This aria is the fourth movement of Bach's sacred cantata "Herr, wie du willt, so schick's mit mir" (BWV 73), composed for the Third Sunday after Epiphany in 1724. Its distinctive motif on the words "Herr, so du willt" reappears in "Bist du bei mir" from the Anna Magdalena Bach Notebook—a work actually composed by Gottfried Heinrich Stölzel but long misattributed to Bach. The text directly quotes the leper's plea from Matthew 8:1-13.
This aria from Bach's cantata BWV 73 exemplifies Baroque sacred music with its expressive melodies and intricate counterpoint. Composed for the Third Sunday after Epiphany, it reflects themes of divine trust through its prayerful text and musical structure, originally scored for tenor with oboe and continuo.
