The Bach Institute
Pamela Dellal, Director; Ryan Turner, Associate Director
The Bach Institute, with public events throughout each performance season, provides engagement with Bach’s music through presentations and participatory activities. We are creating and sharing a trove of resources specific to the varied interests of music professionals, amateurs, aficionados, and anyone curious about what Bach’s music may offer to today’s listeners.
Time fascinated Bach; his music contemplates both eternity and the brevity of time. Bach was a man very much of his time, and simultaneously a composer for all time; his relationship to the legacy of history and to posterity is vigorous and multi-stranded. For the 2024 Bach Institute January Intensive we will go on a journey through time and about time with the master, to discover what he can teach us about our place in history, in eternity, and even in the score!
During the BI January Intensive we invite a group of auditioned talented young musicians for a 10-day exploration of Bach's marvelous cantata repertoire, including lectures, masterclasses, open rehearsals, and stimulating conversations. Bach's music is fully alive at Emmanuel Music; come watch us play in our living laboratory, testing and examining sound, text, and structure to discover the underlying messages in the music.
During the BI January Intensive we invite a group of auditioned talented young musicians for a 10-day exploration of Bach's marvelous cantata repertoire, including lectures, masterclasses, open rehearsals, and stimulating conversations. Bach's music is fully alive at Emmanuel Music; come watch us play in our living laboratory, testing and examining sound, text, and structure to discover the underlying messages in the music.
Bach Institute 2024
Public Events
Conversation: Pamela Dellal, Ryan Turner, and Nicholas Phan
Is Bach for Everyone?
Jan. 5, 2024 at 7.00pm
Nick, Pam, and Ryan will conduct a stimulating round-table discussion on what Bach means for us in this time; what he intended to say to his own time, and how Bach will remain relevant for future times.
Open Cantata Rehearsals
Jan. 6, 2024 at 11.30am and 1pm
Grab a front row seat to see how the weekly cantata performance comes together in just one rehearsal. Listen to Artistic Director Ryan Turner and guests discuss the musical intricacies of the cantata they are preparing.
11:30 am: Cantata Open Rehearsal: Ryan Turner conducts BWV 7
1:00 pm: Conversation: Ryan Turner and Pamela Dellal discuss BWV 7
Members of the public are welcome
to bring a bag lunch to the talk at 1 pm
11:30 am: Cantata Open Rehearsal: Ryan Turner conducts BWV 7
1:00 pm: Conversation: Ryan Turner and Pamela Dellal discuss BWV 7
Members of the public are welcome
to bring a bag lunch to the talk at 1 pm
Cantata BWV 7: Christ unser Herr zum Jordan kam
Ryan Turner conducting with Nicholas Phan, tenor soloist
Ryan Turner conducting with Nicholas Phan, tenor soloist
Jan. 7, 2024 at 10.00am
Cantata presentation as part of the Sunday morning church service at Emmanuel Church.
Master Class - Bach's Time
led by special guest Nicholas Phan
led by special guest Nicholas Phan
featuring the Bach Institute Fellows
Jan. 8, 2024 at 7.00pm
photo credit: Jonathan Sachs
Conversation: Teresa Neff
The Past Becomes Present: Bach's Use of the Chorale in His Cantatas
Jan. 9, 2024 at 7.00pm
By Bach’s time the chorale had been a fundamental part of the Lutheran worship service for generations and had inspired compositions for both worship and home entertainment. These texts and tunes with roots reaching back to Martin Luther were part of a musical language shared by most Lutherans. Bach enriched this tradition by incorporating dramatic musical settings of a chorale within a cantata or framing the cantata with chorale settings as the outer movements. Bach also used the chorale to connect specific events – usually related to the birth or death of Jesus – with the contemporary believer. In this context, the chorale acts as a musical bridge, bringing new meaning and impact to a familiar moment from a Biblical narrative. This presentation will explore how Bach’s use of the chorale shifted the perspective of the congregation from spectator to participant.
Conversation: the Rev. Pamela Werntz and Dr. Karen King
Translation Backwards and Forwards
Jan. 11, 2024 at 7.00pm
Translation can be described as "saying in one language what someone else said in another," but in truth there are no one-to-one correspondences between tongues. Languages convey whole worlds and ways of seeing them; and the task of porting and bridging between different languages is much more complex. Things change; choices have to be made; some things are lost; over time more sticky layers accrue; it gets complicated. In Bach cantatas, the linguistic traditions range from 1st century Greek and 16th century German to 21st century English, across continents and history both theological and political. We're interested in not only what words and ideas meant then, but what they mean now and going forward.
Open Cantata Rehearsals
Jan. 13, 2024 at 11.30am and 1pm
Grab a front row seat to see how the weekly cantata performance comes together in just one rehearsal. Listen to Artistic Director Ryan Turner and guests discuss the musical intricacies of the cantata they are preparing.
11:30am: Cantata Open Rehearsal: John Harbison conducts BWV 79
1:00 pm: Conversation: John Harbison discusses the cantata
Members of the public are welcome
to bring a bag lunch to the talk at 1 pm
11:30am: Cantata Open Rehearsal: John Harbison conducts BWV 79
1:00 pm: Conversation: John Harbison discusses the cantata
Members of the public are welcome
to bring a bag lunch to the talk at 1 pm
Cantata BWV 79: Gott, der Herr, ist Sonn und Schild John Harbison conducting
Jan. 14, 2024 at 10am
Cantata presentation as part of the Sunday morning church service at Emmanuel Church.
Showcase Concert featuring Bach Institute fellows
Jan. 14, 2024 at 7.00pm