Matthaus-Passion BWV 244
Version of 1736 (final version)
by Johann Sebastian Bach
4-Part - Sheet Music

Solo voices, choir, orchestra (Soprano Voice Solo, Alto Voice Solo, 2 Tenor Voice Solo, 2 Bass Voice Solo, 2 SATB Choir, Orchestra1:2 recorder-A, 2 Fl, 2 Ob, Ob-dam, Ob-dacc, EnglHn, bassoon, Vagb, Str, Org, Orch2 : 2 Fl, 2 Ob, Ob-dam, bassoon, Vagb, Str, Org, harpisc.) - Level 4

SKU: BA.BA05038-01

Version of 1736 (final version). Composed by Johann Sebastian Bach. Edited by Alfred Durr and Max Schneider. This edition: complete edition, urtext edition. Linen. New Bach Edition (NBA) II/5. Passionen (Passion Music, Easter). Complete edition, Score. BWV 244. Duration 3 hours, 11 minutes. Baerenreiter Verlag #BA05038-01. Published by Baerenreiter Verlag (BA.BA05038-01).

ISBN 9790006462285. 33 x 26 cm inches. Language: German.

Bach's St. Matthew Passion as we know it today evidently had a long history dating back before 1727. It is unclear whether the work performed at the Thomaskirche , Leipzig on Good Friday 1729 was based on a still earlier version. Whatever the case, the surviving version of 1729 presents the work in a form strikingly different from its later incarnation. For example, the opening section ends with the chorale ' Jesum lass ich nicht von mir ' which was replaced by the large-scale cantus firmus chorus 'O Mensch , bewein dein Sunde gross' for the 1736 performance.

The well-known alto aria 'Ach! Nun ist mein Jesus hin ' is still assigned to a bass in the earlier version, and the aria ' Komm susses Kreuz ' calls for a lute instead of the later viola da gamba . Moreover, the pieces for double chorus only require a single continuo group. Other differences can be found in the instrumental scoring and voice leading. The early version of the St. Matthew Passion is thus a most interesting addition to the great concert repertoire.

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