jmc's classics
I attended a performance of J.S. Bach's St John's Passion today. This work tells the story of Christ's Passion and Burial based on the Gospel of St. John. It is not as famous as Bach's St Matthew's Passion which is slightly longer.
The Bach Society is a choral society in St. Louis that deals with works mainly of Bach but also deals with other composers. I have seen live performances of St. Matthews Passion. The first was by the SLSO in November of 1997! Not what you would expect-it would have been expected during Lent.bachsociety.org Both are good organizations. Many other metropolitan areas have similar such organizations. This work first appeared in Leipzig Germany in 1723. He wrote three more versions of St. John's Passion. The final version appeared in 1749. It runs about two hours. Bach was a Lutheran and worked as music director for two churches in Leipzig. During that time the city of Leipzig had a population of about 23,000. Today it is a major metropolitan area in Germany. The Gospel of St. John unlike the other three gospels leaves out the part of Jesus' disciples falling asleep in the Garden of Gethsemane. also left out of this gospel are the death of Judas and the dream of Pilot's wife. The majority of this work is based on chapters 18 and 19. It is in two halves intending for a sermon between the two halves. It also includes some commentary by the composer. Some people have accused this work of being Anti-Semitic in nature. Music scholar Michael Marissen of Swarthmore College has concluded that both St. John's and St. Matthews have less derogatory statements towards Jews than other similar works from that era. Both works are good listening during the Lenten Season. I have a copy of the work in German with the Gewandhausenorchestra Leipzig with Gunter Ramen conducting. Unfortunately, I can't find any copies of this work in English. I enjoy the work of the Bach Society and have attended their concerts when there is something that interests me.
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