Orchestra Of St. Luke's Has Announces Details Of Its Second Bach Festival

Orchestra of St. Luke's (OSL) today announced detailed programming for the second annual OSL Bach Festival, spanning three weeks from June 9-30, 2020, with concerts and masterclasses across four venues in Manhattan-including three orchestral concerts at Carnegie Hall-and featuring guest artists cellist Pieter Wispelwey, harpsichordist Jean Rondeau, and soprano Amanda Forsythe. The OSL Bach Festival was launched last June to great success as part of the first season of esteemed Baroque and Classical Music specialist Bernard Labadie as OSL Principal Conductor.

Highlights for the 2020 Festival include a performance of The Musical Offering, Bach's masterpiece composition based on a theme by Frederick the Great, led and contextualized by Labadie. The Musical Offering will also be the inspiration for four new compositions by emerging composers William Gardiner, Charles Peck, Jeremy Rapaport-Stein, and Nicky Sohn, selected by OSL's DeGaetano Composition Institute, now in its second year, which provides participants with creative development support in the creation of a new work. The world premieres of these pieces will conclude the 2020 Festival and will take place in the newly-renovated Neidorff-Karpati Hall at Manhattan School of Music.

Bernard Labadie said recently in an interview: "He's my god. Bach is the composer that does not know any boundaries of trend or fashion. Bach's music will always sound modern to people." Regarding the 2020 OSL Bach Festival, Labadie notes "I'm very excited to present the second edition of our Bach Festival, which will focus on the relationship between the great master and his sons. Carl Philipp Emanuel's place in the family portrait will be highlighted, not only through some of his best music, but also with the presentation of his father's Musical Offering, the existence of which was triggered by C.P.E. Bach's role in King Frederick the Great's orchestra. When the King of War meets the King of Counterpoint, let's hear who wins the battle!"

James Roe, President and Executive Director, added "The capacity crowds and standing ovations that we experienced during the inaugural OSL Bach Festival underscores New York's hunger for this kind of programming. We are thrilled to expand our offerings in 2020 to include masterclasses in Bach's style, four world premieres that are inspired by Bach, and to open the Festival with a free performance of Bach's solo cello suites in the spiritual setting of Temple Emanu-El."

To open the Festival on Tuesday, June 9, OSL and Temple Emanu-El offer a gift to New Yorkers: a free performance of Bach's Cello Suites 1, 3, and 5 by Pieter Wispelwey, one of the world's leading performers and interpreters of both Baroque and modern cello works, at Temple Emanu-El Streicker Center.

On Thursday, June 11 Maestro Labadie leads the opening performance of the 2020 OSL Bach Festival at Zankel Hall, which pairs seminal orchestral works by J.S. and C.P.E. Bach. Labadie will conduct Bach's third and fourth orchestral suites, which features the orchestra's trumpet section. Pieter Wispelwey joins the Orchestra for C.P.E. Bach's Cello Concerto in A Minor and Cello Concerto in A Major, two cornerstones of the cello repertoire.

Bernard Labadie and Orchestra of St. Luke's return to Zankel Hall in the Festival's second week on Thursday, June 18 with soprano Amanda Forsythe and harpsichordist Jean Rondeau for a program of vocal and keyboard concertos that explore Bach's versatility as a composer of dramatic and orchestral music, including the Wedding Cantata, the virtuosic Harpsichord Concerto in D Minor, and the secular cantata "Non sa che sia dolore."

The second week also features a DiMenna Center performance on Tuesday, June 16 by visionary programmer and pianist Pedja Mužijević, who comes back to the Festival with Bach Family Album, a program juxtaposing the keyboard music of J.S. Bach and his sons, following up on his Bach Dialogues which was presented during the 2019 OSL Bach Festival.

On Thursday, June 25, Labadie and OSL perform again at Zankel Hall for the Festival's third week with Bach's The Musical Offering. In May 1747, King Frederick the Great of Prussia presented Bach with an interesting musical challenge: to compose a fugue based on a simple musical theme. From this challenge came The Musical Offering, a monumental composition based on the emperor's theme. The work consists of two multi-voice fugues, ten canons, and a four-movement trio sonata with a flute solo written to honor Frederick the Great, who was a trained flutist.

