The first part of the funeral music, composed in 1671, is in two movements of
counterpoint and
development: • • The score of the four-part setting in strict counterpoint does not indicate voices or instruments. It can be played on an organ, or by four instruments; and the
cantus firmus which appears in the soprano and in the bass can be sung. The soprano begins in Contrapunctus I, the bass takes over in Evolutio, while the soprano has the first bass line. Alto and tenor change similarly. Contrapunctus II has "more elaborate counterpoint", while Evolutio II is a "transposed mirror version of Contrapunctus II". The deliberate display of counterpoint has been compared to Bach's
Art of Fugue. The seven stanzas of the (or lamentation) are set, without any
ritornellos, for
soprano, two unspecified instruments and
basso continuo. The musicologist
Kerala J. Snyder describes the text as "deeply personal in tone, and the sombre music reflects its grief". , The scoring has been debated. While Walther assumed that the pieces were played on the organ, a manuscript in the
Düben collection mentions "viole" (
viol), indicating accompaniment by a
viol consort or a group of violins and viols. The viol was associated in Germany with funeral music, for example in Buxtehude's
Membra Jesu Nostri, a five-part viol consort plays only at the climax of the piece, and a viol is the obbligato instrument in the aria "
Es ist vollbracht" in Bach's
St John Passion. == Selected recordings ==