B Minor Mass Explorer

Introduction
Welcome to this 'Visual Studio' for Bach's Mass in B Minor, created for the occasion of my third singing of this masterpiece with Chorus Niagara in March of 2009.

The text and structure is laid out on this page in ways that allow you to manipulate and re-present its various aspects. At any time you can hide this Explorer and print the current view. You are free to reproduce these 'Views' for your own (perhaps scholarly) reference, as long as you acknowledge this web site address.
Structure
Bach's Mass in B Minor is divided by Bach into four parts with the Missa further split in two. Within these parts the movements are numbered here in the standard way and laid out to show their symmetry within each part.
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Related Posts

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Missa: Kyrie

 ??? 
1. Kyrie eleison

1. Kyrie eleison
Kyrie eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.

x3
This part of the mass has traditionally included 3X3 'eleisons' as an expression of the Trinity. In this opening movement there are three distinct sections, a brief, opening homophonic salvo and then two runs at the fugue
 
Chorus:
SSATB

2. Christe eleison

2. Christe eleison
Christe eleison.
Christe eleison.
Christe eleison.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.

x3
The threefold 'Christe eleison' is clearly evident here - the sopranos falling silent twice for five or six bars of instrumental development.
The 'Kyrie' section is here characterized by the liturgical color for the season of Lent - symbolizing pain, suffering, and therefore mourning and penitence. The central 'Christe eleison' is remarkably lighter in tone than the outer Kyrie's. Its major key relects the atonement of Christ.
 
Duet:
SS

3. Kyrie eleison

3. Kyrie eleison
Kyrie eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Kyrie eleison.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.

x3
The basses mark off the trinity here with their opening statement of the fugue's theme and two extended silences setting the stage for dramatic re-entries.
 
Chorus:
SATB

Missa: Gloria
4. Gloria in excelsis

4. Gloria in excelsis
Gloria in excelsis Deo.
Glory be to God on high.
The style of this piece is derived from two similar dances, the Gigue and the Passpied, and is metrically organized so that bars are alternately 'strong' and 'weak'. The movement may originally have been the closing movement of a 'Kothen' concerto. JB
Chorus:
SSATB

5. Et in terra pax

5. Et in terra pax
Et in terra pax hominibus bonae voluntatis.
And on earth peace to men of good will.
 
Chorus:
SSATB

6. Laudamus te

6. Laudamus te
Laudamus te,
benedicimus te,
adoramus te,
glorificamus te.
We praise thee,
we bless thee,
we worship thee,
we glorify thee.
 
 
Aria:
S

7. Gratias agimus tibi

7. Gratias agimus tibi
Gratias agimus tibi propter magnam gloriam tuam.
We thank thee for thy great glory.
 
 
 
Chorus:
SATB

8. Domine Deus

8. Domine Deus
Domine Deus, Rex coelestis,
Deus Pater omnipotens,
Domine Fili unigenite,
Jesu Christe altissime,
Domine Deus, Agnus Dei, Filius Patris.
Lord God, heavenly King,
Father Almighty,
O Lord, the only begotten Son,
Jesus Christ Highest,
Lord God, Lamb of God, son of the Father.
This first reference to Christ as the the human incarnation of God is marked by the first use of the 'lowly' key of G major, and is only exceeded later by the key of e minor in the Crucifixus. (JB) The key of G is used again to profess faith in Jesus Christ (Et in unum) and to call on his mercy (Agnus Dei).
 
Duet:
ST

9. Qui tollis peccata mundi

9. Qui tollis peccata mundi
Qui tollis peccata mundi,
miserere nobis,
qui tollis peccata mundi,
suscipe deprecationem nostram.
Thou who takest away the sins of the world,
have mercy upon us,
Thou who takest away the sins of the world,
receive our prayer.
 
 
 
Chorus:
SATB

10. Qui sedes ad dextram Patris

10. Qui sedes ad dextram Patris
Qui sedes ad dextram Patris,
miserere nobis.
Thou that sittest at the right hand of God the Father,
have mercy upon us.
 
Aria:
A

11. Quoniam tu solus sanctus

11. Quoniam tu solus sanctus
Quoniam tu solus sanctus,
tu solus Dominus,
tu solus altissimus Jesu Christe.
For thou only art holy,
thou only art the Lord,
thou only, Christ, art most high.
 
Aria:
B

12. Cum Sancto Spiritu

12. Cum Sancto Spiritu
Cum Sancto Spiritu in gloria Dei Patris, Amen.
With the Holy Ghost in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
The balance between this final pair of movements in the Gloria is striking. In addition to the shared key and time signature, the 'Quoniam' and 'Cum Sancto' have almost exactly the same number of bars. JB
Chorus:
SATB

Symbolum Nicenum (Credo)
1-2. Credo - Patrem

1. Credo in unum Deum
Credo in unum Deum
I believe in one God
 
Chorus:
SSATB

2. Patrem omnipotentem
Patrem omnipotentem,
factorem coeli et terrae,
visibilium omnium et invisibilium.
The Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.
 
