Don’t miss us on 30 October as we perform Bach’s magnificent and ever popular Reformation cantata, BWV 80, Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott. This special Bach Vespers service for Reformation Sunday 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. This cantata features a team of three oboes of different sizes and bassoon, playing with and in contrast to the strings to create fabulous textural colours. There will also be lots of other festive music for the occasion, 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!

The following Bach Vespers will be on 27 November (BWV 132 for Advent Sunday).

Come and join us on 25 September at the church of St Mary-at-Hill in the City of London, 6.30pm. We’ll be performing Bach’s splendidly rich cantata BWV 17, Wer Dank opfert, der preiset mich, which celebrates gratitude in all its forms. A feast of counterpoint, this cantata contains some memorable moments, such as the toe-tapping tenor aria ‘Welch Übermaß’ and the opening chorus, one of Bach’s most brilliant choral fugues. Bach liked this movement so much, he reused it in his Missa in G (BWV 236). The service also includes a striking sonata for strings by Fasch, and vocal and organ music by other Bach contemporaries.

Everyone is welcome (no need to be religious), and entrance is free, with a voluntary donation. We look forward to seeing you there and sharing Bach’s wonderful music.

Future Bach Vespers dates: 30 November (BWV 80), 27 November (BWV 132).

Hope everyone is having a lovely summer! Thanks to all our listeners and supporters over the last season!  We’ll be back for Bach Vespers in the autumn, so please put these dates in your diary and tell your friends:

25 September, BWV 17: ‘Wer Dank opfert, der preiset mich’.

30 October (Reformation Sunday), BWV 80: ‘Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott’.

27 November (Advent Sunday), BWV 132: ‘Bereitet die Wege, bereitet die Bahn’.

As well as the cantatas, there will be lots of other scrumptious music for voices and instruments. All at the Church of St Mary-at-Hill in the City of London, 6.30pm.

See you there, and mind the sun meanwhile!

Come and join us for Bach Vespers on 31 July, at 6.30 pm, in the church of St Mary at Hill in the City of London. We will perform Bach’s cantata BWV 187, Es wartet alles auf dich. This superb cantata consists of two parts, which Bach intended to be performed either side of the sermon, and we will do the same. It is based on the Gospel story of the miracle of the feeding of the multitude, depicted here in an early seventeenth-century painting by Bernardo Strozzi. The music of this cantata is such high quality that Bach later re-used much of it in his famous Mass in G minor, BWV 235. There will also be lots of other music from baroque Germany, sung and performed on period instruments.

Everyone is welcome (you don’t have to be religious) and entrance is free, with a voluntary collection. We look forward to seeing you there, and sharing Bach’s wonderful music.

The following Bach Vespers will be in September. Watch this space (or sign up to our newsletter) for the exact date.

Come and join us for Bach Vespers on 26 June, at 6.30pm at the church of St Mary at Hill in the City of London. We will perform the cantata BWV 167, Ihr Menschen, rühmet Gottes Liebe. Bach wrote this fine cantata for the feast of St John the Baptist in 1723, and it is rarely performed today. It features a duet for soprano and alto with obbligato oboe da caccia. This is the first recorded use of the instrument, which had only recently been invented at the time. The oboe da caccia (pictured), with its curved leather-covered wooden body and flared brass bell, makes a unique and beautiful sound, which Bach exploits to poignant effect. The cantata finishes with an impressive choral fantasia setting. There will also be other vocal and instrumental music from Baroque Germany, performed on period instruments. Entrance is free, with a voluntary collection. Hope to see you there!

The following Bach Vespers will be on 31 July, with BWV 187.