Authentic Period Sheep May Safely Graze BWV208 Hunt Cantata

[dennisparnell]

The singer is Angela Maria Blasi, a former student of mine. She was awarded the honor of "Kammersaengerin" in Bavaria, has sung at La Scala, The Met, Covent Garden, etc. She is still a great artist and was nominated a few years ago for a grammy award for The Songs of Joseph Marx. You can google her name and find her website if you need to know more.

[IDagney]

Greta performance! I love this piece and I never thought I would laugh through it, but the comments are too funny

[sapphire6722]

What a great voice! Beautifully sung!

[baldevis]

The most vexing problem with authentic period sheep is that they are in the wrong aspect ratio.

[sukiyen]

BACH WRITES A GOOD TUNE

[stargazer555]

Too bad the sheep never really appreciated this beautiful piece!

They were just like: "meh..."

[007jorgelina]

Amo esta obra!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[gerardbedecarter]

Beautiful!

[krisdahllie]

That whole thing about the sheep is hilarious. I also really enjoyed this version.

[VeroniqueCG]

This resonates (weasle word) so fully in my brain that I can hear the voice over the instruments. Beautifully rendered. What a gorgeous piece of music!!!!

[MrMusic1983]

Is this authentic? I doubt a female would have performed the solo in Bach's time. It more likely would have been a young boy (treble) or male alto. Lovely recording, though.

[Alistairville]

Original Text (from Hunting Cantata #208):

Schafe können sicher weiden, wo ein guter Hirte wacht,

Sheep can graze safely, where a good shepherd watches

Wo Regenten wohl regieren, kann man Ruh and Frieden spüren und was Länder glücklich macht.

Where Princes govern well, one senses peace and harmony and what makes the region (Duke's territories) happy.

The Prince in question was Duke Christian of Sachsen-Weissenfels whose birthday was being celebrated. This was dinner music.

[Alistairville]

Flocks in pastures green abiding,

Safely with their shepherd rest.

Cooled by waters swiftly gliding,

With the flood of life He feeds them,

To the fold, He gently leads them,

There to dwell forever blest.

[BEMBratsch]

Um, do these sheep Baaaah at 415 or 440?

[ZzEntozZ]

@BEMBratsch Yes this is 415

[pancaloha999]

Who is singing?This is beautiful, I like the slow tempo, even though that makes it definitely harder to sing... I also prefer the authentic tuning ( historische Stimmung). There is a peacefulness in this recording which I don`t find in most of the other ones. Thank you!

[abluesman100]

No, the sheep used in bach's time are now extinct

[johnnywindows1]

Get's my hairy neck going, and my stupid bottom lip quivering- I'm such a wuss..... Outstanding music. Mr Bach was a genius.

[neverdiminished]

While there are obvious theological overtones to this aria, can we not lose sight of the fact that this is from the "Hunting Cantata," one of the few secular ones JSB wrote. Lets not go overboard on what he might be trying to say about the Good Shepherd.

[TheStockwell]

Well said. With arias sung by Pan, Diana, and Endymion this is not a particularly Christian work. Sometimes a sheep is just a sheep. I have to point that, however, that Bach wrote not just a few, but dozens of secular cantatas; they fill upwards of eight CDs. That's a lot of great Bach.

[neverdiminished]

@TheStockwell Yes, apologies I was thinking in relative terms!

[PEPEDEBARRO]

Danke, danke, danke!!!

[dolofonos]

Perhaps you ought have a better understanding of the _Parable of the Lost Sheep_. It is not a belittling lesson of servitude, but of responsibility and compassion. Are we not all ever like a lost sheep? And are we not fortunate to be saved by that shepherd who loves us as much as his entire flock? It is an idea older than Christianity, relevant today and as real as the air we breath. What person is never bestowed the shepherd's duty? There are always sheep in need of the good shepherd.

[bersa888]

HAHAHA! I like the photo... but, if I was a (Christian) believer, I certainly wouldn't like to be compared to sheep, no matter how beautiful this music ;-)

[requiemaeturnum]

@bersa888

But this is a secular cantata no? I thought it was about Pan.

[theophilus225]

This soprano is Angela Maria Blasi,with Concentus Musicus Wien,conducted by Nikolaus Harnoncourt.

[MamaRancher]

I have been looking for this song on CD, and I can't find this. Could you tell me which CD this is from, Thanks

[theophilus225]

I've got this recording from Amazon jp.The label is TELDEC,Warner Music Japan.

