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An uplifting evening of J S Bach resounding exuberantly through every corner of Bath Abbey

Mass in F major BWV 233
Cantata BWV 21
Brandenburg Concerto No 1 BWV 1046

Bath Bach Choir comes home to present an evening devoted to the master, pairing his intimate Mass in F and substantial Cantata BWV 21 with the familiar strains of the first 'Brandenburg' Concerto.

Composed around 1719-20, Bach's four-movement Brandenburg Concerto No 1 opens the programme, creating a sense of occasion with its rhythmic energy, colourful orchestration and lively interplay between strings, wind and horns. The opening movement has a wonderfully festive character, with the horns providing hunting-like brilliance. In contrast, the second movement is quiet and lyrical, with the oboes and strings creating a more reflective atmosphere. The third movement returns to lively Baroque energy, while the finale is a polonaise – a Polish-style dance – followed by a fast minuet and trio, giving the concerto an unusually varied sequence of dances and moods.

Bach's Mass in F major brings warmth and expressive depth, a compact and richly varied example of his sacred choral writing. Much smaller in scale than his monumental Mass in B minor, it belongs to a group of four so-called Lutheran Masses that Bach assembled around the 1730s, probably drawing on music he had written earlier. The Mass sets the first two sections of the traditional Latin Mass: Kyrie (asking for mercy) and Gloria (a joyful proclamation of praise), using a four-part choir with soloists, strings, wind and continuo.

Cantata BWV 21, Ich hatte viel Bekümmernis ('I had much affliction in my heart') is one of Bach's most emotionally powerful cantatas, less of a Baroque religious work than an exploration of the human experience of suffering, hope and ultimately joy. Scored for four vocal soloists, chorus and orchestra, it takes the listener on a remarkable musical journey, from a dark and restless opening chorus to an uplifting final movement, where the darkness has been transformed into radiant confidence and joy. Bath probably composed it in 1713 during his time in Weimar, revising it several times afterwards. It was performed in Leipzig on the third Sunday after Trinity in 1723.

As it approaches its 80th anniversary, Bath Bach Choir is delighted to give a warm welcome to instrumentalists from Bristol Ensemble Baroque, and singers from Oxford Bach Soloists, to complete the line-up for what will be a heartwarming evening of musical brilliance in Bath Abbey.

Bath Bach Choir
Bristol Ensemble Baroque
Oxford Bach Soloists
Benedict Collins Rice conductor