Classical Music | Piano Music

Recorded on 06/14/2005, uploaded on 01/09/2009

Musician's or Publisher's Notes

Sheep May Safely Graze              Johann Sebastian Bach/ Egon Petri

Piano virtuosi of the 19th and early 20th century used the genre of piano transcription not only to showcase their astounding technique, but also as a way of introducing audiences to new large orchestral works and operas as these performances were something of a rarity for most people.  With the development of the recording industry, transcriptions became obsolete, and if they were ever played, it was only as an encore.  Luckily, transcriptions are regaining popularity, and today's pianists are finally taking a second look at these long neglected compositions.

The aria "Sheep may safely graze" comes from one of the best loved of J. S. Bach's secular cantatas, the Hunt Cantata, composed on the occasion of Duke Christian's birthday.  In this transcription, pianist Egon Petri (1881-1962) masterfully and delicately preserves the transparency of Bach's texture.  This inconspicuous piano transcription manages to preserve the sound of a chamber orchestra with the abundance of the intertwining lines.    Jie Chen

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Was mir behagt, ist nur die muntre Jagd, BWV 208 (“Sheep May Safely Graze”)    Johann Sebastian Bach

Among the many sacred cantatas Bach composed, were several of the secular sort. The most famous of these is the cantata Was mir behagt, ist nur die muntre Jagd, BWV 208 (“The lively hunt is all my heart’s desire”), often referred to as the Hunting Cantata. It was composed in 1713 for the 31^st birthday for Duke Christian of Saxe-Weissenfels.

The text of the cantata calls on the characters of Greek and Roman mythology to celebrate the Duke’s birthday. Diana, the Roman goddess of the hunt, opens the cantata by praising the hunt. Later, Pan, the Greek god of flocks and shepherds, joins and sings praise to the Duke with the words “A prince is his own country’s Pan.” Following, Pan’s aria, Pales enters with a recitative that leads to one of the most well-known of Bach’s arias. This soprano aria, Schafe können sicher weiden, known in English as “Sheep may safely graze,” is scored for two flutes with continuo. It is widely known in its piano transcription form and the Australian-born composer Percy Granger composed several pieces based on it as well as a popular wind band arrangement. While the title of the aria is innocent enough, its text praises benevolent despotism by comparing the people to sheep in the pasture of the monarch. No doubt this was meant to appease the Duke and does not necessarily reflect the sentiments of librettist or composer. The remainder of the cantata proceeds in like fashion with the soloists continuing on about the Duke. Two choral movements appear in the latter half of the work.

Incidentally, it has been speculated that an early version of the first movement of the first Brandenburg Concerto served as an introduction to this cantata. This assertion has never been proven, though an instrumental introduction is sometimes added in modern recordings.     Joseph DuBose

Courtesy of International Music Foundation.