Chorus:
SATB

3. Et in unum

3. Et in unum Dominum
Et in unum Dominum Jesum Christum,
Filium Dei unigenitum
et ex Patre natum ante omnia saecula.
Deum de Deo,
lumen de lumine,
Deum verum de Deo vero,
genitum, non factum consubstantialem Patri,
per quem omnia facta sunt.
Qui propter nos homines
et propter nostram salutem descendit de coelis.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the only begotten Son of God
and of the Father born before all ages.
God from God,
light from light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made, of one substance with the Father,
by whom all things were made.
Who for us men
and for our salvation descended from heaven.
 
Duet:
SA

4. Et incarnatus est

4. Et incarnatus est
Et incarnatus est
de Spiritu Sancto ex MAria: virgine,
et homo factus est.
And was made flesh
through the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary.
And was made man.
 
 
 
Chorus:
SSATB

5. Crucifixus

5. Crucifixus
Crucifixus etiam pro nobis
sub Pontio Pilato,
passus et sepultus est.
Crucified also for us
under Pontius Pilate,
suffered and was buried.
Within the five part structure of the Mass in B Minor this movement is central, the pivot point.
 
Chorus:
SATB

6. Et resurrexit

6. Et resurrexit
Et resurrexit tertia die
secundum scripturas,
et ascendit in coelum,
sedet ad dextram Dei Patris,
et iterum venturus est cum gloria,
judicare vivos et mortuos,
cuius regni non erit finis.
And he rose the third day,
according to Scriptures,
and ascended into heaven,
to sit at the right hand of the Father,
and is going to come again with glory,
to judge the living and dead,
of whose kingdom not will there be end.
Displays characteristics of the 'Courante', triple metre dance form, espcially in the four-bar phrase stucture of its instrumental ritornellos. It resembles a movement from Bach's fourth Overture (BWV 1069). JB
 
 
Chorus:
SSATB

7. Et in Spiritum Sanctum

7. Et in Spiritum Sanctum Dominum
Et in Spiritum Sanctum Dominum et vivificantem,
qui ex Patre Filioque procedit;
qui cum Patre et Filio simul adoratur et conglorificatur;
qui locutus est per Prophetas.
Et unam sanctam catholicam et apostolicam ecclesiam.
And in the Holy Spirit, Lord and lifegiver,
who from the Father and Son proceeds;
who with Father and Son together is adored and glorified,
who spoke through the Prophets.
And one, holy, catholic and Apostolic Church.
 
Aria:
B

8-9. Confiteor - Et exspecto

8. Confiteor
Confiteor unum baptisma in remissionem peccatorum.
I confess one baptism for the remission of sins.
 
Chorus:
SSATB

9. Et exspecto
Et exspecto resurrectionem mortuorum
et vitam venturi saeculi, Amen.
And I expect the resurrection of the dead.
and life to come eternal. Amen.
Displays characteristics of the 'Bourree' dance form with its clear cut phrasing. It resembles the 'Bourree' in Bach's fourth Overture (BWV 1069). JB
Chorus:
SSATB

Sanctus
Sanctus I

Sanctus I
Sanctus, sanctus, sanctus
Dominus Deus Sabaoth
Holy, holy, holy,
Lord God of hosts.
 
Chorus:
SSAATB

Sanctus II

Sanctus II
Pleni sunt coeli et terra gloria eius.
Heaven and earth are full of Thy glory.
The two halves of the Sanctus last roughly the same time.
Chorus:
SSAATB

Ossanna, Benedictus, Agnus Dei et Dona nobis pacem
1. Ossanna in excelsis

1. Ossanna in excelsis
Osanna in excelsis
Hosanna in the highest
The secular origins of this movement's style is clear. Like the 'Gloria' (#4), the 'Ossanna' is rooted in the in the 'gigue' dance form. The final, instrumental flourish is made up of eight, related, four-bar phrases which also show patterning within themselves. JB
Chorus:
SATBSATB

2. Benedictus

2. Benedictus
Benedictus qui venit in nomine Domini.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
 
 
 
Aria:
T

3. Ossanna in excelsis

3. Ossanna in excelsis
Osanna in excelsis
Hosanna in the highest
 
 
Chorus:
SATBSATB

4. Agnus De

4. Agnus Dei
Agnus Dei qui tollis peccata mundi,
miserere nobis.
O Lamb of God, that takes away the sins of the world,
have mercy upon us.
The liturgical progression here, in spite of being the end, is one from unbridled (golden) Hosannas , tempered by the poignant and pleading arias (purple), to the final, firm and serene plea for peace
 
 
 
Aria:
A

5. Dona nobis pacem

5. Dona nobis pacem
Dona nobis pacem.
Grant us peace.
 
 
 
Chorus:
SATB