J.S. Bach: Cantata BWV 146 "Wir müssen durch viel Trübsal in das Reich Gottes eingehen"

This is one of my favorite works among Bach's cantatas.

I was truly surprised at first, because suddenly, a melody I had heard before began to play.
It was the Piano Concerto No. 1.

In the recording I listened to, it was performed on a pipe organ, and it was so wonderful that I became very curious as to why this piece was in a cantata.

I would like to summarize what I have researched about this work.

About the work

"Wir müssen durch viel Trübsal in das Reich Gottes eingehen"

We must enter the kingdom of God through many tribulations

(Trübsal is often translated as tribulation, hardship, etc.)

• Work number: BWV 146
• Composer: Johann Sebastian Bach
• Date: Around 1726 (Leipzig)
• Genre: Cantata
• Liturgical day: Third Sunday after Easter (Jubilate Sunday)
→ Jubilate means "rejoice." It is the third Sunday counting from the day after Easter. In the church, themes and scripture passages are decided for every Sunday, and this day is also called "Jubilate Sunday." Sermons and church music (such as cantatas) are also tailored to that Sunday.

• Theme:
The sermon read on the Third Sunday after Easter (Jubilate Sunday) includes words based on John 16:20.

This verse contains words spoken by Jesus to his disciples, promising that "a time of sorrow will come, but that sorrow will turn into joy."
(Life in this world is full of trials. But it is the path to entering the kingdom of God. So let us endure with hope.)
This work also centers on the theme of "reaching heaven through tribulation," and the suffering on earth and the comfort and hope for heaven gained through faith are expressed contrastingly throughout each movement.

• Instrumentation (various theories exist)
Soprano and alto soloists, choir (SATB), flute, two oboes (d'amore), strings (violin 1 & 2, viola, cello/double bass, organ, (harpsichord, lute)
Bach Digital

• Structure and characteristics

The first two movements are based on a lost violin concerto, and Bach also used this musical material for his Harpsichord Concerto BWV 1052 (Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor). If you listen to the impactful opening, which sounds like an organ concerto, you will notice it immediately.

This is followed by a chorus that evokes suffering and hardship on earth, and the alto aria expresses a longing for heaven from the sufferings of this world. The solo parts for soprano, flute, and oboe d'amore depict the transition from anguish to joy, while the final duet and chorale lead to a peaceful conclusion where all suffering has passed.

Even if you don't necessarily understand the lyrics, one way to enjoy it is to listen carefully to the singing and the timbre of each instrument while imagining the scene. Listening to the entire work, you can see a story of "overcoming trials to reach joy and peace." Through the music, you can feel the flow of life's difficulties, the comfort provided by faith, and the arrival of joy.

In this work, concerto-like elements and the structure of a church cantata are skillfully fused, and the reuse of melodies and arrangement techniques in the sinfonia and arias provide important clues for understanding Bach's creative process.

Performance • Recording

Unfortunately, it seems there are not many opportunities for this work to be performed in concerts and the like.
While waiting for a chance to hear it in a church or hall someday, I usually enjoy listening to several recordings.

Netherlands Bach Society

You can watch the video on their official website. The lyrics are also posted.

This is an interview with Jos van Veldhoven, who conducts this performance.

He explains the theme and music of this work. I was particularly impressed by his talk about the "saltus duriusculus" (dissonant leaping progression) used in the second movement chorus, and the choice of accompaniment instruments in the third movement aria (Ich will nach dem Himmel zu).
He also mentions that there is no reliable autograph score left for this cantata, and since the first manuscript copy was passed down through his students after Bach's death, it is unknown what the original situation was like at the time. He says that while it is possible to use the organ as an obbligato solo instrument in the third movement aria, they chose violin accompaniment for this performance due to its connection to the violin concerto that forms the basis of the first two movements.

About the violin concerto

Unfortunately, the original violin concerto that is said to have served as the basis for the first two movements of this cantata no longer exists, but you can listen to performances reconstructed through research.

《Violin Concerto in D minor (reconstruction)》

BWV 1052r

→ The concerto performed here is a modern reconstruction based on a harpsichord concerto that Bach wrote in his later years. It is presumed that this was originally a violin concerto.

Listening to this performance, it makes you want to believe that it must have originally been written for the violin. The cadenza is very cool...

It was filmed at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.
(Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam)

This is an interview with violinist Shunske Sato about this concerto.

His talk about "what is original" left a deep impression on me.
He says, "For him (Bach), the original did not mean all the notes written on paper at the beginning, but was something very fluid. For me, the original is the fact that it is a wonderful idea, and its greatness lies in the potential latent within that idea."
He also explains the reason why this piece is presumed to be a violin concerto, along with a demonstration of a technique called "bariolage."

I am very curious about how lost works are actually reconstructed.
I thought it would be fun to track down works where the original ideas have been repurposed through this piece. I am very much looking forward to seeing what kind of works I will encounter in the future.


※ Regarding the translation
Please forgive me as my foreign language and Japanese skills are not enough to accurately express every fine nuance ㅠㅠ