Hans Georg Bertram

Oratorium im Advent

The "Oratorio in Advent" by Hans Georg Bertram with a performance duration of approx. 68 min. speaks of the coming and approach of Jesus and focuses on Advent with biblical texts, contemporary poetry and chorales.
The cantata "Ich laufe den Adventsweg" (VS 6265) forms the first part with a performance duration of approx. 18 min. 18 min. and offers the opportunity for the congregation or the audience to participate in the performance by singing.
The concerto "Magnificat der Tränen" (VS 1327) with a performance time of approx. 14 min. forms the second part of the Advent oratorio. It speaks of the coming and approach of Jesus and focuses on Advent with biblical texts, contemporary poetry and chorales. Using the Christmas carols "Mit Ernst, o Menschenkinder" and "Maria durch ein Dornwald ging", the cantata "Zieh in mein Herz hinein" (VS 1859) has a performance time of approx. 11 minutes and forms the third part of the Advent oratorio. The following "Christmas Meditation" (VS 1942) consists of seven parts (including a purely instrumental part), which correspond musically with one another and structure the work in a motet-like manner. However, by using the chorale "Wunderbarer Gnadenthron" (EG 38), Hans Georg Bertram succeeds in introducing a unifying element that holds the work together. Bertram does not restrict himself to a stereotypical treatment of the melody, but offers a variety of compositional techniques to ensure variability. He achieves this not least through the fusion of three early church melodies (up to the interweaving of two texts). Bertram uses the instruments in a similar way to the text. They serve as a means of varitas and provide the composition with a tremendous amount of color. The fifth part, "Krippe und Kreuz", is available as a print edition from Verlag Merseburger. "Kumi ori", arise, become light. These words begin the concluding work "Wir sehen dir entgegen" (VS 6229a), which revolves around the theme of Advent in a multi-layered way. The speaker's thoughtful words are interwoven with the famous words from Isaiah 60, set to a motet by the choir. In between, chorale melodies appear, which are processed in a very traditional way ("Wir warten dein, o Gottes Sohn", "Macht hoch, die Tür"), only to be replaced by calling interludes ("Machet die Tore weit"). The work concludes with the fifth verse of the Advent hymn, which is arranged as a motet. The instruments underline this musical event with partly independent lines, partly commenting phrases or (rarely) in a form that supports the choir. Not an easy work to perform, but definitely worth the effort.