St Mark Passion, BWV 247

BWV 247 contains the text of the entire chapters 14 and 15 of the Gospel of Mark, sung as recitatives, and turba choruses.

Diethard Hellmann completed a reconstruction in 1964 based on parodies and chorale harmonization choices only. The English premiere took place in Oxford, July 1965. A 1976 edition includes additional choruses to be used with a spoken delivery of the gospel text. Carus-Verlag published Hellmann's work with newly composed recitatives and arias by Johannes Koch in 1999. The orchestration for the work matches that of BWV 198.

Recordings:

• Wolfgang Gönnenwein, South German Madrigal Choir (Stuttgart), Pforzheim Chamber Orchestra (Erato, 1965; later [1972?] Musical Heritage Society; LC 72-751034)
• Bongiovanni GB 2024/25-2 (recorded 1984)[29]
• In 2009 a performance and live recording of the reconstructed version by Diethard Hellmann and Andreas Glöckner, in the Frauenkirche Dresden with the augmented ensemble Amarcord and the Kölner Akademie was conducted by Michael Alexander Willens. The lost recitatives were replaced by recitation.[30]

Simon Heighes's reconstruction is completed in 1995.[5]

Recordings:

• Jörg Breiding for Rondeau[31]
• A recording of Simon Heighes's reconstruction was made by the European Union Baroque Orchestra with the Ring Ensemble of Finland conducted by Roy Goodman. Rogers Covey-Crump EVANGELIST, Gordon Jones JESUS, Connor Burrowes treble, David James alto, Paul Agnew tenor, and Teppo Tolonen baritone. It was published by Brilliant Classics, recorded 25–30 March 1996 in the Chapel of New College, Oxford.[32]

Andor Gomme edited a 1997 reconstruction published by Bärenreiter that utilizes BWV 198 and choruses from BWV 204, 216, 120a, and 54. The recitatives and turba choruses are drawn from a St Mark Passion traditionally attributed to Reinhard Keiser (1674–1739), which Bach himself adapted for use in Weimar in 1713.

Recording:

• A recording of Gomme's reconstruction was made in 1998 by the Choir of Gonville & Caius College and the Cambridge Baroque Camerata, led by Geoffrey Webber. The recording was issued in 1999 by ASV.[33]

In 1998 Rudolf Kelber reconstructed the St Mark Passion as a pasticcio: he completed Bach's fragments using arias from cantatas by Bach, recitatives by Keiser, motives by Telemann and his own additions.

In 1999, Ton Koopman presented a reconstruction that does not utilize BWV 198, but instead draws on Es ist nichts Gesundes an meinem Leibe, BWV 25 (opening chorus) and Siehe zu, daß deine Gottesfurcht nicht Heuchelei sei, BWV 179 (turba choruses) and his own freely composed recitatives.

Recordings conducted by Ton Koopman:

• Erato 8573-80221-2 (recorded 1999, issued 2000)[34]
• CCDVD 72141 (DVD: live recording 2000, issued 2005)[35]

In 2010, harpsichordist and conductor Jörn Boysen made a new version utilizing choruses and arias from BWV 198 and an aria from BWV 54. He composed all missing recitatives, turba choirs and one aria. This version has been performed in the Netherlands and Germany in 2011 and 2012.[36]

In 2010, Alexander Ferdinand Grychtolik made a first edition of the late version of the St Mark Passion (from 1744) as a stylistically consistent reconstruction, published by Edition Peters. The text of this unknown later version was discovered in 2009 in Saint Petersburg. In this version, Bach added two arias and he made small changes in Picander's text.[37]

In 2015, Organist Freddy Eichelberger offered a second reconstruction of the 1744 version based on the BWV 198 and composed all missing recitatives, turba choirs and some chorals. This version was written in collaboration with the musicologist Laurent Guillo, the editor Sharon Rosner and Itay Jedlin who performed it with Le Concert Étranger at the 2015 Ambronay Festival, concert filmed by French national television.

In 2016, composer and conductor Andrew Wilson-Dickson made a new stylistically coherent reconstruction using BWV 198, 7, 54 and 171, and newly composed music for the missing recitatives and turba choruses. The work was premiered by the Welsh Camerata and Welsh Baroque Orchestra at the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama, Cardiff, on Good Friday, 2016.[38]

In 2015, church musician Andreas Fischer reconstructed the Markus Passion by parodying only works by Bach. He paid attention to the proximity of text and music and avoided using music from the known passions, so as not to produce a "small" St. Matthew Passion. Ortus (Berlin, Germany) published this work in the year 2016.[39]

In 2017 the Dutch organist and harpsichordist Robert Koolstra made a new reconstruction based on the 1744 booklet and BWV 198, 13, 54 and 55. Robert Koolstra composed the recitatives but he used models from Bach's other passions. He also added a new chorus Keinen hat Gott verlassen: Picander wrote Chorus instead of Choral here in the 1744 booklet. In this version the drama is the most important element. Koolstra firmly believes that St Mark's gospel text and Picander's poetry are intimately connected, and served as sources for one dramatic piece of art. The work was premiered by the Luthers Bach Ensemble in March 2017. The score and parts are available on the IMSLP website.[40]

On 30 March 2018, Jordi Savall produced a reconstruction which aired on BBC Radio 3.[41][42]