The Coffee Hour — BACH WEEK! J.S. Bach as Composer

Dr. Maurice Boyer, Professor of Music at Concordia University Chicago and Music Director of the American Kantorei, joins Andy and Sarah during Bach Week to talk about J.S. Bach as composer, including his musical style and how it compared to other composers of his time, who he composed for and who his audience was, how his compositions have been regarded through multiple generations, and a few selections that are beautiful works for us to enjoy.

Referenced in today’s episode:

BWV 7 “Es is das Heil uns kommen her” (“Salvation Unto Us Has Come,” Lutheran Service Book 555) — 6th Sunday after Trinity OR 7th after Pentecost) youtu.be/zq1IAR_J0NI

BWV 93 “Wer nur den lieben Gott laesst walten” (“If Thou but Trust in God to Guide Thee,” Lutheran Service Book 750) — 5th Sunday after Trinity OR 6th after Pentecost youtu.be/in5XDlJnrB8

BWV 137 “Lobe den Herren, den maechtigen Koenig Der Ehren” (“Praise to the Lord, the Almighty,” Lutheran Service Book 790) — 12th Sunday after Trinity OR 13th after Pentecost youtu.be/rNAxuzyDLzs

A list of chorale cantatas to be used for devotions each week this summer:

July 4 (Pentecost 6) BWV 93 “If Thou but Trust in God to Guide Thee”
July 11 (Pentecost 7) BWV 7 “Salvation unto Us Has Come”
July 18 (Pentecost 8) BWV 107 “Why Would You Grieve”
July 25 (Pentecost 9) BWV 178 “If God the Lord Does Not Remain on Our Side”
August 1 (Pentecost 10) BWV 94 “What Do I Ask from the Lord”
August 8 (Pentecost 11) BWV 101 “Take from Us, Lord, You Faithful God”
August 15 (Pentecost 12) BWV 113 “Lord Jesus Christ, You Highest Good”
August 22 (Pentecost 13) BWV 137 “Praise to the Lord, the Almighty”
August 29 (Pentecost 14) BWV 33 “To You Alone, Lord Jesus Christ”
September 5 (Pentecost 15) BWV 78 “Jesus by Whom My Soul”
September 12 (Pentecost 16) BWV 99 “What God Ordains Is Always Good”

All of these cantatas are available on Youtube in splendid performances.

The Coffee Hour is underwritten by Concordia University Wisconsin. Live Uncommon. Learn more at cuw.edu.

Have a topic you’d like to hear about on The Coffee Hour? Contact Andy Bates at andrew.bates@kfuo.org or call 314-996-1519.

Sarah Gulseth

A proud Michigan native and fan of anything with the Mitten State on it, Digital Media Manager Sarah Gulseth is also a lover of historical war movies and anything with the label PBS Masterpiece. An avid bicyclist and women’s biking advocate, she rides her bike to work year-round and has the massive bike clothing and accessory collection to prove it. If it’s the weekend, she and her husband Luther are probably out riding bikes, or finding the next awesome coffee shop to frequent, or rehearsing for the next choir concert. You may also find her down a new rabbit hole on Google, researching the latest random fact she found on social media, while eating an unhealthy amount of apples (Macintosh from Michigan, of course) and raw almond butter.