The concert opens with the solemn BWV 162 Ach! ich sehe, itzt, da ich zur Hochzeit gehe (Ah! I see, now, that I have gone to the feast), a cantata brought to life by Salomo Franck’s strongly worded libretto. There then follows BWV 49 Ich geh und suche mit Verlangen (I go and seek with longing), a dialogue cantata dating from 1726 which is geared towards creating an atmosphere depicting the beauty of the soul. In his booklet notes, Gardiner states that the best movement is the fourth, an aria for soprano with oboe d’amore and violoncello piccolo, which he believes to be “a kind of early version of Bernstein’s ’I feel pretty.’ ” The concert ends with the very beautiful, BWV 180 Schmücke dich, o liebe Seele (Deck yourself, my soul, with gladness).

 

We then travel back to London for a concert in the Old Royal Navel College Chapel, Greenwich, a perfect architectural and acoustic setting. Bach composed four outstanding works for this Sunday, marvellously contrasted and subtly differentiated by mood and instrumentation. The earliest of these, BWV 109 Ich glaube, lieber Herr, hilf meinem Unglauben! (Lord, I believe, help Thou mie unbelief), opens the concert. The wonderful opening chorus, a setting of words from St Mark’s gospel, emphasises the tension between belief and scepticism in such personal terms that one wonders whether it mirrors Bach’s own private struggles of faith. This theme of distress and yearning for forgiveness continues in BWV 38 Aus tiefer Not schrei ich zu dir (Out of deep distress I cry to you) where Bach emphasises this mood in the final chorus by giving all voices full orchestral doubling, including the rare usage of four trombones! After all that accumulated intensity, BWV 98 Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan, dating from November 1726, is exceptionally genial. Last in the programme comes BWV 188 Ich habe meine Zuversicht, of 1728/29. In Bach’s harmonisation it exudes confidence, trust and power.