[kuriouskat1]

This is NOT Kathleen Battle...it doesn't even sound like a woman! This sounds like a boy!

Most likely from the Vienna Boys choir or something like that...

[yellowlynx]

I don't agree. I listened to many sopranos. It is definitely a soprano.

The rendering is extremely authentic!

[kuriouskat1]

I AM a soprano...while I'm no diva, it would be easier for me to mimic Kiri Te Kanawa or Barbara Bonney before I could attempt to mimic the voice in this recording. While this voice is very different than the divas' voices, it still sounds like a adolescent boy.

[dymondbolt]

I want to know who the singer is, too. She is the first Soprano that has such a deep resonance with the venue and the other performers. Truly sublime. Now this sounds sacred to me.

[yellowlynx]

Can't agree more....that voice is not overbearing but carries the theme gently with the instruments.

[grelthogthemighty]

Supposing I have some non-authentic period sheep - may they safely graze, or is there danger to them?

[Csanfer14]

Who´s the singer?

[derrick1342]

Kathleen Battle? But I am not sure ...

[fatoldladym]

Absolutely gorgeous.

[daijuncn]

anyone has the lyrics of the master piece?

[greekoid42]

Bach is THE God of Music.

[namaste91]

that's what i said formely with ca. 5 years..And i also think so now almost 18 years old !!:)..By the way: This is one of my absolutely favourite pieces of Bach..THE master of occidental music!

[nicodagger]

Wunderschoen!! Danke Sehr!

I agree, the darker timbre of the recorders is far superior to the transverse flute. But I once heard that the melody for "Whiter Shade of Pale" was nicked from Bach, and the person said the melody was this one, which it's not, of course. Does anyone know what Bach theme was used for "Whiter Shade of Pale"? I refer to the organ part. Thanks.

[hectorerasure]

It's not a direct transcription, but the source for that melody is the famous Aria from Orchestral Suite Nr. 3 The basslines for the aria and Whiter Shade of pale are almost identical.

[guitarslim56]

I love the "authentic period sheep." I am so sick of hearing this piece with modern sheep. The music really comes alive when you use the proper animal. Myself, I prefer German Bergschaf sheep, although I have a recording of this piece with some Devon Longwoolled that I really enjoy. Intonation is always a problem with period sheep, but the musicians in your recording are impeccable. The textures are warm and comforting without being too scratchy.

[treetangled]

LOL!

[geoadvocate]

That my friend is the most clever comment I have ever read on YouTube.... STILL laughing...

Great recording tho!

[TAPANDABBEY]

Never underestimate the importance of a talented Border Collie to conduct, however. Even with period sheep you may still end up with havoc and confusion

[cliffhammond]

That has got me laughing and laughing and I just completed a video to go with this.

[galliard1981]

Really inspirin!!he he he!!! God bless you ;)

[lisaannejane2]

this is my favorite comment of all

[VeroniqueCG]

I have to agree with geoadvocate! Wonderful comment. Still smiling! :-)

[ChristFavorsME]

@guitarslim56

Were 1700's sheep different than today's? They been technologized by generic engineering or something?

[dugortboss]

@guitarslim56. And they say humour is dead Slim !!!! Can we assume that the numbers "56" refer to your brain cell count. If so your an optimist.

[lisaannejane2]

@guitarslim56 The best comment ever made on u tube.

[edwardpiercy]

@guitarslim56 LMAO. Excellent program notes! :)

[egomorfo]

@guitarslim56 lol. very funny and truthful. congratulations, man.

[lisaannejane2]

@guitarslim56 Still the best comment on you tube.

[daasvand]

@guitarslim56 I imagine that back in those days one was beheaded if not able to play with correct embrasure!

[jubjub2112]

@guitarslim56 There aren't enough "HA!!"s in my Youtube repertoire to do your comment justice! Very funny! AND . . . this is one of my favorite of all of Bach's cantatas . . . In my opinion, he stands alone as the epitome of music . . . a giant among giants!

[berlioz1830]

I like relaxed pace as well as the color of recorders...also it is played at lower pitch (actually A-major instead of B-flat...A was lower than 440 then..) beautiful!Thanks for posting

[NoisySerg]

It's so difficult to find recordings of this song with recorders instead of transverse flutes. I'm pleased to have found this nice recording. No extra flair, just Bach at his most tender.

[DieDummePute]

My email said that you posted this as a response to my organ video of the same song. I'd love to have it as a response, but for some reason it's not showing up that way on my Youtube account. Can you rerequest it?