Bach: Es reißet euch ein schrecklich Ende, BWV 90

Description

The cantata Es reißet euch ein schrecklich Ende (A terrifying end sweeps you away), BWV 90, composed for the 25th Sunday after Trinity in 1723, is – like several of the cantatas dedicated to previous Sundays – in the style of a chamber work. The piece opens with a tenor aria rather than a chorus, with all four voices joining only in the final chorale. The opening's aria's is accompanied only by strings from which the violin emerges in an almost concertante manner. The second aria is then enlivened by an extraordinarily virtuosic trumpet part. Bach's frequent combination of trumpet and bass is justified here by the combative text "So löschet im Eifer der rächende Richter" (Thus will the avenging Judge extinguish in His jealousy).