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J S Bach's St John Passion

Academy of Ancient Music

,Barbican Hall
A thorny bush

On Good Friday, Laurence Cummings and the Academy of Ancient Music bring all their insight and commitment to the rarely heard 1725 version of J S Bach’s St John Passion. 

‘Crush me, you rocks and hills; heaven, hurl your bolts at me!’ J S Bach’s setting of the Passion according to St John is one of the supreme masterpieces of sacred music, but it’s also an intensely human story – a drama of turmoil and betrayal, suffering and redemption, that never loses its urgency. It’s a Good Friday tradition wherever western music is performed.

This year, as Laurence Cummings takes up the musical direction of the Academy of Ancient Music, he brings a strikingly personal perspective to this towering work. He’s using Bach’s less familiar 1725 version – in which Bach subtly adjusts his focus from heaven to Earth, from the Divine to the all-too-human, without losing any of the majesty and searing emotional power of this timeless spiritual drama. Music to refresh the spirit, performed with heart and soul.

Tagged with: Classical music Academy of Ancient Music Academy of Ancient Music Multibuy - Jan-Jul 2022

This performance ends at approximately 5.30pm, with a 20-minute interval.

Produced by the Academy of Ancient Music

Programme

Johann Sebastian Bach St John Passion (1725 version)

Performers

Academy of Ancient Music
Laurence Cummings director & harpsichord
Nicholas Mulroy Evangelist*
Dingle Yandell Christus*
Zoe Brookshaw soprano
Jessica Cale soprano
Anna Harvey alto
Jessica Dandy alto
Hugo Hymas tenor
Nicholas Mulroy tenor
George Humphreys bass*
William Gaunt bass

* Due to unforeseen circumstances, the musicians initially advertised in these roles are no longer able to perform. The AAM are grateful to the newly advertised artists for stepping in. 11/02/2022

Pre-concert talk

14:00, Fountain Room*

Sandy Burnett speaks to some Academy of Ancient Music players about their experience of J S Bach.

*Please note a change of venue from that originally advertised. Thu 13 Mar

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