The Festival closes on Tuesday, June 30 with the world premiere of four new compositions inspired by The Musical Offering by composers William Gardiner, (Brooklyn, NY), Charles Peck (Morton, PA), Jeremy Rapaport-Stein (Boston, MA), and Nicky Sohn (Houston, TX), who were selected by the DeGaetano Composition Institute, at Neidorff-Karpati Hall at Manhattan School of Music.

The DeGaetano Composition Institute was launched in September 2018, under the leadership of mentor Anna Clyne, the Grammy-nominated composer who has been commissioned by a wide range of ensembles and institutions and who most recently was Artist-in-Residence at National Sawdust in Brooklyn as well as the Music Alive Composer-in-Residence with the Berkeley Symphony. Conductor Ben Gernon will lead OSL in these world premieres. The English conductor has recently made significant debuts with the Vienna Symphony, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, DSO Berlin, Munich Chamber, and Royal Liverpool Philharmonic as well as regular engagements with most of the UK's orchestras, including the Philharmonia and City of Birmingham Symphony orchestras, and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra at the BBC. A keen opera conductor, Gernon recently made his debut at English National Opera conducting Simon McBurney's production of The Magic Flute.

Each year OSL's DeGaetano Composition Institute selects four exceptional emerging composers through a national call-for-scores to workshop new works for chamber orchestra under the leadership of a mentor and composer. This new initiative was established through a generous gift from the estate of pianist, composer and teacher Robert DeGaetano, and will occur annually in late spring/early summer.

OSL Bach Festival Orchestra Series Subscriptions for Carnegie Hall concerts and single tickets to events at Manhattan School of Music and The DiMenna Center for classical music will be on sale on January 14, 2020 at OSLmusic.org.

MORE ABOUT THE FESTIVAL

Free Concert by Cellist Pieter Wispelwey at Temple Emanu-El Steicker Center

Celebrated Dutch cellist Pieter Wispelwey, who has recorded all six of Bach's cello suites three times, performs No. 1 in G major, BWV 1007; No. 3 in C major, BWV 1009; and No. 5 in C minor BWV 1011, at a free concert on Tuesday, June 9 at the landmark Romanesque Revival Temple Emanu-El in Manhattan, one of the largest synagogues in the world. Based on six dance movements and composed between 1717-23 when he was Kapellmeister in Köthen, along with his other famous secular works, including the Brandenburg Concertos and Well-Tempered Clavier, Bach's Cello Suites are some of the most emotionally intense pieces in the Baroque repertoire. Due to the works' technical demands, etude-like nature, and difficulty in interpretation because of the non-annotated nature of the surviving copies, the cello suites were little known and rarely publicly performed until they were revived and recorded by Pablo Casals in the early 20th century.

Bernard Labadie and Orchestra of St. Luke's in Zankel Hall

Orchestra of St. Luke's in association with Carnegie Hall presents three Festival programs in Zankel Hall on three consecutive Thursday evenings. Each program explores a specific aspect of Bach's music, with the theme of family and musical legacy woven throughout.

On Thursday, June 11 Maestro Labadie leads the opening performance of the 2020 OSL Bach Festival at Zankel Hall, which pairs seminal orchestral works by J.S. and his son, C.P.E. Bach. Labadie will conduct Bach's third and fourth orchestral suites, which features the orchestra's trumpet section. Called "ouvertures" by Bach, and later named orchestral suites by the 19th century scholars who rediscovered them, it is believed they were written between 1729 and 1740 when Bach was the director of the Collegium Musicum in Leipzig. Following a style which originated with Lully and his French contemporaries, in which an overture is followed by a collection of dances such as bourrées, gavottes or minuets, Bach was continuing a tradition in German orchestral music which can be traced back to the final two decades of the seventeenth century. Pieter Wispelwey joins the Orchestra for C.P.E. Bach's Cello Concerto in A Minor and Cello Concerto in A Major, two cornerstones of the cello repertoire.

Maestro Labadie and OSL perform at Zankel Hall in the Festival's second week on Thursday, June 18 with American soprano Amanda Forsythe and French harpsichordist Jean Rondeau in a program of vocal and keyboard works that explore Bach's versatility as a composer of dramatic and orchestral music. Miss Forsythe, acclaimed for her interpretations of Baroque music and the works of Rossini, will sing two secular cantatas, the Wedding Cantata, which, along with the Coffee Cantata, is the best known and loved of all of Bach's secular cantatas, and "Non sa che sia dolore," first performed in Leipzig in 1747 and composed as a farewell to scholar Lorenz Albrecht Beck, who was called to a position in Ansbach in Franconia. Rondeau, one of the most fascinating keyboard interpreters of Bach on the international scene, and who was last heard in New York at Carnegie Hall's Early Music at Weill Recital Hall series last March, performs the virtuosic Harpsichord Concerto in D Minor.

