TGIF: a coffee cantata for both coffee ADDICTS and NAYSAYERS

TGIF!

Discovered J.S. Bach's magical Coffee Cantata (BWV 211) today whilst listening to a radio program.

It tells of a coffee addiction to which some of us can relate. Bach was apparently a coffee-lover himself ~ he probably wrote the cantata to lampoon and poke fun at the coffee naysayers in Leipzig, approximately between 1732-34, who were convinced that coffee was some kind of hellish brew and all. It does remind me of a time in my life when I used to stick notes on my housemates' coffee tins that read "radioactives" - so very vehemently too. Who knew, at that time, that I would eventually end up a convert? Thanks to medical school and my constant sleep deprivation, I had to turn to coffee to make things more bearable. I've been a goner ever since. Fortunately or unfortunately. Oh well, thankfully I still love tea enough not to go overboard with my coffee affairs.

You can read more about the cantata here and here.

Here are the English translations. The composer of the libretto (Christian Friedrich Henrici) certainly knew how to have fun! The conversation between Schlendrian (the father) and Lieschen (his daughter) kept me grinning and giggling. Probably because I could relate to both.

You can watch the cantata here:

Enjoy!

Have a great weekend, readers ~ family, friends, prayer warriors and partners-in-ministry.

Frank Sinatra's coffee song plays in the background ~ "They've got an awful lot of coffee in Brazil...." I've got to go.