Vom Himmel hoch (Mendelssohn)

Mendelssohn had been introduced to the art of chorale arrangement when studying with Carl Friedrich Zelter, especially focused on the works by Johann Sebastian Bach. In 1829, he conducted Bach's St Matthew Passion on the occasion of its centenary. He composed eight chorale cantatas between 1827 and 1832, following the model of Bach's chorale cantatas in "fluent understanding of Baroque forms and styles", but also adding elements of the Romantic period. He composed the chorale cantata in 1831 in Rome on an extended trip to Italy. His friend Franz Krause had provided him with a booklet of hymns by Luther for this trip. It included the hymn for Christmas, "Vom Himmel hoch, da komm ich her", that Luther wrote in 1534 for use in his family, possibly intended to be performed as a nativity play it was published in 1535 with a secular melody and in 1539 with a melody by Luther. In a letter from Milan, Mendelsohn reported his intention to compose a lot. He wrote the chorale cantata in 1831 in Rome, staying in a monastery where Luther had also resided on a trip. In a letter from Rome to his friend he noted that Luther's text calls for music, with every stanza a new piece, with progress, movement and growth ("Wie da jedes Wort nach Musik ruft, wie jede Strophe ein anderes Stück ist, wie überall ein Fortschritt, eine Bewegung, ein Wachsen ..."). Mendelssohn's autograph manuscript of the score is held by the Berlin State Library. The manuscript shows signs of wear, and is numbered as if prepared for publication, but wasn't printed during the composer's lifetime. The cantata was first published by Carus-Verlag in 1983, with an English version ''From heav'n on high''. == Structure and music ==