Returning to American Bach to sing the role of Christus in Bach's moving Saint John Passion is baritone Mischa Bouvier, always an audience favorite. His delivery of the role has been praised by The New York Times: “Mischa Bouvier was superb as Jesus, with a warm, full baritone,” further describing his singing with “a rich timbre and a fine sense of line.” He shares his enthusiasm about his upcoming performances in this video greeting:
Ágnes Vojtkó (mezzo-soprano) is excited to return to American Bach Soloists for Bach’s Saint John Passion. Applauded by San Francisco music critics as an “earnest and grounded” artist (San Francisco Classical Voice) with a “heart-touching and plush sound” (Bay Area Reporter), Ágnes is known for her masterful presentation of early music repertoire. Click the play button to watch her greeting.
advance discount $39/$56/$77/$101
at the door $44/$61/$82/$106
Friday March 8 2024 8:00 p.m.
St. Stephen's Church, 3 Bayview Avenue, Belvedere
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Saturday March 9 2024 7:00 p.m.
St. Mark's Episcopal Church, 2300 Bancroft Way, Berkeley
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Sunday March 10 2024 4:00 p.m.
St. Mark's Lutheran Church, 1111 O'Farrell Street, San Francisco
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Monday March 11 2024 7:00 p.m.
Davis Community Church, 412 C Street, Davis
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The program will last approximately 2 hours & 30 minutes including one intermission.
Celebrate the 300th anniversary of the creation of this masterwork!
The great Passions of J. S. Bach remain unparalleled in their dramatic impact and universally experienced emotional effects. Bach took the genre to new worlds of expression, incorporating new Italianate operatic elements with the Lutheran tradition of sung chorales. The result is a powerful force of rhetoric that tells the Passion story reinforced by personalized illuminations.
This is music that transcends cultural, religious, and theatrical boundaries between performers and audience members, drawing in listeners as historical participants. Maestro Thomas, one of the Baroque music world’s most celebrated Bach specialists, brings his unique and insightful perspectives to the podium in definitive performances that are profoundly beautiful and moving.
“When I heard the American Bach Soloists perform the St. John Passion in Belvedere Friday, the unashamed earnestness of their presentation was a powerful example of how persuasive and even seductive this music can be when under the care of great performers.” — Jonathan Rhodes Lee, San Francisco Classical Voice
Tenor Gregório Taniguchi has empowered narratives with an intuitive sense for storytelling as the Evangelist in Bach’s Saint John Passion, He crafts compelling performances that move audiences, and his dedication to rhetoric in music draws listeners to hear historical works as a dynamic and living part of our musical culture, illuminating classics for a modern audience.
Conductor Jeffrey Thomas is “unsurpassable as a Bach interpreter”... “Thomas' direction seems just right, capturing the humanity of the music... there is no higher praise for Bach performance” — Fanfare
Go In-Depth on Baroque and Dig into Historically Informed Performance Practice!
45 minutes prior to these performances, ticket holders can enjoy a free and informative lecture given by an ABS musician.
182 Howard Street, #536
San Francisco, CA 94105
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Phone: +1 (415) 621 7900
Fax: +1 (415) 621 7920