are believed to come from the Meistersinger tradition, the German art song tradition, in which poetry and music come from the same author. As I began to look at Nicholai’s place in history, I was intrigued to learn that during his years as pastor in Unna, in Westphalia (1596-1601), when he was writing Der Freudenspiegel, there was an outbreak of plague in the city in the year 1597. This took the lives of some 1300 of his parishioners in a period of 6 months, with 170 deaths reportedly occurring in a single week. A horrific situation, and, needless to say, one that bears a grim parallel to the events of our own time.
As I have written before, chorales represent a fascinating connection between words and music. As we become immersed in the cultural world of these musical gems, the connections can be both powerful and immediate. The words reference the music, and the music conjures the words in a seamless process. When we hear the melody of O Haupt voll blut, known to us in English as “O sacred head now wounded,” we make an immediate connection to Bach’s passion music and its dramatic depiction of the Passion of Christ with all its attendant centrality to Christian theology. The underlying human emotion, in that case, is one of tragedy.
Let’s look at Nicholai‘s text for Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern.
The poetic style of the time might strike us today as a bit overwrought. But what an extraordinary message of hope is conveyed in these verses, an emotion that is beautifully captured in the soaring melody. Imagine for a moment what was going on around Nicholai when he wrote these verses and composed (or adapted) this chorale tune. As he worked to help his community cope with the devastating effects of the plague, we can appreciate that this is an extraordinary testament to the strength and resilience of the human spirit. The truth of beauty, and the beauty of truth are bound together in a fashion that only art can convey. To me, Nicholai’s chorale speaks to us of overwhelming joy and optimism, a bracing message for us today.
Nicholai’s message seems to have been well received in his time and beyond, and I have discovered a wealth of music based on his chorale, a selection of which appears below. The chorale was traditionally assigned to the feast of Epiphany in early January (when the wise men of the east were guided to Bethlehem by a shining star), as well as to the feast of the Annunciation in late March. But there is also an obvious association with Advent, with the star of Bethlehem and the birth of Christ.
Looking at the century before Bach, we find numerous interesting settings by German composers throughout the seventeenth century. Each composer sets the tune in the style of music of their own time, offering us a window into the changing tastes of German musical culture.
A great place to start, and a wonderful example, is this setting by Michael Praetorius (1571-1621), probably written in the first decade after the publication of Nicholai’s work. Here is a fantastic performance by Dorothe Mields and Paul Agnew with the Lautten Compagny from Berlin.
Michael Praetorius, Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern
Performed by Lautten Compagny
Another wonderful setting is by Johann Hermann Schein (1586–1630), also written in the first decades of the 17th century. One could say that Bach followed in Schein’s footsteps, as Schein was employed as Kapellmeister in Weimar, and later became Cantor in Leipzig.
Johann Hermann Schein, Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern
Performed by Lautten Compagny
There are quite a few organ settings (including some by Bach). Here is an outstanding example by Johann Pachelbel (1653-1706), one of the giants of German organ music before Bach. Pachelbel was briefly employed in Eisenach, Bach’s birthplace, where he met J.S. Bach’s father, Johann Ambrosius Bach and developed a close friendship with the Bach family. He then accepted a post in nearby Erfurt, where the Bach family was well-known, and later stood as godfather to J.S. Bach’s elder sister, Johanna Juditha, as well as serving as a teacher to J.S. Bach’s older brother Johann Christoph Bach. (And to add to the circles of influence, Nicholai studied theology at the University of Erfurt.)
Johann Pachelbel, Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern
Performed by Christopher Dawes
Also in the generation before Bach is the extraordinary Dietrich Buxtehude. Don’t forget that Bach walked some 450 km on foot in 1705 to Lübeck to meet (presumably, although we have no record of an actual meeting) Buxtehude, and to hear performances of his music. This chorale prelude has long been one of my favourites. I find it almost Beethoven-like in the way Buxtehude deconstructs the choral melody, playing with the intervals, and lulling us into forgetting where we started and losing track of the original premise of the piece. Then he builds the momentum towards the moment when the last descending line of the chorale tune can return to provide a satisfying “oh yeah!” to end the work.
Buxtehude Chorale Prelude Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern, BuxWV 223
Koopman
Although it’s difficult to hear on this recording, Koopman uses the organ stop known as a Zymbelstern, which is a set of bells mounted on a wheel which is turned by the air from the organ. It’s an interesting effect, and Koopman uses it very artistically at the beginning and end of the performance of the chorale prelude.
Bach’s immediate predecessor Johann Kuhnau wrote a beautiful cantata based on the chorale. It’s interesting to compare Kuhnau’s style with Bach’s, and to imagine that this is the kind of music the Leipzig congregation was accustomed to hearing before Bach’s arrival. Here is the first movement performed by Opella Musica and Camerata Lipsiensis, and the last movement performed by Alex Weiman and Arion from Montreal.
Johann Kuhnau, Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern
Performed by Opella Musica and Camerata Lipsiensis, directed by Gregor Meyer
„Zwingt die Saiten in Cytharra“
Performed by Arion, under the direction of Alex Weiman
Moving on to Bach himself, there is a wonderful chorale prelude for organ, BWV 739. Here is a nicely produced video from All of Bach with Teo Jellema at a beautiful organ in north central Germany, not far from Leipzig.
Another amazing piece by Bach using the chorale is this movement from the Cantata, BWV 37, in which he fashions an amazing part for the basso continuo to allow him to set the chorale in canon.
BWV 37/3
Performed by Sara Macliver and Sally-Anne Russell
And finally there is, of course, the amazing choral cantata that he wrote in his first years in Leipzig in 1725. Written for the feast of the Annunciation in late March, this is an outstanding example of the great chorale-based cantatas that were perfected by Bach. The text is taken directly from the chorale in the first and last movements (chorale verses 1 and 7), and offers a paraphrase of the other verses for the recitatives and arias (skillfully combining verses 4 and 5 for the recitative fourth movement. The majestic and soaring first movement features horns (corno da caccia) and oboes da caccia to evoke the pastoral idea of the morning star over the fields, and two solo violins represent the shimmering of the star with high twinkling motives.
BWV 1, Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern, movement 1.
Here is a wonderful performance of the opening movement performed by the Choir and Orchestra of the J.S. Bach Foundation.
And if you’d like to experience the complete cantata, here is a performance by La Petite Bande led by Sigiswald Kuijken.
And as an appendix, I want to add a couple of examples of works written after Bach.
Max Reger was an early 20th century German composer and organist. Here is his “simple” chorale prelude, from his Op. 67 (Reger also wrote a vast and complex Choralephantasie, Op. 40, based on the chorale).
Another interesting 20th century setting is this one by Sigfried Karg-Elert (1877-1933), from his Op. 65.
And finally, I can’t resist including this very off-beat work by Camille Saint-Saens, the Improvisation sur le Beethoven-Cantate (a work by Franz Liszt), which contains a quote of the choral (for no discernable reason!) about mid-way through a rather rambling written out improvisation filled with musical references to Beethoven’s music. (In this performance it can be heard at the 6:00 minute mark.)
You can find the whole playlist of the above pieces here!
The world of chorales and the music that has been inspired by them is vast and interesting. I hope this brief perusal has given you a bit of insight into some amazing music. Happy listening!