Freiburg Baroque Orchestra: Mass in B minor

Johann Sebastian Bach: Mass in B minor BWV 232

Vox Luminis
Freiburger Barockorchester
Lionel Meunier, bass & conductor

In Johann Sebastian Bach's oeuvre, the Mass in B minor BWV 232 is one of the great mysteries about which many Bach scholars still rack their brains today. Why did the Lutheran Bach compose a complete Catholic mass in Latin? What was the occasion? When was the premiere? These are all questions to which there are still no definitive answers. The completion of the mass took several decades: Bach composed the Kyrie and Gloria in 1733, followed by the remaining parts in 1748/49, whereby Bach drew on earlier compositions. Since 2015, the manuscript of the last version has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site - a distinction that recognizes the epochal value of the mass.

After Telemann's "Donner-Ode" and Bach's Missa brevis in F major BWV 233 in the last concert season, the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra is now devoting itself to Bach's monumental mass, together with the Belgian vocal ensemble Vox Luminis, which is not only known for its outstanding interpretations of Bach's works, but also shares a close musical friendship with us that has now lasted seven years and has even been described by the press as a "happy relationship", according to the Berliner Tagesspiegel. In fact, the two ensembles complement each other not only musically, but also on a personal level, so that making music together is also a delightful experience for the audience.

A free introductory lecture will take place at 7.15 pm in the Rolf Böhme Hall.