Victoria Philharmonic Choir presents Bach's St. John Passion

add to outlook add to google calendar remind me

Saturday, April 4th, 2015
7:30 PM to 9:30 PM

The oldest of Bach's Passion settings, the St. John was composed for a Good Friday Vespers service in 1724, and would originally have been wrapped around a sermon.

While it is now most often heard in a concert hall, conductor Peter Butterfield, who has performed as both Evangelist and tenor soloist on a number of occasions, plans a semi-staged production that tosses out the usual 19th century-style formality and brings the audience closer to the story.

It is through the semi-staged aspect that the drama will manifest itself, both through the characters in the story, and through the reflective arias. In a series of theatrical choruses, and chorales based on 17th-century Lutheran hymns, the 70-voice choir reflects the emotions of the crowd, whether angry, mocking and defiant, or anxiously pleading for spiritual comfort.

This performance is dedicated to the memory of Belsonia Bogatin Paul (1920-2014), a generous supporter of VPC and other performing arts and community organizations.