“Bach at the Sem” opening 19th season

The first Bach at the Sem concert of the season will take place on Sunday, October 10, at 3:00 p.m. in the Chapel of St. Timothy and St. Titus on the Concordia Seminary campus. In the first concert, Artist-in-Residence and Conductor Robert Bergt will lead The American Kantorei, Chamber Chorus, soloists, and orchestra in J. S. Bach’s Mass in B Minor, performing the Kyrie and Gloria in Excelsis. The chorus of 30 singers and orchestra of 21 musicians perform with modern concepts yet they incorporate styles and performance that is informed by the Baroque techniques.

The October 10 concert will feature new soprano Emily Truckenbrod, professor of music at SIU-Edwardsville. Soloists include: Jean Baue, soprano; Katharine Lawton Brown, mezzo; Jeral Becker, tenor; David Berger, bass/baritone; Paula Kasica, flute; Ann Homann, oboe; Wanda Becker, violin; Nancy Schick, horn; Joan Bergt, harpsichord; John Korak, Susan Slaughter, and Robert Sousa, trumpets; and Dennis Bergin, organ preludes on two chorales, Kyrie Eleison and Gloria in Excelsis Deo.

The Concordia Historical Institute on the campus of Concordia Seminary will also be open to the public from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. on October 10 to allow guests a chance to view its newest exhibit, “Albrecht Dürer: Master Woodcut Artist of the German Renaissance.”

The rest of the 19th season of Bach at the Sem is as follows:

Sunday, December 5, 3:00 p.m.

Credo, Sanctus, Benedictus, and Agnus Dei from the Mass in B Minor.

Sunday, February 13, 3:00 p.m.

Organist Dennis Bergin performs Bach’s transcriptions of Four Concerti by Antonio Vivaldi and Johann Ernst. The American Kantorei performs a cantata by J. S. Bach.

Sunday, April 17, 3:00 p.m.

The Magnificat and Cantata 4, Christ lag im Todesbanden. Dr. Jeffrey Wilson conducts the Greenville Illinois College Choir, performing Renaissance, Baroque and Modern motets.

All performances held at the Chapel of St. Timothy and St. Titus, Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, and are free to the public. Space is limited and fills up fast. A free will offering is received, dedicated wholly to the Bach at the Sem program.

The American Kantorei is a choral and orchestral ensemble dedicated to the performance of church music from the Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, and Neoclassical periods. The works of J. S. Bach form the core of its repertoire. Music Director and Conductor Robert Bergt is known as a symphonic and chorale conductor with a specialization in the music of Bach and other masters of the Baroque Period. Bach at the Sem is funded largely through the generosity of individual supporters.

Concordia Seminary is grateful to Richard and Phyllis Duesenberg and to Robert and Lori Duesenberg for their generous gifts, which make the Bach at the Sem series possible. Concordia Seminary is privileged to make Johann Sebastian Bach’s music available to the St. Louis community and invites your generosity in support of this important series.

For more information concerning Bach at the Sem or to be added to the Bach at the Sem mailing list, contact Concordia Seminary, 801 Seminary Place, St. Louis, MO 63105; 314-505-7362; [email protected]; or visit the Concordia Seminary website.