Ich habe meine Zuversicht, BWV 188

History and text#

Bach composed this cantata for the 21st Sunday after Trinity. However, the score was “cut to pieces and sold to private individuals” in the 1800s; the work as it now exists is a reconstruction. The prescribed readings for the day were , and . The text for movements 2 to 5 was written by Picander. The sixth movement is an anonymous chorale, “Auf meinen lieben Gott”, written before 1603.

Scoring and structure#

The work is scored for four solo voices (soprano, alto, tenor, and bass), a four-part choir, two oboes, taille, two violins, viola, organ, and basso continuo. The piece has six movements: # Sinfonia # Aria (tenor): # Recitative (bass): # Aria (alto): # Recitative (soprano): # Chorale:

Music#

The opening sinfonia for solo organ and orchestra derives from the third movement of Bach’s keyboard concerto in D minor, BWV 1052. The tenor aria has been compared to movements from both the French Suites and the Fifth English Suite. It opens with a string ritornello doubled by oboe; the two parts move into counterpoint after the tenor enters. Formally, the movement has an extended two-part A section before moving to a B section remarkable for its emphasis on instrumental arpeggiation. The bass recitative is secco and concludes with a pastoral arioso. The alto aria is “dark and dramatic”, in E minor with cello and organ obbligato. The organ line is complex, contributing to a movement that is “a complex and ever-changing kaleidoscope of richly entwined rhythms and melodies”. The soprano recitative is short and accompanied by chordal strings. The final movement is a four-part setting of the chorale tune, doubled by oboe, taille, and strings.

Recordings#

• Gächinger Kantorei / Württembergisches Kammerorchester Heilbronn, Helmuth Rilling. Die Bach Kantate. Hänssler, 1983.
• Holland Boys Choir / Netherlands Bach Collegium, Pieter Jan Leusink. Bach Edition Vol. 5. Brilliant Classics, 1999.
• Monteverdi Choir / English Baroque Soloists, John Eliot Gardiner. Bach Cantatas Vol. 11. Soli Deo Gloria, recorded 2000.
• Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir, Ton Koopman. J.S. Bach: Complete Cantatas Vol. 19. Antoine Marchand, 2003.
• Bach Collegium Japan, Masaaki Suzuki. J. S. Bach: Cantatas Vol. 49. BIS, 2010.

External links#

• Ich habe meine Zuversicht BWV 188; BC A 154 / Sacred cantata (21st Sunday after Trinity) Bach Digital
• BWV 188 – “Ich habe meine Zuversicht”: Cantata notes, Emmanuel Music
• BWV 188 Ich habe meine Zuversicht: English translation, University of Vermont
• BWV 188.6 bach-chorales.com