Harmony in Bach: O Jesulein süß
Why I love this work of art
Non-chord tones help make this short work one of the most beautiful chorales.
J. S. Bach’s inner voice writing. The suspensions and non-chord tones. The expansion into the subdominant....
When I first sang this chorale with Monteverdi Chor München during their 2019 Christmas Concerts, I was immediately struck by the soft, almost tender way that this chorale melody is harmonized and presented. What was immediately clear was that this wasn't like an ordinary chorale. It seemed much more inspired, more unique, songlike.
It wasn't until the choir and audience came together in a moment of focus and attention during a concert performance that I was able to truly hear what this piece can do, and subsequently fall in love with the piece. When I arrived back in NY that winter I transcribed it in an effort to understand it more deeply.
The work is a masterclass on part writing: every voice is like a melody that is able to stand on its own. Like all chorales of Bach, the soprano voice carries the hymn melody, and provides the structure to the whole piece, as I'll show below.
The other 3 voices are built in such a way where in every moment, it is possible to hear what the others are doing musically. Bach seemed to have spent more time creating a beautiful and crafted line for each voice, placing each dissonance in such a thoughtful way.
To understand non-chord tones, first let's do a harmonic analysis with chord names with their function.
Download a free PDF of this analysis for your studies here.
German text
1.
O Jesulein süß, o Jesulein mild!
Deins Vaters Willn hast du erfüllt;
Bist kommen aus dem Himmelreich,
Uns armen Menschen worden gleich,
O Jesulein süß, o Jesulein mild!
English translation
1.
O little one sweet, O little one mild,
thy Father’s purpose thou hast fulfilled;
thou cam’st from heav’n to mortal ken
equal to be with us poor men,
O little one sweet, O little one mild.
The Form is Given by the Chorale Melody (Soprano)
This score shows the soprano melody with the underlying harmonies represented as the Roman numerals and figured bass.
The melody has 3 big phrases. The first big phrase can be broken into two smaller phrases. The first half phrase ends on the F and features a strong tonicization of F as the dominant of Bb. This is done by way of the C major chord in measure 2, such that the Bb major chord no longer feels like tonic but subdominant of the dominant, reflected in the IV7/V harmony of measure 3. (C major isn't a diatonic chord of Bb major, so that's why we're immediately pulled away from the tonic.) The second half then affirms Bb major with the V-vi-I-IV-V-I cadence in Bb major, starting on measure 6 and ending measure 9.
The second big phrase starts on measure 10 and is set mostly around Eb major, the subdominant of the home key. The Ab in the harmony of this section has a strong introverted effect, turning the ear more inward. You can see this lilting pattern to the intervals, starting on the Eb and falling a third, then rising a second, then falling a third, then rising a second again. This continues for another 4 bars. The predictable nature of this melody allows Bach to create gorgeous underlying harmonizations.
Then the third big phrase is a 4 bar concluding phrase. The diminished A triad pickup to bar 18 strongly places the ear back in Bb major. The tonic harmony stays in the first inversion though until the very last measure. Where is the climax of this piece?
When you hear this piece it's hard to tell that there are only 8 chords that compose it.
The writing of the voices. Each of the 4 voices is so beautifully written.
Bb. Gm. D. C. F. Eb. Cm. Aº. 8 Chords. That's it.
I. ii. II. IV. V. vi. V/vi. and viiº.
This clearly shows the effect that good part writing has on the ear.
Take a look at how the soprano and bass voices relate. The Eb subdominant passage is highlighted in blue. You can see very clearly the patterns of repetition that Bach uses (the bass voice in measure 10 and 12, and 14 and 15) that add to the gentle rocking quality of this section.
Quick guide to the Figured Bass: The Roman numerals and the chord name are the same thing; they both show the relation between the chord and the tonic sound, in this case, Bb major. For example, ii is the "two" chord, and it is the chord built on the second degree of the Bb major scale. Capital letters indicate a major chord, and lowercase indicate a minor chord. The Arabic numerals next to the Roman numerals show the position of the chord (root position, first inversion, etc). 6 means the chord is in first inversion, 3 (or no number) next to the Roman numeral means the chord is in root position. 7 indicates a seventh chord, and in this engraving the position of the 7th chord is not given. For a review of diatonic chords and how to build progressions with them, check out the article from the 14 day harmony course.
Non-chord tones help make this piece sound so rich. The Non-chord Tones (labeled in red) form special moments of harmonic tension.
When performing a work like this, these dissonances must be treated carefully by listening closely to where they happen and how their impacts and resolutions contribute to the overall phrase.
Guide to 3 types of Non-Chord tones: Vertically, some notes don't fit in with the others in the functional triad chord. While they are crucial to the harmony of the piece, and have a very clear role, they aren't considered in the naming of the chord, which is why they are named as such.
Check out the 5th measure with the F7 chord. The notes on the first beat are F-A-C, but there is also a Bb sung by the tenor. The tenor is holding on to the note they were singing the beat before, delaying the resolution to the more consonant A in the chord, and creating a dissonant interval of a Major Second against the soprano. This type of dissonance is known in part writing as an appoggiatura when it occurs on a strong beat. It is a type of suspension.
Consider the bass voice of the same measure: they sing an F, but also dip down a half step to E natural. So, would you analyze this as a F-A-C-E chord, or an Fmaj7 chord? No, this is another example of a non-chord tone, known as a neighboring tone. The bass sings the F, runs over to its E natural neighbor, and then comes back home to F. If there is a non-chord tone on a weak beat then it isn't labeled, which is the case for this and some of the passing tones.
Now check out bar 12, in the alto voice. The notes on the third beat are Bb-D-F-Ab which spells out a Bb7 chord, but they aren't sung at the same time. The alto melodically passes through the G on its way to F, so it is labeled as a passing tone. These non-chord tones help make the music much more rich and harmonically and melodically complex.
To gain some insight into how dissonances and consonances can create moments of harmonic tension and release in a musical context, here's a resource to the musical cadence.
The presence of the subdominant creates an overall feeling of introversion.
To hear what I mean, give this piece a listen (I strongly recommend the recording above, or to make your own recording—there are a lot of bad ones out there) and follow along with the score.
This music could be played with any instrumentation, sung in any vocal range, it doesn't have to be just SATB. You can work on it either alone or with other musicians. Just tell me where to send a copy and it's yours to download as a PDF. I'm confident that this one piece alone will improve your musicality and I'm so excited to share with you.