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BACH – Air from the Secular Cantata No.208 ‘Sheep may safely graze’ – FOUR CELLOS

Other Identification:
“Was mir behagt, ist nur die muntre Jagd” (‘The lively hunt is all my heart’s desire’), BWV 208, also known as the Hunting Cantata, is a secular cantata composed in 1713 by Johann Sebastian Bach for the 31st birthday of Duke Christian of Saxe-Weissenfels on 23rd February 1713. It is important in that it is Bach’s earliest surviving secular cantata, composed while he was employed as court organist in Weimar. The work may have been intended as a gift from Bach’s employer, William Ernest, Duke of Saxe-Weimar, for his neighbouring ruler, Duke Christian, who was a keen hunter.

The aria “Schafe können sicher weiden” (“Sheep May Safely Graze”), is the most familiar part of this cantata. The aria is interpreted as piece number 9. It is written in B flat major, for soprano II with 2 recorders and continuo.

Movements or sections:
So far as is known, “Sheep may safely graze” is not one of the numbers from the cantata which Bach chose to rearrange, but a variety of arrangements by other people exist. It is often played at weddings. Johnstone maintains the original key whilst presenting it for four cellos.

Instrumentation:
QUARTET OF FOUR CELLOS
Arranged by David Johnstone

2 PDFs:
1] – General Score
2] – All individual parts

Approximate difficulty:
Cellos 1 and 2 – Difficult
Cellos 3 and 4 – Easy to Medium

In this cellos version it is quite difficult to have good intonation for the top two parts in the upper register extensions (backwards extensions) but is perfectly possible to convince when played by competent advanced level cellists. The third and fourth parts do not present many problems.

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David Johnstone lives near Pamplona (Navarre, Spain) with his wife Rosa and their two “Spanglish” children, close to the Atlantic Pyrenees. The nearest international airport is Bilbao.

He is interested in world affairs, politics, animal rights, and most sports (including being a lifelong suffering Reading FC fan!). Also passionate about Celtic culture and genealogy, he has traced his ‘English’ family back to 1280, although Scotland and Ireland have also shaped his background. And yes — he is half-ashamed to admit it, he loves silly jokes!

Social Work

David Johnstone supports animal rights, he is against any form of abuse towards them, and says a loud “NO” to bullfighting, foxhunting and any other animal cruelty.

TORTURE IS NOT CULTURE !