J.S. Bach: Ihr, die ihr euch von Christo nennet, BWV 164 - The Church Cantatas, Vol. 127

BWV164 (26 August 1725) is a sermon on the parable of the Good Samaritan: christians ought not to be Christians in word only, but Christians in deed. The opening phrase directed at the followers of Christ is sung twice, before the criticism starts. The bass recitative is a paraphrase of one of the beatitudes (`Blessed are the merciful’) in which the word Barmherzigkeit gets a beautiful arioso. The plight of those who knock on the doors of our heart in vain is painted in vivid colours. The alto aria has one of those characteristic Bachian dialogues in which the two voices (here two flutes) take over each other’s musical phrases all the time; the word Erbarmen once again is in for something special whenever it occurs. A tenor recitative follows with a cold note on kalt and the highest note on Heiland, and then comes a soprano/bass duet with a truly beautiful line for the flutes, oboes and violins together. The theme is followed by its inverse, illustrating the opening of our hands to help our neighbour.