Bach - Cantata 105: Herr, gehe nicht ins Gericht mit deinem Knecht, BWV 105 (1723) Johann Sebastian Bach Cantatas BWV 1,61,62,132,ABO Ton Koopman. Bach - Cantata 140: Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme, BWV 140 (1731) Baroque Music - Part Two. Cantata. Historical context[edit] The term originated in the early 17th century simultaneously with opera and oratorio.
Prior to that all "cultured" music was vocal. With the rise of instrumental music the term appeared, while the instrumental art became sufficiently developed to be embodied in sonatas. From the beginning of the 17th century until late in the 18th, the cantata for one or two solo voices with accompaniment of basso continuo (and perhaps a few solo instruments) was a principal form of Italian vocal chamber music.[2] A cantata consisted first of a declamatory narrative or scene in recitative, held together by a primitive aria repeated at intervals. Fine examples may be found in the church music of Giacomo Carissimi; and the English vocal solos of Henry Purcell (such as Mad Tom and Mad Bess) show the utmost that can be made of this archaic form. With the rise of the da capo aria, the cantata became a group of two or three arias joined by recitative.
Baroque[edit] References[edit]