Passion for Bach - IN A DIFFERENT GUISE

In the 18th century, composers sought to perform their music in as many places as possible.

Sometimes local circumstances forced them to adapt the original instrumentation. For example, between 1717 and 1720, Bach added two viola da gamba parts to an earlier concerto for two violas, cello, double bass, and basso continuo because his patron in Köthen played the instrument. In 1721, Bach sent this new version along with five other concertos to the Margrave of Brandenburg. Today, you will hear the original version of this sixth Brandenburg Concerto. Years later, in Leipzig, Bach replaced the violin solo in the Fourth Brandenburg Concerto with a harpsichord part to showcase his own skills as a keyboardist.

For the fifth season, Phion, Orkest van Gelderland & Overijssel, and Wilminktheater and Muziekcentrum Enschede are collaborating on the Passie voor Bach series. In four themed concerts on Sunday mornings at the Grote Kerk, Ensemble Himmelsburg will perform a selection of well-known and lesser-known works by Johann Sebastian Bach and his contemporaries.

Ensemble Himmelsburg, named after the Schlosskirche in Weimar where Bach worked for several years, is made up of Phion musicians with a deep passion for Bach, along with violinist Carla Leurs and harpsichordist and organist Pieter Dirksen, who also serves as the musical director. On Sunday, March 30 at the Grote Kerk in Enschede: Passion for Bach - IN A DIFFERENT GUISE.

The Passie voor Bach series is a co-production of Phion, Orkest van Gelderland & Overijssel, and Wilminktheater and Muziekcentrum Enschede.