In Johann Sebastian Bach's time, the election or inauguration of a new town council, normally an annual event, was celebrated with a church service. A cantata written for such occasion was indicated with the term Ratswahl (council election) or Ratswechsel (council change). Bach composed such cantatas for Mühlhausen and for Leipzig. Five of these cantatas (BWV 71, 119, 120.1, 29 and 69.2) are entirely extant.^[1] One further cantata, BWV 193.2, lost part of its music,^[2] and there are another five that have only been known to exist (two for Mühlhausen),^[3][4] or for which only the text is extant (three for Leipzig).^[5][6][7]

Bach worked in Mühlhausen from 1707 to 1708. His first council election cantata for that town was performed and printed in 1708. Two further works for council election in Mühlhausen, BWV 1138.1 (in 1709) and 1138.2 (in 1710) are documented. These latter works are entirely lost, in contrast to the first, BWV 71, of which both Bach's autograph and the contemporary print survive.^[8][9] During Bach's tenure as director musices in Leipzig, from 1723 to 1750, there were 27 instances where he had to provide music for the council election occasion.^[10] For 20 of these instances no music is known to be extant: the librettos of three cantatas, BWV 1139.1 (programmed in 1725 and 1751), 1140 (programmed in 1730) and 1141 (programmed in 1740), did however survive.^[5][6][7] Picander was the author of the first two of these librettos.^[5][6]

On 1 July 1707 Johann Sebastian Bach assumed the position of organist in the Blasiuskirche (Divi Blasii), one of two major churches in Mühlhausen.^[11] In that town, the council election cantata was performed on 4 February in the other major church, the Marienkirche (St. Mary's Church), with a repeat performance of the work in the Blasiuskirche on the first Sunday after the day of the première.^[12] Customarily, the music and text of that cantata were printed on the town council's expenses.^[13][14]

Notwithstanding that Bach had left for a new position in Weimar in the second half of June 1708, he kept in contact with his former employers at Mühlhausen, for instance supervising the remodelling of the organ of the Blasiuskirche according to his design, which was not completed until 1709, and also writing two more council election cantatas for the town.^[14][15][16] Both text and music of these cantatas are lost, not even their title is known.^[14][17]

Extant

• 1708 (Saturday 4 and Sunday 5 February): Gott ist mein König, BWV 71 – Bach's first printed work.^{[1][9][13][14]}

Lost

• 1709: second council election cantata for Mühlhausen, BWV 1138.1 (formerly BWV Anh. 192)^[3]
• 1710: third council election cantata for Mühlhausen, BWV 1138.2 (formerly BWV deest)^[4]

Bach was director musices of Leipzig's principal churches from late May 1723 until his death in July 1750.^[10][20][21] In that town the council election service was held at the Nikolaikirche (St Nicholas Church) on the Monday following Bartholomew (Bartholomäus), 24 August.^[10][22] From 1723 to 1749 that were 27 occasions where Bach had to provide the music for this service.^[10] Four entirely extant cantatas cover, as far as known, only half a dozen of these occasions (1723, 1729 or earlier, 1731, 1739, 1748 and 1749).^{[23][24][25][26]} Another, partially lost, council election cantata was performed in 1727.^[2] For the 20 other occasions no music has been known to survive, although in a few instances (1725, 1730, 1740 and 1741), at least the libretto of the council election cantata is extant.^[5][6][7]

Extant

• Preise, Jerusalem, den Herrn, BWV 119, 30 August 1723.^[23]
• Gott, man lobet dich in der Stille, BWV 120.1 (formerly BWV 120), 1729 or earlier.^[24]
• Wir danken dir, Gott, wir danken dir, BWV 29, 27 August 1731 – also performed on 31 August 1739 and 24 August 1749.^[25]
• Lobe den Herrn, meine Seele, BWV 69.2 (formerly BWV 69), 26 August 1748.^[26]

Philipp Spitta, Bach's 19th-century biographer, surmised that Lobe den Herren, den mächtigen König der Ehren, BWV 137, a chorale cantata for Trinity XII, was performed as a council election cantata on 25 August 1732.^[27][28] According to later research, the cantata was first performed on 19 August 1725 (as part of Bach's chorale cantata cycle), while Spitta's hypothesis of a 1732 performance as council election cantata could not be proved.^[29]

Music partially lost

• Ihr Tore zu Zion, BWV 193.2 (formerly BWV 193), 25 August 1727^[2]

Only text extant

• Wünschet Jerusalem Glück, BWV 1139.1 (formerly BWV Anh. 4), 27 August 1725 and 28 August 1741 (libretto by Picander).^[5]
• Gott, gib dein Gerichte dem Könige, BWV 1140 (formerly BWV Anh. 3), 28 August 1730 (libretto by Picander).^[6]
• Herrscher des Himmels, König der Ehren, BWV 1141 (formerly BWV Anh. 193), 28 August 1740.^[7]