Our next Bach Cantata performance will be on 22 February, when we present one of Bach’s most spellbinding masterpieces, BWV 150, Nach dir, Herr, verlanget mich. This Bach Vespers service takes place at 6.30pm at the church of St Mary at Hill in the City of London, hosted by St Anne’s Lutheran Church.

BWV 150 is one of Bach’s earliest extant cantatas, probably composed in 1707, when he was employed in Arnstadt, at the church pictured. Unusually for a Bach cantata, the chorus features in the majority of movements, and there are no recitatives, although there is an exquisite soprano aria as well as a vocal trio. The exact time of year for which it was composed is unknown, but the text, with its mixture of penitence and hope, makes it ideal for Lent. The name of one of Bach’s supporters, in whose honour it may have been composed, is cleverly incorporated into in the text as an acrostic. The piece opens with an instrumental sinfonia and closes with a chaconne, the bass of which was poached by Brahms and appears in his Fourth Symphony.

There will also be lots of other music in the service, both vocal and instrumental, by Bach and other German baroque composers, performed on period instruments.

Everyone is welcome (you don’t have to be religious), and attendance is free. Do come along and bring your friends. We look forward to seeing you there to share Bach’s wonderful music!

Following Vespers event: 29 March (Schütz, Passion motets).