Bach: Nun Komm
Oxford Bach Soloists
Directed by Eamonn Dougan
With Emilia Bertolini, William Purefoy, Oscar Golden-Lee, and Ben Davies
Join the Oxford Bach Soloists for Nun Komm, a special Advent concert featuring two of J.S. Bach’s cantatas inspired by the hymn Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland (“Come now, Saviour of the gentiles”). This hymn, beloved during the Advent season, serves as the foundation for both BWV 62 and BWV 36.
In BWV 62, Bach weaves Martin Luther’s 1524 hymn melody throughout both the instrumental and vocal textures with characteristic invention and brilliance. BWV 36 also celebrates this hymn, but with a fresh approach, reworking material from Bach’s secular cantatas and introducing an innovative structure where chorale verses replace traditional recitatives, creating an extended, two-part work.
The concert opens with choruses filled with tremendous energy and joyful anticipation, heralding the coming of the Saviour. Through expressive arias and chorales, the music reflects on divine wonders, the majesty of God, and the blessings promised to the faithful as we prepare for the birth of Christ. As the hymn urges, “Laßt die süße Musica ganz freudenreich erschallen” – “Let the sweet music ring out full of joy.”