The Standard Cantatas

The Standard Cantatas: Their Stories, Their Music, and Their Composers is a handbook by George P. Upton. The preface says short sketches of the music and stories of the cantatas are presented, together with biographies of their composers. The preface also says The Standard Cantatas is the third of the series in which the Standard Operas and Standard Oratorios have been its predecessors.

An abridged description of the cantatas written by Bach, taken from Bitter's Life of the composer, says Bach felt that unless these elaborate pieces of music were really made a means of edification, they were mere intellectual pastimes suitable for a concert, but an interruption to divine worship. One sketch says the first part closes with the Allegro aria and chorus Or let the merry Bells ring round, full of the very spirit of joy and youth, and the second part begins with a stately recitative and aria by Penseroso. Count Vitzthum commissioned Weber to write a grand jubilee cantata, and the poet Friedrich Kind supplied the words.