In the Festival's third week, on Thursday, June 25 Maestro Labadie and OSL return to Zankel Hall for a performance of Bach's The Musical Offering. In May 1747, King Frederick the Great of Prussia presented Bach with an interesting musical challenge: to compose a fugue based on a simple musical theme. From this challenge came The Musical Offering, a monumental composition based on the emperor's theme. The Musical Offering consists of two multi-voice fugues, ten canons, and a four-movement trio sonata with a flute solo written to honor Frederick the Great, who was a trained flutist.

Intimate Keyboard Recital at The DiMenna Center for Classical Music

The warm acoustics and complete sound isolation that Cary Hall at The DiMenna Center for Classical Music possesses make it the perfect setting to experience the Festival's recital with innovative programmer and refined pianist Pedja Mužijević. Titled Bach Family Album, the Tuesday, June 16 performance includes illuminating remarks guiding the audience through familiar and new musical landscapes as he returns to the Bach Festival to explore the music of Bach and his sons. In addition to last June's Bach Festival, similar previous programs crafted by Mužijević have been presented to great acclaim by Lincoln Center's Mostly Mozart Festival, Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston, and The Verbier Festival in Switzerland.

Masterclasses

As part of the Festival, OSL will offer two public masterclasses at The DiMenna Center for Classical Music with cellist Pieter Wispelwey on Friday, June 12 and with harpsichordist Jean Rondeau on Wednesday, June 17, both beginning at 5:30pm. Students and alumni from The Juilliard School will have a rare opportunity to perform and work on their interpretation of selected works by Bach with these renowned specialists. Wispelwey will lead a masterclass focused on Bach's cello suites, and Rondeau will lead a class on harpsichord and chamber music of Bach. Access to the classes will be free and open to the public, with reservations requested.

About Orchestra of St. Luke's

Orchestra of St. Luke's (OSL), an independent orchestra and arts organization, evolved from a group of virtuoso musicians who began performing concerts at Greenwich Village's Church of St. Luke in the Fields in 1974. Now in its 45th season, the Orchestra performs over 70 times each year at venues throughout New York City and beyond. Celebrated expert in 18th-century music, Bernard Labadie, became OSL's Principal Conductor in 2018, continuing the Orchestra's long tradition of working with proponents of historical performance practice.

OSL's signature programming includes an orchestra series presented by Carnegie Hall, now in its 33rd season; the OSL Bach Festival, presented in association with Carnegie Hall and at other venues; the Chamber Music Series presented at The Morgan Library & Museum, Brooklyn Museum, and Merkin Hall; the Music in Color free community concert tour of New York City's five-boroughs; a summer residency at Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, now in its 42nd season and a creative partnership with Paul Taylor American Modern Dance, where OSL provides live musical accompaniment during the company's annual Lincoln Center season.

OSL's education programs includes the Free School Concerts series, presenting innovative concerts to student audiences since 1977; Youth Orchestra of St. Luke's, providing free instrumental coaching to elementary and middle-school students; and the DeGaetano Composition Institute, providing emerging composers mentorship and creative support as they develop new works to be performed by the Orchestra.

In 2011, OSL opened The DiMenna Center for Classical Music New York City's only rehearsal, recording, education, and performance space expressly dedicated to classical music. The Center serves more than 500 ensembles and more than 30,000 musicians each year.

Learn more at OSLmusic.org

About Bernard Labadie, Principal Conductor

Widely recognized as one of the world's leading conductors of Baroque, Classical, and Early-Romantic repertoire, Bernard Labadie made his debut with the OSL as Principal Conductor Designate at the Caramoor Summer Music Festival on July 2, 2017 leading an all-Mozart program. Now, as OSL's 5th Principal Conductor, he joins the distinguished roster of Pablo Heras-Casado (2011-2017), Roger Norrington (1990-1994), Charles Mackerras (1998-2001), and Donald Runnicles (2001-2007). Bernard Labadie received an Honorary Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Manhattan School of Music in May 2018.

