Komm, Gott Schöpfer, Heiliger Geist

BWV 631 performed by Matthias Havinga
Walburgiskerk, Zutphen

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Whitsuntide joy

With the rhythm of the gigue and a syncopated bass, Bach creates a festive chorale prelude

There is no shortage of hymns about God the Father and Jesus Christ. The third member of the Holy Trinity, the Holy Spirit, does not come off as well. But the chorale Komm, Gott Schöpfer, Heiliger Geist is an exception. It is a translation of the medieval Latin hymn Veni creator spiritus. Both the chorale and the hymn are sung at Whitsuntide, the holy day celebrating the Holy Spirit. Luther translated the text almost literally, as well as largely copying the Gregorian melody.

Bach made two arrangements of this ancient melody: one for the Orgelbüchlein - the piece you hear here, written in Weimar between 1712 and 1717 - and one as part of the Leipziger Chorale (compiled during the latter years of his life). On both occasions, Bach was satisfied with a single strophe. It is striking how closely the two settings resemble one another. It would appear that Bach’s vision of this hymn had hardly changed in the intervening thirty years.

The chorale melody in this BWV 631 is in the upper part. Beneath this calm surface, a busy accompaniment in 12/8 time is heard. It is the rhythm of a gigue – a fast Baroque dance – which supports the festive character of the Whitsun celebrations. Unusual is the bass part: throughout almost the whole piece, the bass note is heard only on every third beat, as if the pedal is lagging behind the melody. It produces a syncopated effect that was absolutely not by the book. In this way, Bach ensures that this short chorale prelude (a piece of music played in church, prior to the singing of a particular hymn, ed.) stands out immediately.

Orgelbüchlein, BWV 599-644
During his time as court organist at Weimar (1708-1714), Bach already started compiling his first collection of chorale arrangements and chorale preludes (compositions based on Lutheran hymns). They were intended to be used in church services, and the preludes were an introduction to congregational singing. According to the list of contents in Bach’s manuscript, it was supposed to have been a collection of 164 compositions, but in the end it did not exceed 46 (BWV 599-644). The order, combined with the limited length of the pieces, indicates that Bach was planning to compile a complete cycle of chorale arrangements. Later, in his period at Köthen, he gave the collection a title page, which reads: ‘Orgel-Büchlein, Worinne einem anfahenden Organisten Anleitung gegeben wird, auff allerhand Arth einen Choral durchzuführen…’ (‘Little organ book, in which a beginner organist is taught to arrange a chorale in all sorts of ways...’). So at the time, he intended the collection just as a teaching manual, maybe to present on his application in 1722 for the post of cantor at the Thomasschule in Leipzig, which was an important teaching position. The pupils must have had a hard time of it, as the preludes contain the complete range of baroque keyboard techniques in a nutshell.

BWV: 631
Title: Komm, Gott Schöpfer, Heiliger Geist
Instrument: organ
Genre: organ works
Serie: Orgelbüchlein
Year: ca. 1711-1713
City: Weimar
Occasion: Whitsun

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Credits

Release date

12 June 2025
Recording date

30 May 2024
Location

Walburgiskerk, Zutphen
Organ

Matthias Havinga
Instrument

Henrick Bader, 1639/1643
Director and editor

Gijs Besseling
Music recording

Guido Tichelman, Pim van der Lee
Music edit and mix

Guido Tichelman
Camera

Danny Noordanus, Manon Hoskens, Remco van Leest
Grip

Wouter Visser
Assistant music recording

Marloes Biermans
Producer

Lisanne Marlou de Kok

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