Hurry, you tempted souls

By Anonymous -
Christ was taken from the garden in the night like a thief and led before the people who once called him the Son of God. They heard him preach the word of His Father and then denied Him as one. They called him a liar and falsely accused Him. He was scorned, shamed, and spat upon.
           As a member of the chorus, we get to represent many different parts in the story of Jesus' crucifixion. We play the mob and the general commentators. Despite feeling like we are suffering from multiple personality disorder, these choruses are amazing to sing. The opening Chorus is like a prayer asking God to help us understand the sacrifice that Jesus made so that we might be free of all our transgressions. After that we become the mob; however, when Pilot's servant strikes Jesus for the first time we become the apologetic sinners, we sing:

11. Chorale (time in video 0:28:27)
Who has struck you thus,
my Savior, and with torments
so evilly used You?
You are not at all a sinner 
like us and our children, 
You know nothing of transgressions.
I, I and my sins,
That can be found like the grains
of sand my the sea,
these have brought You
this misery that assails You,
and this tormenting martyrdom.

I found this piece to be particularly emotive due to the harmonies between the sopranos and altos.  The dissonance between those two parts when we sing the word 'struck' sounds as if it is filled with so much pain, yet it sounds so beautiful and then the chord resolves. A similar dissonance-resolve  happens when we sing the words torment and sins. Bach clearly wanted to emphasize these words and allow the audience, and even more the singers, to feel the pain and torment.

After this, Peter denies being a disciple three times, Jesus is flogged and the mob demands Jesus be crucified. After Pilot's internal struggle of deciding whether or not to let the mob have Jesus he gives in. Pilot delivers Him to be crucified and Jesus carries His cross to the Place of the Skulls where he was to be crucified. If this were the first time you were hearing the story of Jesus' death you would not have been able to tell if Pilot was going to release Jesus or hand Him over to the mob. However, when the Evangelist sings: "Then he delivered Him to be crucified", one has a sinking feeling, the loss of hope.  The next piece after  after this statement is not written in the Gospel of John, it is another inserted commentary. A bass soloist comes out and sings while the chorus interjects "where".
24. Aria B  and Chorus  (time in video  1:06:05)
Hurry, you tempted souls,
come out of your caves of torment,
hurry- where?- to Golgatha!
Take up wings of faith,
fly -where?- to the Hill of the Cross,
Your salvation blooms there!
The basses constant moving notes perfectly depict what he is telling the tormented souls to do: fly! The major key and upbeat nature of this piece seem out of place since Jesus has just been handed over to be crucified. Yet the urgent interjection of the chorus demanding to know "where!" it is that they will be saved paints a picture of the desperate need we have of Jesus' sacrifice. I did not get to sing this piece, however, I was to sit in the middle of the chorus. The harmonies between the parts had a particular way of resonating and I felt as if they were buzzing in my head. Another incredible accomplishment by Bach.
Given the opportunity I would love to study the intricacies of the piece both historically and musically. This way I would be able to get even more out of such an intricate and complex work.


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