First performed on October 29, 1724,
Bach’s intense and dark cantata based on Martin Luther’s chorale Aus tiefer
Not schrei ich zu dir (Out of the deep I cry to you) evokes both the ancient
and the modern, alternating and combining older forms, modes, and instruments
with newer ones. This interpretation of Psalm 130 focuses on the steadfastness
of faith against all odds, represented by the chorale-tune's appearance in some
form in all six movements, adapted to the mood and context of each movement in
an almost Beethovenian manner.
