Helmuth Rilling, the world renowned conductor, teacher, and Bach scholar, will present a series of lecture/concerts, culminating in a full performance of several choral masterworks of J.S. Bach. The series, entitled Reflections on Bach: Music for Christmas Day 1723, will be presented over three days. The lecture/concerts will consist of talks with musical illustrations, followed by a performance of the work. Part I (Christen, ätzet diesen Tag) will take place on Thursday, January 18 at 8 pm at Sprague Memorial Hall in New Haven (470 College St.), with Part II (Magnificat in Eb) the following evening (Friday, January 19) at 8pm, also at Sprague Memorial Hall. Tickets for the lecture/concerts are free, and available at 203-432-4158. On Saturday, January 20, there will be a concert performance at 8 pm at Woolsey Hall, corner College and Grove. The concert is free and open to the public; no tickets are required.
Part I - Christen, ätzet diesen Tag
Thursday, January 18 | 8 pm
Sprague Memorial Hall
Tickets for the lecture/concerts are free, and available at 203-432-4158.
Part II - Magnificat in Eb
Friday, January 19 |8pm
Sprague Memorial Hall
Tickets for the lecture/concerts are free, and available at 203-432-4158.
Concert Performance
Saturday, January 20 | 8 pm
Woolsey Hall
Free and open to the public; no tickets are required.
Helmuth Rilling is known internationally for his lecture/concerts, as well as for his more than 100 recordings on the Vox, Nonesuch, Columbia, Nippon, CBS, and Turnabout labels. He now records exclusively for Hänssler, for whom he has recorded the complete works of J.S. Bach on 172 CDs. Rilling is the founder of the acclaimed Gächinger Kantorei, the Oregon Bach Festival, the International Bach Academy (Stuttgart), which has been awarded the UNESCO Music Prize, and academies in Buenos Aires, Cracow, Prague, Moscow, Budapest, Santiago de Compostela, and Tokyo. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including a Grammy award and the Theodor Heuss Prize for advancing international understanding, and is an honorary member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
At Yale, Mr. Rilling will conduct the Yale Schola Cantorum, directed by Simon Carrington, and the Yale Collegium Players, directed by Robert Mealy. The vocal soloists will be from the graduate voice program led by James Taylor.
The works on the program were all performed by Bach on Christmas Day in 1723 in Leipzig. They offer a fascinating glimpse into Bach’s stylistic development: although employing nearly the same forces as the Magnificat,the cantata Christen, ätzet diesen Tag had been composed nearly a decade earlier. The small Sanctus of 1723 serves as a calm counterpoise to the festive exuberance of the other pieces.
The series is presented by Yale Institute of Sacred Music.