Christum wir sollen loben schon
BWV 121
Christmas cantata Chorale cantata byJ. S. Bach
Martin Luther, author of the hymn
Occasion	Second Day ofChristmas
Chorale	"Christum wir sollen loben schon" byMartin Luther
Performed	26 December 1724 (1724-12-26):Leipzig
Movements	6
Vocal	SATB soloists and choir
Instrumental	cornett 3trombones oboe d'amore 2 violins viola continuo

Christum wir sollen loben schon (Christ we shall praise splendidly),^[1][a]BWV 121, is achurch cantata byJohann Sebastian Bach. He composed thisChristmas cantata inLeipzig in 1724 for the second day ofChristmas and first performed it on 26 December 1724. It is based on ahymn byMartin Luther, "Christum wir sollen loben schon", a 1524 translation of the Latin "A solis ortus cardine" hymn from the 5th century.

The cantata is part of Bach'schorale cantata cycle, the second cycle during his tenure asThomaskantor that began in 1723. In the format of this cycle, the text retains the first and laststanza of the chorale unchanged, while the inner six stanzas were paraphrased by an unknownlibrettist for alternatingarias andrecitatives. The librettist created a sermon about the miracle of the birth ofJesus and the believer's reaction to it. The work's outermovements are choral and use the hymn tune, while the inner four movements are composed for soloists, unconnected to the hymn tune. The cantata is scored for four vocal soloists, afour-part choir, and aBaroque instrumental ensemble ofcornett andtrombones to reinforce the voices,oboe d'amore, strings, andbasso continuo.

Bach composed the cantata in his second year in Leipzig for theSecond Day of Christmas as part of hissecond cantata cycle.^[2][3] The prescribed readings for the feast day were from theEpistle to Titus (Titus 3:4–7), and theGospel of Luke (Luke 2:15–20),^[3][4] of the shepherds at the manger.^[1]: 106

The source for the text isMartin Luther's hymn "Christum wir sollen loben schon",^[3] a German translation of the Latin "A solis ortus cardine", c. 430. Luther's version, with a tune based on the Latin hymn, appeared first in theErfurtEnchiridion in 1524.^{[1]: 112 [5][2]} The hymn's first stanza and eighth stanza are retained unchanged for an opening chorus and a closing chorale. The inner stanzas were freely adapted asmadrigalianrecitatives andarias by an unknown poet,^{[1]: 112 [6]} one stanza for each of the two arias, movements 2 and 4, and two stanzas for each of the two recitatives, movements 3 and 5.^[1]: 112 The librettist created a sermon in versed poetry, devoting the first three free movements to the miracle of the birth of Jesus and the other three to the believer's reaction to it.^[2]

The hymn tune that Bach used goes back to the "A solis ortus cardine" hymn from the 5th century. Bach's version was first published in Strasbourg in 1537.^[2]

Bach led the first performance in the service on 26 December 1724.^[3]

Bach structuredChristum wir sollen loben schon in six movements. Both the text and the tune of the hymn are retained in the outer movements, a chorale fantasia and a four-part closing chorale. Bach scored the work for four vocal soloists (soprano (S),alto (A),tenor (T) andbass (B)), afour-part choir, and aBaroque instrumental ensemble ofcornett (Ct), threetrombones (Tb),oboe d'amore (Oa), two violin parts (Vl), oneviola part (Va), andbasso continuo.^{[1]: 110–111 [3][7]} The duration of the cantata is given as 21 minutes.^[1]: 110

In the following table of the movements, the scoring,keys andtime signatures are taken fromAlfred Dürr's standard workDie Kantaten von Johann Sebastian Bach.^{[1]: 110–111} The continuo, which plays throughout, is not shown.

