Text No. 1, 2, 4, 6
Georg Christian Lehms (1684–1717)

Text No. 3, 5
Bible quotes

Text No. 7
Kaspar Füger (1521–1592)

First performance
First Day of Christmas,
25 December 1725

As befits a work commemorating a feast day, Bach pulls out all the stops in the introductory chorus, which is set to a modified verse from psalm 126. For this movement, Bach adapts an earlier overture for strings, three oboes, basoon and continuo (most probably from his Cöthen era), augmenting it with trumpets, timpani and transverse flutes to compose a score of stirring, festive joy that virtually explodes in a Handelesque burst of fireworks over the opening pedal point. By adding a choral insertion to the concertante fugue, Bach creates a middle section replete with solo passages and ripieno vocal parts that lend the movement extraordinary impact and diversity.
Following this majestic opening is a gentle tenor aria centring on inner reflection of the “thoughts and senses”. Here, the Christmas connection that some commentators find lacking in the text is provided for by the flutes, which, together with the bassoon continuo, lend the timbre a pastoral quality. Ascending gestures are prevalent throughout the movement, with the repetition of the word “we” accentuating humankind’s designation as “heaven’s children” to great effect. In the expressive bass recitative that ensues, the accompanying strings could even be mistaken for the beating of angels’ wings. The sudden transition to the F minor world of the following alto aria, however, draws attention to the cantata’s true import: namely, the chasm between godly majesty and human baseness, and the wonder in the resolution – albeit undeserved – of this schism through the birth of Jesus Christ. Here, the addition of an oboe d’amore to the stolid, selfaccusing alto lines provides at once a soulful tone and a symbolic gesture. God, through his love, ennobled the nature of humankind, making for a richer and warmer world. This theme is continued in the following duet, whose magnificent text of “Glory to God in the highest” could have given vent to a massive choral setting. Bach, however, scores the text simply, with a smooth continuo line evoking a moment of inner rejoicing and still rapture. We can only wonder whether the Leipzig audience of the day recognised the passage from Bach’s Weihnachtsmagnificat of 1723 that forms the basis of this movement. By transforming the Magnificat’s “Virga Jesse floruit” to a “Glory to God in the highest”, Bach provides a musical resolution to the promise of the Old Testament that is generally considered to prophesy the coming of Christ. Following this passage, unbridled joy breaks forth: the bass aria takes on the triadic figures of the duet, passing them to the trumpets that invoke Chrtismas rejoicing with robust fanfare: “Wake up, ye nerves and all ye members”. Appropriately, all voices move in ascending lines, even leaps. But the composer adheres to a strict interpretation of the text: when the “strings of deep devotion” are mentioned, the otherwise brilliant trumpet calls are notably absent.
The closing chorale, set to the archaic melody of the hymn “Wir Christenleut”, brings the work to a surprisingly ernest conclusion. The short phrases of the text give the movement considerable weight, and it is evident that – despite being in his third year of office in Leipzig – Bach had yet to tire of impressing his audience and still aspired to the highest challenges.