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SKU: CA.3720919
Christmas cantata. Composed by Gottfried August Homilius. Edited by Uwe Wolf. German title: Uns Ist Ein Kind Geboren (Kantate). Sacred vocal music, Cantatas, Christmas. Set of parts. Composed 1765. HoWV II.13. Duration 17 minutes. Carus Verlag #CV 37.209/19. Published by Carus Verlag (CA.3720919).ISBN 9790007134716. 9 x 12 inches. Language: German.
The cantata Uns ist ein Kind geboren for Christmas Day has an unusual structure with only one aria, but two choral movements. The choral movements frame the work, while the soprano aria, bookended by two secco recitatives, is at the center of the cantata. The song-like B section of the aria forms the axis of symmetry, and it’s only here that the trumpets are heard outside the choruses, with a quotation from the opening chorus.
Both choruses are based on a Biblical text: the opening chorus on the well-known Old Testament prophecy of the Christmas event from Isaiah 9:5, and the final chorus on a passage from Timothy 3:16 about the mystery of faith: "Great is the mystery of godliness". The opening and closing choruses are largely homophonic, but the second half of the final chorus, which is Christmassy and corresponds to the passage from Timothy "God was manifested in the flesh", is developed into a grand final fugue.
It is one of many striking cantatas by Homilius, not just because of the very singable lines (which were typical of the time and often accompanied by a sprightly orchestra), but also because of the surprising overall structure.
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