The Bach Choir of Bethlehem is celebrating its 128th anniversary season.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have a lot of great things planned for this year, including a return trip to Leipzig [Germany] for the 300th anniversary of the \u2018St. Matthew Passion,\u2019\u201d says Dr. Christopher Jackson, Artistic Director and Conductor of the Bach Choir of Bethlehem.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are the only choir representing North America in the multi-continental performance, which is such an honor,\u201d Jackson says.<\/p>\n
The 2026-\u201927 season opened with the 150th \u201cBach at Noon\u201d concert Sept. 8. The free series continues through April 2027 on the second Tuesday of the month in Central Moravian Church, Bethlehem.<\/p>\n
Says Jackson, \u201cVarious genres are represented at these concerts such as Renaissance and early classical works, but performances always center around Johann Sebastian Bach in some way.\u201d<\/p>\n
In partnership with the American Bach Society, the 13th \u201cBiennial Bach Vocal Competition for American Singers\u201d follows Oct. 24, Peter Hall, Moravian University. The event is free and open to the public. Tickets are required.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of my goals is to find ways to pair Bach in conversation with other eras and composers. We accomplish this during the Christmas season by pairing the opening cantata from Bach\u2019s \u2018Christmas Oratorio\u2019 with a setting of Charles Dickens\u2019 \u2018A Christmas Carol\u2019 by composer Benedict Sheehan,\u201d Jackson says. Performances are Dec. 12, Egner Memorial Chapel, Muhlenberg College, Allentown, and Dec. 13, First Presbyterian Church of Bethlehem.<\/p>\n
\u201cHarmony of the Spheres\u201d is the theme of the \u201cGreg Funfgeld Family Concert,\u201d Feb. 20, 2027, Da Vinci Science Center, Allentown. The concert has works related to Leonardo da Vinci, including Eric Whitacre\u2019s \u201cLeonardo Dreams of His Flying Machine.\u201d<\/p>\n
The spring concert, March 21, 2027, Grace Church, Bethlehem, features Joby Talbot\u2019s \u201cPath of Miracles,\u201d which traces the pilgrimage to the shrine of St. James in Santiago de Compostela, Spain. Arranged for choir and 17 solo voices, \u201cit is one of the most remarkable pieces of music written in the last 20 years,\u201d says Jackson.<\/p>\n
The Bach Choir\u2019s signature event is the 119th \u201cBach Festival,\u201d May 13 through May 16, 2027, various venues, in Bethlehem.<\/p>\n
\u201cBach Festival\u201d highlights include:<\/p>\n
\u201cOutside the Bachs\u201d: Eliot Fisk, Festival Artist-in-Residence and virtuoso guitarist;<\/p>\n
\u201cFilms from the Archives,\u201d with Bach Archivist Cory Dieterly;<\/p>\n
Barnette Distinguished Scholar Lecture: Musicologist and historic performance keyboardist Rebecca Cypress discusses Felix Mendelssohn\u2019s arrangement of the \u201cSt. Matthew Passion\u201d;<\/p>\n
\u201cBach at 4\u201d: Bach Choir members, Executive Director Leela Breithaupt, flute soloist; Christopher Jackson, bass character of Schlendrian, Bach\u2019s \u201cSchweigt stille, plaudert nicht,\u201d BWV 211, the \u201cCoffee Cantata\u201d; Artist-in-Residence Eliot Fisk\u2019s transcription of Bach\u2019s \u201cCello Suite No. 2 in D minor\u201d;<\/p>\n
Festival Dinner: Talk by Dr. Larry Lipkis, Professor of Music and Composer-in-Residence, Moravian University;<\/p>\n
\u201cBach at 7\u201d: Felix Mendelssohn\u2019s \u201cSt. Matthew Passion\u201d;<\/p>\n
\u201cIfor Jones Chamber Music Concert\u201d: Featured clarinetist Dominic Giardino and harpsichordist Charlotte Mattax Moersch explore the influence of Bach on Felix Mendelssohn;<\/p>\n
J.S. Bach\u2019s \u201cMass in B Minor,\u201d Parts 1 and 2;<\/p>\n
\u201cZimmermann\u2019s Coffee House\u201d: Chamber music performed by auditioned young musicians;<\/p>\n
\u201cChamber Music in the Saal\u201d: Guest harpsichordist and early music specialist Marc Bellassai presents \u201cFond Farewells,\u201d including selections by J.S. Bach.<\/p>\n
The season concludes with the \u201cBachfest Leipzig 2027 Tour,\u201d June 8 – June 15.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe at the Bach Choir of Bethlehem hope people come to see and hear us throughout the season,\u201d says Jackson, adding, \u201cIt\u2019s hard to choose, so come to all of the concerts!\u201d<\/p>\n
Bach Choir of Bethlehem ticket information: Bach Choir office, 440 Heckewelder Place, Bethlehem; office@bach.org; 610-866-4382, ext. 110 or 115; https:\/\/bach.org\/tickets\/<\/p>\n
\u201cClassical View\u201d is a column about classical music concerts, conductors and performers. To request coverage, email: Paul Willistein, Focus editor, pwillistein@tnonline.com<\/p>\n
CONTRIBUTED PHOTODr. Christopher Jackson, Artistic Director and Conductor of the Bach Choir of Bethlehem, and choir members.<\/p>\n
CONTRIBUTED PHOTOEliot Fisk, 2027 Bach Festival Artist-in-Residence.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Bach Choir of Bethlehem is celebrating its 128th anniversary season. \u201cWe have a lot of great things…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":307033,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[153,155,154],"class_list":["post-307032","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-bethlehem","tag-bethlehem","tag-bethlehem-headlines","tag-bethlehem-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/307032","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=307032"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/307032\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/307033"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=307032"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=307032"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=307032"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}