The California Bach Society announces our 45th-anniversary season, full of varied and glorious works you won’t want to miss!
We open our season on October 16–18 with “A Bohemian Masterpiece,” featuring Missa Votiva (1739) by Czech composer Jan Dismas Zelenka (1679–1745). Originally a violone player in the Dresden court orchestra, Zelenka began composing sacred music for the Catholic Elector of Saxony around 1710, and he was appointed Church Composer in 1735. Written for chorus, orchestra, and soloists, the mass is a powerful mixture of operatic bravura and stunningly expressive counterpoint, rivaling works by contemporaries Bach, Handel, and Telemann. Zelenka’s mass is one of the most dramatic, formally innovative, and gripping sacred works of the eighteenth century.
We celebrate the holidays on December 4–6 with “Joyeux Noël!,” a journey to France with music from the medieval and Renaissance periods to the twentieth century. The program features Gregorian chants, dance tunes, Marian hymns, and traditional French carols by composers ranging from Jean Mouton, Henri Dumont, and Marc-Antoine Charpentier to Hector Berlioz, and Christmas motets by twentieth-century masters Francis Poulenc and Pierre Villette. Join us for a holiday concert with a characteristic Gallic flair.
On February 26–28, 2016, we present three splendid examples of mid-seventeenth century music-drama, with “Oratorios & Dialogues: A Genre Emerges.” Giacomo Carissimi’s Jonas (Jonah and the Whale) is a miniature sacred opera whose solo arias and choral commentaries are full of vivid drama. La Reniement de Saint Pierre, by Carissimi’s pupil Marc-Antoine Charpentier, brings to life the story of Peter’s denial of Jesus. The men and women of the chorus assume character roles in Heinrich Schütz’s Weib, was weinest du? to enact Jesus’ appearance at the tomb to comfort Mary Magdalene. These works are unsung gems of the period.
We conclude our 45th season with virtuosic works by J.S. Bach: “Singet dem Herrn” on April 22–24. We present two double-choir motets, Singet dem Herrn and Der Geist hilt unsure Schwachheit auf, and the challenging Jesu meine Freude. Interspersed will be some of the composer’s most elaborate and serene chorales. Beloved for their expressive rhetoric and word-painting, chorale tunes, and glorious rhythmic freedom and joy, these works reveal Bach’s deep sense of faith.
We are offering special ticket incentives. First-time subscribers to our concert series will receive an extra ticket, good for any concert this season. Younger patrons can purchase $10 tickets in our “Under 30” category (students of any age with ID and patrons under 30). Season subscriptions and single tickets can be purchased by phone at 650-485-1097 or online at www.calbach.org/tickets.pl. Visit our website for more information, www.calbach.org.
