(That evening, though, of the very same Sabbath) for soprano, alto, tenor and bass, oboe I+II, bassoon, strings and continuo.

That Easter would in time be celebrated as a triumph of life over death could hardly have been foreseen by Christ’s disciples. For them, Good Friday and Easter Sunday brought not joy, but immeasurable pain: a reeling confusion between dashed hopes and perseverance, combined with anxiety about the future and fear of religious reprisal. Precisely this moment is captured by cantata BWV 42: “The evening, though, of the very same Sabbath, the disciples assembled, and the doors had been fastened tightly for fear of the Jews”.