Bach: “Erbarme dich, mein Gott“ from St. Matthew Passion (Tariq Harb, guitar)

Guitarist Tariq Harb performs his arrangement of the haunting aria “Erbarme dich, mein Gott“ from Bach’s monumental St. Matthew Passion (BWV 244). This is a piece that I always wanted to arrange for guitar since my first experience of it was as a violinist in an orchestra. Even though the arrangement is an excerpt of the aria, I aimed to capture the profound sorrow of it and to convey that the music, regardless of its instrumentation, retains its perfect integrity. A guitarist may also choose to perform it with a singer, given that it is sung in the key of E minor, the key signature of this arrangement. In any case, I sincerely hope you enjoy it. Thanks for watching! The score can be found via my online shop, which now has migrated to my website: “ERBARME DICH“ Although his oeuvre now stands at the apex of the canon, J.S. Bach was once music’s greatest example of a forgotten genius. During his lifetime, his compositional style was already considered staid and old-fashioned, and after his death in 1750 his music was largely abandoned until the mid-19th century. The first performance of the St. Matthew Passion was given in 1727. Considering it his most significant work, Bach revised it in 1736. Nonetheless, it was shelved after its initial performances in the St. Thomas Church and promptly neglected. The Passion received a second premiere of sorts in 1829 when the 19-year-old Felix Mendelssohn organized a performance and conducted the work for the first time since Bach did so himself. With this, the concept of “Classical Music“ was born, and Bach’s St. Matthew Passion has remained one of the monuments of the literature. One of the most beloved arias of all time, “Erbarme dich“ (“Have mercy on me“) comes straight from the contrite heart of Peter, the disciple of Jesus, on Good Friday. After denying Christ three times, he realized his sin, and “went out and wept bitterly“. The violin solo represents the anguish of Peter’s soul at this moment. Bach scores the emotion and a poem by Bach’s contemporary, Picander: “Have mercy, my God, for my tears’ sake. Look hither, heart and eyes weep bitterly before Thee.” This is musical storytelling at its finest. *** Guitar: Martin Blackwell, cedar double-top and Brazilian rosewood back and sides, 2019 Strings: Savarez, CR 540 Guitar support: Murata Camera: Sony a6400 - camera mic used for tutorial Mics used for performance: Rode NT55 (matched pair) Tariq Harb teaches at Concordia University in Montreal, Canada: Online store: