J.S. Bach: The Church Cantatas, Vol. 60: Bisher habt ihr nichts gebeten in meinem Namen, BWV 87

The seven-movement Cantata 87 ‘Bisher habt ihr nichts gebeten in meinem Namen’ was written for Rogation Sunday, 6 May 1725. The text by Mariane von Ziegler is based on St John’s gospel (Joh. 16: 24, 33) and would appear to have been adapted by Bach himself. In the first two movements we hear the words of Christ, first in an aria in D minor with the title text, and thereafter in a contemplative recitative. In the third movement, an alto aria, we hear a confession and a prayer for perseverance. The mood of prayer and adjuration is most convincingly portrayed in parallel seufzer (sighing) motifs in the two oboe da caccia parts and the pleading, upward gestures in the basso continuo. The final chorale ‘Muss ich sein betrübet?’ employs the melody of ‘Jesu, meine Freude’. Composer: Johann Sebastian Bach Artists: Netherlands Bach Collegium, Pieter Jan Leusink (conductor), Holland Boys Choir, Bas Ramselaar (Basso), Sytse Buwalda (Alto) & Nico van der Meel (Tenore) 🎵Online purchase or