Movements

Movement	Title	Text	Type	Vocal	Brass	Winds	Strings	Key	Time
1	Christum wir sollen loben schon	Luther	Chorale fantasia	SATB	Ct 3Tb	Oa	2Vl Va	E minor
2	O du von Gott erhöhte Kreatur	anon.	Aria	T		Oa		B minor	3 8
3	Der Gnade unermesslich's Wesen	Moller, anon.	Recitative	A
4	Johannis freudenvolles Springen	anon.	Aria	B			2Vl Va	C major
5	Doch wie erblickt es dich in deiner Krippe	Moller, anon.	Recitative	S
6	Lob, Ehr und Danke sei dir gesagt	Luther	Chorale	SATB	Ct 3Tb	Oa	2Vl Va	E minor

The opening choralmotet, "Christum wir sollen loben schon" (Christ we shall praise splendidly),^[1] is built on a quasi-church modecantus firmus in the soprano. The archaic effect of the tune is underscored by a full four-part brass accompaniment.^[5] The instruments, other than the continuo, largely double the vocal lines, while the continuo assumes anobbligatocontrapuntal role.^[2][8] Bach usedfugal techniques and an extended final cadence.^[9] The movement begins inE minor and, unusually, closes a tone higher inF-sharp minor.^[10]

The tenor aria, "O du von Gott erhöhte Kreatur, begreife nicht, nein, nein, bewundre nur" (O you exalted creature of God, do not understand, no, no, just marvel),^[11] is composed as a modernda capo aria, in which the symmetrical scheme is broken up by irregular periodising and harmonization.^[9] It includes a very prominent oboe d'amore part.^[8] The movement is largely inB minor.^[6]Craig Smith remarks that the aria is "marvelously off-kilter".^[12]

The third movement, "Der Gnade unermeßlich's Wesen" (The unfathomable being of Grace),^[11] is an alto recitative. It ends with a "startlingenharmonic progression – a symbolic transformation" toC major,^[2][5] instead of the expected F-sharp minor, to illustrate the closing words about the wonder of the birth of Jesus.^[1]: 113

The bass aria, "Johannis freudenvolles Springen erkannte dich, mein Jesu, schon" (John's joyful leaps already acknowledge you, my Jesus),^[11] is almost dance-like, portraying jumps, reflecting the movement's references toJohn the Baptist leaping in his mother's womb during theVisitation of Mary.^[5] In the middle section, the text speaks of holding the baby, ready to leave the world, in an allusion toSimeon that goes beyond Luther's text.^[1]: 113 Thebinary-form stringritornello repeats four times during the aria, framing three separate vocal sections of the da capo aria.^[9]

The penultimate movement, "Doch wie erblickt es dich in deiner Krippe?" (Yet how can it behold you in your manger?),^[11] is a soprano recitative, short andarioso-like.^[6] It is remarkable for its extended range.^[9]

The closing chorale movement presents thedoxology, "Lob, Ehr und Danke sei dir gesagt, Christ, geborn von der reinen Magd" (Praise, honor, and thanks be said to you, Christ, born from the pure maid),^[11] in a four-part setting.^[13] The early-church melody is illuminated in a modern major-minor tonality.^{[1]: 113 [5]} Unusually, the piece ends on a B minorimperfect cadence (a "half cadence" in American English).^[9]

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Bach'sautograph score is preserved. It was probably inherited by his sonWilhelm Friedemann Bach, and went, via other owners, to the royal library in Berlin, together with four parts. While the parts remained there, the score was moved duringWorld War II. It is held in theBiblioteka Jagiellońska inKraków, Poland. A set of 14 original parts was probably inherited byAnna Magdalena Bach who passed them to theThomasschule. They are now held by theBach Archive in Leipzig.^[2]

The cantata was first published in a critical edition in 1878 in the first complete edition of Bach's work, theBach-Gesellschaft Ausgabe. The volume in question was edited byAlfred Dörffel.^[2] It was published in 2000 in theNeue Bach-Ausgabe, edited byUwe Wolf.^[2]

A list of recordings is provided on theBach Cantatas website.^[4]

• Christum wir sollen loben schon, BWV 121: Scores at theInternational Music Score Library Project
• "BWV 121Christum wir sollen loben schon, English translation,University of Vermont
• Video onYouTube,Maria Keohane (soprano), Alex Potter (alto countertenor),Jan Kobow (tenor), Matthew Brook (bass),Concerto Copenhagen,Lars Ulrik Mortensen (conductor)

• Church cantatas by Johann Sebastian Bach
• 1724 compositions
• Christmas cantatas
• Chorale cantatas

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