FESTIVAL TAKES AUDIENCES INSIDE THE ART OF BACH’S MUSIC
Toronto Welcomes International Artists for a Week Dedicated to
Understanding Bach’s Universal Message
For Immediate Release
August 30, 2005 - The International Bach Festival today announced
their second annual performance festival and educational symposium entitled
J.S. Bach In The World Today: The Poetry and Politics of Bach’s Early
Cantatas taking place from October 1 – 9 at the University of Toronto
Faculty of Music.
Grammy-award winner and world-renowned conductor Helmuth Rilling
returns for a second year as the festival’s Nicholas Goldschmidt Conductor-in-Residence to lead a series of lectures and concerts. High-profile artists and
scholars will participate along side Toronto’s own gifted musicians and
university students in an interactive series of open rehearsals, lecture discussions
and evening performances crafted to help the audience
understand Bach’s universal messages of peace and compassion.
“Bach’s music holds meaning at many different levels,” explained Artistic
Director Doreen Rao. “There is a world of music in each cantata, and
exploring where Bach wrote, what his texts reveal and how he crafted each
cantata helps us to understand how his music is relevant in the world today.”
At the heart of the festival is the dynamic five-day forum entitled The
Cantata Series held from October 2 – 6. Audiences will experience the
transformation of a piece of music from rehearsal to performance, which
allows for a deeper understanding of the poetry and politics of Bach’s early cantatas.
“The Bach Festival is all about teaching through great music,” explained Rao. “We want the audience to experience Bach from the performer’s perspective.
We’re inviting the public into the process so everyone can better understand
the music and the message. By observing a cantata rehearsal, contemplating
its message, then hearing it performed the same day, the audience engages
emotionally and intellectually with the performance.”
The daily events in The Cantata Series are:
BachTalk
• A lecture-discussion with distinguished Bach scholars on the
historical, political and theological contexts of Bach’s early
cantatas
The Discovery Series
• A conducting master class led by Maestro Helmuth Rilling in
collaboration with University of Leipzig Professor Martin Petzoldt
followed by an open rehearsal with the International Bach
Festival Choir and Orchestra
Cantata Café
• A chance to meet and mingle with the artists
Intimate Evenings
• A lecture-concert conducted by Maestro Helmuth Rilling which
concludes the day with a discussion and performance of the
selected cantata
The International Bach Festival includes a teaching and mentorship
component, designed to bring together gifted students and international
artists to work and learn together. Rehearsing and performing throughout
the festival week, The International Bach Festival Choir and Orchestra
combines the University’s MacMillan Singers and Israel’s Moran Chamber
Ensemble with the Faculty of Music’s Professional Choir-in-Residence, The Elmer Iseler Singers. The University of Toronto Symphony Orchestra
students will be mentored by members of the Toronto Symphony and
Canadian Opera Company orchestras.
Israel’s Moran Chamber Ensemble, led by conductor Naomi Faran, is the
2005 International Choir-in-Residence. The 18-member choir sings regularly
with the Israeli Symphony Orchestra and in addition to their participation in the Cantata Series, the choir will be performing an evening concert on
October 8th at Walter Hall.
Guest artists performing and mentoring throughout the week include
Canadian soprano Lorna MacDonald, counter-tenor Daniel Taylor and German tenor James Taylor.
Other events at the International Bach Festival include:
Gala Opening Concert, October 1
• Featuring the University of Toronto Symphony Orchestra
conducted by Maestro Raffi Armenian. Performance highlights
include Vivaldi’s Concerto for Four Violins in B minor, Bach’s
Concerto for Four Pianos in A minor and Berg’s Violin Concerto.
A Trio of Organ Recitals, October 3 – 5
• Experience Bach’s organ classics performed on the Helmuth
Wolff meantone organ, a national treasure at Knox College
Chapel, University of Toronto campus.
Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, October 7
• As the Faculty of Music’s Orchestra-in-Residence, Tafelmusik
under music director Jeanne Lamon will be performing an all-
Bach programme, featuring the Orchestral Suite no. 1 in C,
Brandenburg Concerto no. 3, Concerto for Oboe d’amore and
Concerto for Two Violins in D minor.
The festival culminates in a Thanksgiving Cantata Service at Trinity-
St.Paul’s United Church on Sunday, October 9th. Maestro Rilling
conducts the combined choirs of Trinity-St. Paul’s United Church, VIVA!
Youth Singers of Toronto, the Toronto Chamber Choir and the MacMillan
Singers Chamber Choir in Bach’s Cantata BWV 29, “Unto Thee, O God, do we
give thanks.”
Festival passes are available for The Cantata Series. Individual tickets for all events range from $10 - $35 and are available from the Festival Box Office at 416-978-3744 (Monday to Friday 1pm-7pm) or by ownloading an order form from www.internationalbachfestival.ca and sending it by fax to 416-946-3353 or mail to:
Faculty of Music, Edward Johnson Building
University of Toronto
80 Queen’s Park
Toronto, Ont. M5S 2C5
Media Contacts
Beth Sulman, Holmes Creative Communications
bsulman@hccink.com | 416-628-5602
Sarah Kiriliuk, Holmes Creative Communications
skiriliuk@hccink.com | 416-628-5603