Maestro Labadie's 2018-19 season includes guest conducting engagements with Kansas City Symphony, Handel and Haydn Society, Canadian Opera Company, Philharmonie du Luxemburg, New World Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, Montreal Symphony, and Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra. French-Canadian Labadie founded the celebrated chamber orchestra Les Violons du Roy in 1984 and built it to international renown. He stepped down in 2014 from his 30-year tenure as Music Director to pursue wider interests. Labadie is a regular guest conductor with all the major North American orchestras and has appeared locally with the New York Philharmonic, The Metropolitan Opera, and the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra. His notable European engagements include the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, and frequent assignments with period-instrument orchestras including Academy of Ancient Music, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, The English Concert, and Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin. An eminent opera conductor, Maestro Labadie has served as Artistic Director of Opéra de Québec and Opéra de Montréal. He made his Metropolitan Opera debut during the 2009-2010 season with Mozart's Die Zauberflöte.

Bernard Labadie's extensive discography comprises many critically acclaimed recordings on the Dorian, ATMA, and Virgin Classics labels, including a collaborative recording of Mozart's Requiem with Les Violons du Roy and La Chapelle de Québec, both of which received Canada's Juno Award.

ORCHESTRA OF ST. LUKE'S BACH FESTIVAL JUNE 9-30, 2020

Programs in chronological order

FREE CONCERT - BACH CELLO SUITES WITH PIETER WISPELWEY

Tuesday, June 9, 2020 at 6:30 pm

Temple Emanu-El Streicker Center, 5th Avenue at 65th Street

Pieter Wispelwey, Cello

J. S. BACH: Cello Suite No. 1 in G major, BWV 1007

J. S. BACH: Cello Suite No. 3 in C major, BWV 1009

J. S. BACH: Cello Suite No. 5 in C minor BWV 1011

THE VIRTUOSO BACHS

Thursday, June 11, 2020 at 7:00 pm

Zankel Hall, Seventh Avenue between 56th and 57th Street

Orchestra of St. Luke's

Bernard Labadie, Principal Conductor

Pieter Wispelwey, Cello

J. S. BACH: Orchestral Suite No. 3, BWV 1068

C.P.E. BACH: Cello Concerto in A Minor

J. S. BACH: Orchestral Suite No. 4, BWV 1069

C.P.E. BACH: Cello Concerto in A Major

BACH FAMILY ALBUM

Tuesday, June 16, 2020 at 7:00 pm

The DiMenna Center for Classical Music, 450 W. 37th Street

Pedja Mužijević, Piano

C.P.E. BACH: Sonata in C minor, Wq. 65/31

C.P.E. BACH: Sonata in G major, Wq. 55/6

W.F. BACH: Fantasy FK 15

C.P.E. BACH: Sonata in G minor, Wq. 65/17

C.P.E. BACH: Rondo in C minor, Wq. 59/4

BACH IN LOVE

Thursday, June 18, 2020 at 7:00 pm

Zankel Hall, Seventh Avenue between 56th and 57th Street

Orchestra of St. Luke's

Bernard Labadie, Principal Conductor

Jean Rondeau, Harpsichord

Amanda Forsythe, Soprano

J.S. BACH : Non sa che sia dolore, BWV 209

J.S. BACH: Harpsichord Concerto in D Minor, BWV 1052

W.F./J.C. BACH: Harpsichord Concerto in F Minor

J.S. BACH: Weichet nur, betrubte Schatten, BWV 202 "Wedding Cantata"

THE MUSICAL OFFERING

Thursday, June 25, 2020 at 7:00 pm

Zankel Hall, Seventh Avenue between 56th and 57th Street

Orchestra of St. Luke's

Bernard Labadie, Principal Conductor and Narrator

J.S. BACH: The Musical Offering, BWV 1079

WORLD PREMIERES FOR CHAMBER ORCHESTRA

OSL Bach Festival DeGaetano Composition Institute World Premieres

Tuesday, June 30, 2020 at 7:30 pm

Neidorff-Karpati Hall, Manhattan School of Music, 130 Claremont Avenue at 122nd Street

Orchestra of St. Luke's

Ben Gernon, Conductor

Four world premieres of works by William Gardiner, Charles Peck, Jeremy Rapaport-Stein and Nicky Sohn, inspired by Bach's The Musical Offering.

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