Membra Jesu Nostri
Buxtehude composed the cantata cycle Membra Jesus Nostri, seven connected cantatas under the same BuxWV number in 1680 as a gift and gesture to his "noble friend", as he writes in the dedication, Gustav Düben, the Royal Kapellmeister in Stockholm. The full title of the work is "Membra Jesu nostri patiantis sanctissima" - "The Holy Limbs of Our Suffering Jesus", and it is a sacred homage to the crucified body of the Savior, addressed to its individual parts, from foot to thigh -ad pedes, ad genua, ad manus, ad latus, ad pectus, ad cor, ad faciem (feet, knees, hands, side, chest, heart and face).
It is a major work of Buxtehude's vocal music and has been called the first evangelical (Lutheran) oratorio. The Latin text is taken from a series of medieval poems by unknown poets and arranged in seven voluminous sections under the heading Rhytmica oratio (or from the title of the first stanza, Salve mundi salutare - Hail the Savior of the world). The seven-part sequence follows the form of Rhytmica oratio, and in addition to being dedicated to the body of Jesus, each of the seven cantatas is introduced by a Bible passage linked to the poem section in question.
Buxtehude makes it clear that the sixth cantata, ad cor, "for the heart", is also the heart of the work by replacing the violins and violone with five viole da gamba, the instrument associated with strong emotions - grief, pain and parting. The cantata's Bible words are taken from Song of Solomon 4:9: "You have wounded my heart, my sister, my bride". It is one of Buxtehude's most moving works, and it is easy to understand why an unknown hand on the title page of the sixth cantata has written "for Easter or at any time".
(from "Buxtehude", Karl Aage Ramussen, Multiverse 2023)
Concerto Copenhagen's performance of Buxtehude's "Membra Jesu Nostri" marks the opening of Stockholm Early Music Festival 2024.
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