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Photo Courtesy of Mark Helms

J.S. Bach, known as the great master, wrote more than 200 cantatas, and UMD Choral Activities aims to sing them all in this series of short performances led by conductors in the graduate program. Conducted by Mark Helms, this performance will feature Gott der Herr ist Sonn und Schild (God the Lord is sun and shield), BWV 79, which premiered in Leipzig on Reformation Day (October 31) in 1725.

Appropriate for such a major festival day, Bach composed a work full of energy and magnificence, with a grand opening chorus featuring a flurry of counterpoint paired with a fanfare for two high horns and timpani. Providing unity in the cantata, this fanfare returns in the third movement alongside the familiar hymn-tune known to us as Now Thank We All Our God, which was a regular part of the Reformation Day service each year in Leipzig. Through its bold and majestic music, the cantata along with its text reflect the confidence of Leipzig’s congregants that they are secure through the word of God.