Klagt, Kinder, klagt es aller Welt, BWV 244a
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| BWV 244a | |
| Secular cantata by J. S. Bach | |
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| Related | based on movements from St Matthew Passion and BWV 198 |
| Occasion | Funeral |
| Performed | 23 March 1729: Köthen |
| Movements | 24 in four parts |
| Cantata text | Picander |
Klagt, Kinder, klagt es aller Welt (Cry, children, cry to all the world), also called Köthener Trauermusik (Köthen funeral music), BWV 244a, is a cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. He composed it in 1729 for the funeral of Leopold, Prince of Anhalt-Köthen. The music is lost, but the libretto survives. As Bach is known to have used musical material which also appeared in his St Matthew Passion, it has been possible to make reconstructions.
The cantata is in 24 movements (choruses, arias and recitatives) divided into four parts. The first deals with the principality in mourning, the second the prince's departing and the salvation of his soul. The third part, followed by a homily, details Leopold's commemoration. The final section is about the farewell and about eternal rest.
The choice of Bach for the funeral music was not surprising. He had worked full-time at Leopold's court between 1717 and 1723. When he moved to Leipzig, he retained a role as court composer. His commissions in the period 1723–29 included the 1726 secular cantata Steigt freudig in die Luft, BWV 36a, to celebrate the birthday of Princess Charlotte, Leopold's wife, who was to survive the deaths of her husband and two children from smallpox.
Although the prince's death took place in 1728, his funeral was delayed until March the following year. Presumably the delay in burying the prince gave Bach a reasonable amount of time to compose the Trauermusik (funeral music). However, he chose to adapt material he had already composed, rather than create something completely new. While no score survives for the cantata as such, there is evidence of how Bach set the text, which was by Picander, a librettist Bach had been working with since his move to Leipzig. It has been demonstrated that Bach used music from an earlier funeral ode (to a text by Johann Christoph Gottsched) and music from the St Matthew Passion (to a text by Picander), which "fit" the words of the funeral text. (see Reconstructions section below)
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