ABSTRACT
Baroque composers often notated their music incompletely, writing one or two melody lines along with a bass line with figures. This bass line continued throughout the piece-hence the Italian name basso continuo, and the English thoroughbass. In addition, someone performing on an instrument capable of producing chords realized the complete texture based on the figures given. Along with the chorale melody, the bass lines produce excellent two-voice counterpoint, even to the point of avoiding simultaneous focal points. For the most part, it is only necessary to think of specific chords at cadences. O Jesulein suss, O Jesulein mild is one of the 69 melodies with figured bass published in Georg Christian Schemelli's Musicalisches Gesangbuch of 1736. This chapter presents the melody and Bach's figured bass on three staves, the upper two for organ manuals and the lowest for pedals. From Roman-numeral analyses, it is easy to observe the rate at which the chords are changing, that is, the harmonic rhythm.
