Bach Choir's Noon Concert Series Begins Today

The ’s ninth season of Bach at Noon concerts begins today at .

The seven-concert series features programs on the second Tuesday of the month, 12:10 – 1:00pm, September-November 2012 and January-April 2013. Admission is free and no tickets are required. A free-will offering will be received. The Bach Choir recommends that people come early to be sure of a seat since the concerts have continued their outstanding success in attracting close to capacity audiences.

Each Bach at Noon concert features one vocal and one instrumental piece performed by members of The Bach Choir and Bach Festival Orchestra and distinguished soloists. Greg Funfgeld, now beginning his 30th anniversary season as artistic director and conductor, introduces each program with an informal talk.

For the 2012-13 Bach at Noon series, Funfgeld has chosen to pair works by Johann Sebastian Bach with works by Antonio Vivaldi, the Italian composer whom Bach knew and admired and some of whose music Bach arranged for organ, harpsichord and orchestra.

The opening concert on Sept. 11 features a recorder concerto by Vivaldi called Il Gardellino (the Goldfinch – RV 428) in which the music mimics the birdsong. The soloist is Tricia Van Oers, a well-known artist in the field of early music who has delighted Bach Choir audiences on several occasions. She studied at the Rotterdam Conservatory and also works for Von Huene Workshop Inc. as a recorder tester and repair and maker’s assistant.

Following the concerto is Bach’s Cantata 149 – Man singet mit Freuden vom Sieg (Let songs of rejoicing be raised.) The soloists are Rosa Lamoreaux, soprano, Barbara Hollinshead, mezzo-soprano, Robert Petillo, tenor, and William Sharp, baritone. Also featured is Chuck Holdeman in the famous solo for bassoon that Bach included in this cantata.

Bach at Noon – 2012-13 Schedule

Central Moravian Church, Historic Downtown Bethlehem, Second Tuesdays, 12:10-1:00pm

Free Admission and no need for a reservation. A freewill offering will be received

Doors open at 11:30am. Come early to be sure of a seat! 

• Sept. 11: Antonio Vivaldi – Recorder Concerto RV. 428 Il Gardellino (the Goldfinch) Tricia van Oers, recorder; J.S. Bach – Cantata 149 – Man singet mit Freuden vom Sieg
• Oct. 9: Sonata in E flat major, BWV 1031 for flute and harpsichord, Robin Kani, flute; Greg Funfgeld, harpsichord; Antonio Vivaldi – “In furore iustissimae irae” – Motet for Soprano, Two Violins, Viola and Basso continuo, RV 626, Agnes Zsigovics, soprano
• Nov. 13: Antonio Vivaldi – Concerto in G Minor for two Celli, RV 531, Loretta O’Sullivan and Deborah Davis, celli; J.S. Bach  – Cantata 80 – Ein feste Burg
• Jan. 8: Antonio Vivaldi – Concerto in D Minor for Two Violins and Strings, Opus 3, No. 11, RV 565 arranged for the organ by Johann Sebastian Bach, Thomas Goeman, organ; Antonio Vivaldi – Gloria, RV 589
• Feb. 12: J.S. Bach – Violin Partita in E Major, BWV 1006, Elizabeth Field, violin; J.S. Bach – Cantata 12 – Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen
• March 12: Antonio Vivaldi – Concerto for Two Oboes, RV 535, Mary Watt and Nobuo Kitagawa, oboes; J.S. Bach – Cantata 56 – Ich will den Kreuzstab gerne tragen, Dashon Burton, bass-baritone
• April 9: J.S. Bach – Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 in D Major, Robin Kani, flute; Elizabeth Field, violin; Greg Funfgeld, harpsichord; J.S. Bach Cantata 31 – Der Himmel lacht! Die Erde jubilieret!