Ärgre dich, o Seele, nicht (Do not be confounded, o soul),[1]
BWV186 is a
church cantata by
Johann Sebastian Bach. He composed it originally in
Weimar in 1716 for
Advent, BWV 186a, and expanded it in
Leipzig in 1723 for the seventh Sunday after
Trinity, where he first performed it on 11 July 1723.
The prescribed readings for the Sunday are from the
Epistle to the Romans, "the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life" (
Romans 6:19–23), and from the
Gospel of Mark, the
feeding of the 4000 (
Mark 8:1–9). The recitatives mention that by stressing terms as Hunger (hunger) and schmecket und sehet (taste and see).[2]
Scoring and structure
The cantata is scored for four soloists and a four-part choir
SATB, two
oboes,
taille (tenor oboe), two
violins,
viola and
basso continuo including
bassoon. Its eleven movements are in two parts, movements 1 to 6 to be performed before the sermon, the others after the sermon.[2]
Chorus: Ärgre dich, o Seele, nicht
Recitative (bass): Die Knechtsgestalt, die Not, der Mangel
Aria (bass): Bist du, der mir helfen soll
Recitative (tenor): Ach, daß ein Christ so sehr
Aria (tenor): Mein Heiland läßt sich merken
Chorale: Ob sichs anließ, als wollt er nicht
After the sermon:
Recitative (tenor): Es ist die Welt die große Wüstenei
Aria (soprano): Die Armen will der Herr umarmen
Recitative (alto): Nun mag die Welt mit ihrer Lust vergehen
Aria (soprano, alto): Laß, Seele, kein Leiden
Chorale: Die Hoffnung wart' der rechten Zeit
Music
The opening chorus is in
rondo form, A B A B A. Section A treats the first line of the poem, section B lines 2 to 4. Section A is a complex combination of instrumental and vocal composition. The instruments open with a sinfonia of 8 measures, followed by a short vocal Devise (statement) which is repeated by the orchestra, and only then a
fugal development begins, the vocal parts sometimes embedded in material from the sinfonia. The first repeat of section A is shortened in the sinfonia, the second repeat starts with the fugal part right away. In great contrast section B is set
a cappella (only accompanied by the continuo) and partly
homophonic.
The scoring of the four arias shows increasing complexity and also a rise from the lowest voice to the higher one, soprano and alto coming in only in the second part. The first aria is accompanied only by the continuo, the two next ones in a trio setting, and the final aria is a duet with orchestra. It resembles a
gigue, and the voices, singing "Laß, Seele, kein Leiden von Jesu dich scheiden" (My soul, let no sorrow separate you from Jesus),[1] illustrate the meaning by mostly parallel movement.
The chorale movements 6 and 11, ending the two parts of the cantata, are the same music, a
chorale fantasia.[4] The chorale is embedded in a concerto of the orchestra, the cantus firmus is given to the soprano, whereas the lower voices sing counterpoint in faster movement, sometimes in imitation.[2]
Cantata BWV 186 Ärgre dich, o Seele, nicht history, scoring, sources for text and music, translations to various languages, discography, discussion, Bach Cantatas Website