Lost council election cantatas by Johann Sebastian Bach

In Johann Sebastian Bach's time, the election or inauguration of a new town council, normally an annual event, was celebrated with a church service.

[1] One further cantata, BWV 193.2, lost part of its music,[2] and there are another five that have only been known to exist (two for Mühlhausen),[3][4] or for which only the text is extant (three for Leipzig).

[5][6] On 1 July 1707 Johann Sebastian Bach assumed the position of organist in the Blasiuskirche (Divi Blasii), one of two major churches in Mühlhausen.

[13][14] Notwithstanding that Bach had left for a new position in Weimar in the second half of June 1708, he kept in contact with his former employers at Mühlhausen, for instance supervising the remodelling of the organ of the Blasiuskirche according to his design, which was not completed until 1709, and also writing two more council election cantatas for the town.

[10][20][21] In that town the council election service was held at the Nikolaikirche (St Nicholas Church) on the Monday following Bartholomew (Bartholomäus), 24 August.

[5][30] The recovered text has these sections, which are assumed to have been the movements of Bach's composition: The opening dictum is the German version of Psalm 122:6–7:[33] Wünschet Jerusalem Glück; Es müsse wohl gehen denen, die dich lieben; Es müsse Friede seyn inwendig in deinen Mauren, und Glück in deinen Pallästen.

[34][35] Picander, the author of the BWV 1139.1 libretto, published it in 1729, however without the second recitative, and with a minor adjustment in the text of the third movement.

Daß er Dein Volck bringe zur Gerechtigkeit, und die Elenden errette.

(from fifth movement:) ... Mit Segen uns beschütte, ... Das Hertz sey Deine Hütte.

... Laß uns das Labsal speisen; ... Biß wir gen Himmel reisen.

These are reworked from the last two stanzas of Paul Gerhardt's hymn "Wach auf, mein Herz, und singe":[22] Sprich Ja zu meinen Taten, Hilf selbst das Beste raten; Den Anfang, Mittl und Ende, Ach, Herr, zum besten wende!

The 29th of August Then, on the Monday after Bartholomew, Mr. M. Christian Gottlob Eicher gave the so-called council election sermon on the words from Psalm 115:12, "The Lord hath been mindful of us: he will bless us."