This monumental work, BWV 232, has always been one of my favorites to perform. It has great orchestral writing, great continuo parts (there are no recitatives, of course, but that doesnāt matter), amazing choral movements, and stunning moments of incredible harmony and emotion.
Iāve often been asked how I do bowings in this work. Since the first time I had the privilege of performing this music in the late 1970s, Iāve had a lot of time to try to figure it out. The opening Kyrie presents its own incertitudes – for example, when to play up bow, when to play down bow, and when to play at all – or not.
In order to propose a way of properly integrating the bowings into what is going on, there are several things that have to be taken into consideration. Among them are the intricate construction of the work as a whole, and the vocal construction of the chorus bass part that we in the continuo group are so often doubling. I have come to the conclusion that the bowings I show here in the opening Kyrie are the best way to take all of those elements into account.
To be clear: I am of course not saying you have to do it this way. I am saying that for me, after decades of experience with this music in general and with this piece in particular, these bowings work best. They maintain the shape of the continuo part, they provide the foundation upon which the rest of the work can be built, and above all, they respect the diction of the vocal line.
When I mention measure numbers, I refer to those in the BƤrenreiter edition (BA 5102-86), which is also the part you will see here. Here are a few remarks on the opening Kyrie.
In measure 15, the quarter note f-sharp demands a down bow and an accent. Then, retake and play the two 16ths and the two quarter notes starting with a down bow, that is the āe-le-i-sonā in the vocal bass part. Do that each time you see that, for example in measures 16, 17, 18, 58, 59, 60, and 61.
After the instrumental opening of the Kyrie which begins at measure 5, the choir enters in measure 30. Here, the bass should stay in and continue playing until the first note of measure 37. Then, please drop out and DO NOT double the choir tenor line. Start playing again when the bass voices enter on the third beat of measure 45.
I added a few missing slurs to the part – they seem to have been left out of the original, likely not because Bach changed his mind, but because he might have thought it wasnāt necessary to rewrite them every time – he figured his musicians already knew what was up.
By the way, these bowings also work very well for the cellists of the continuo group – of course, they should absolutely double the tenor line from measures 37 to 45.
In any case, enjoy this food for thought, and thank you for reading.
Written and added on March 8, 2025
