VALPARAISO | Valparaiso University will host the Bach Collegium Japan, renowned worldwide for its performances of Johann Sebastian Bach’s music, in March 2011 during the ensemble’s first North American tour since 2006.
The ccombined baroque orchestra and chorus will perform Bach’s Mass in B Minor at 7:30 p.m. March 19, 2011, in the Chapel of the Resurrection on campus. Valpo is one of a handful of sites where the Bach Collegium Japan will perform during its 11-day North American tour next year, and the ensemble’s only concert in the greater Chicago region, including Indianapolis, Milwaukee, South Bend and Fort Wayne.
Christopher Cock, director of the Bach Institute at Valparaiso University and Duesenberg chair of Lutheran church music, said the appearance of the Collegium and conductor Masaaki Suzuki will be one of the premier cultural events in the Chicago region next year.
“The Bach Collegium Japan and Suzuki are known throughout the world for beautiful performances and an exquisite understanding of Bach’s music,” Cock said. “We are thrilled to bring them to Valparaiso University to perform one of the greatest classical works ever composed.”
The Bach Collegium Japan, founded in 1990 by Suzuki, has been described as “beautiful, riveting and ferociously intense” by the Washington Post, and the Los Angeles Times writes that the ensemble performs with “heartbreaking tenderness.” The Collegium has released more than 40 CDs featuring Bach’s music and toured throughout the world, including appearances at major music festivals in Edinburgh, Santiago de Compostela, Tel Aviv, Leipzig and Melbourne.
“This opportunity to hear a world-class ensemble perform one of Bach’s masterpieces is a significant cultural and educational event for our region,” Cock said. “It is fitting that Valpo, with its Lutheran heritage and international vision, will host an ensemble and conductor from Japan who showcase the enduring power of the greatest Lutheran composer so magnificently.”
Ticket prices for the March 19, 2011, performance at Valpo are $40 for adults and $30 for senior citizens. Call Valpo’s Box Office at (219) 464-5162 or visit http://www.valpo.edu/bachcollegiumjapan to purchase tickets.
The concert is sponsored by the Bach Institute at Valpo, founded in 2004 to ensure the legacy of the music and theological perspective of J.S. Bach for future generations. The Institute explores the composer’s life and music through performances, seminars and other academic activities.
On March 20 of this year, Valpo will host a performance of Bach’s “St. Matthew Passion” in the Chapel of the Resurrection. The 7 p.m. concert will feature approximately 125 musicians led by internationally acclaimed guest conductor Hermann Max, one of seven recipients of the prestigious Bach Medal and a pivotal leader of the historically informed performance movement. “St. Matthew Passion” tickets are $25 for adults and $15 for seniors and students at the Valpo Box Office.
More information about the visual and performing arts at Valpo is available online at http://www.valpo.edu/vuca or by calling Valpo’s Center for the Arts at (219) 464-5162.
--For The Times
