Cantata 42: Am Abend aber desselbigen Sabbats

Am Abend aber desselbigen Sabbats (In the evening of that same Sabbath, BWV 42) is unique among the hundreds of extant Bach cantatas. Written during the Leipzig years (1723-50) for the first Sunday after Easter, the text comes from the Gospel of John, chapter 20. It marks the only Bach cantata that opens with an instrumental sinfonia—i.e., no singers involved. This has caused much speculation about the origins of the music, and general consensus holds that Bach recycled this sinfonia from the opening movement of a now-lost concerto, probably written at Cöthen. It is possible to interpret the two oboes and bassoon as the two Marys and Jesus, respectively. But that reading is secondary to very clear concerto- or even aria-like signals and the sheer grace of the opening theme. The middle theme features the winds even more clearly, progressing through B minor to F-sharp minor before a da capo repetition of section A.

(c) Jason Stell