Orgelbüchlein, by J. S. Bach
The Orgelbüchlein ("Little Organ Book") is a set of 46 organ chorales composed by Bach while he was working in Weimar, around 1714. Unlike the lengthy chorales found in the Clavierübung III or the Eighteen, these are small-scale works that present the chorale melody without intervening episodes. Originally, Bach planned a much larger set of some 165 pieces, but only completed about a third of them. They generally trace the church year form Advent to Pentecost, with a few miscellaneous chorales at the end.
The links below take you to a Flash player to listen to the work. Also included with each piece is a narrative including the origin of the hymn, the cantus firmus (being aware that in numerous cases Bach varies the rhythm and occasionally the notes), its current usage in the Episcopal hymnal (if any), a translation of the first verse, and remarks on Bach's treatment of the chorale. Since there are fewer than 46 links below, this collection is obviously a work in progress. The pieces below that appear on my CD The Trinity According to Bach are remixes of those tracks.