Today, July 28, is the commemoration of Johann Sabastian Bach, Heinrich Schutz, and George Frederick Handel church musicians. What a great day to give thanks to God for the gift of music. I’ve had some terrific musical experiences in recent months.
On March 21, I attended Bach’s Birthday Bash in St. Paul, an annual event I only learned about this year, sponsored jointly by the local chapter of the American Guild of Organists and Minnesota Public Radio’s classical station. It’s a bit like a progressive dinner, with successive courses (appetizer, soup, salad, entree, dessert) at different homes, but one dines on Bach’s music at five different church venues, which this year included one each Lutheran, Episcopal, and Presbyterian churches, and two Roman Catholic parishes. Each hour-long concert included a series of musicians – lots of organists, some piano pieces, and one piece transposed for saxophone, plus a cantata by the local choral ensemble Elm – with travel time in between (and a longer break for lunch). What a feast of Bach music! The first concert was broadcast live and can be heard here.
Early this month Mark and I attended Bach’s St. Matthew Passion at St. Olaf College, as part of the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians (ALCM) conference, “in conjunction with the 2026 Lutheran Summer Music Academy and Festival.” The webpage states:
St. Matthew Passion
The Bach Collegium Valparaiso is an ensemble composed of the finest period instrument and vocal forces in the Chicago area. The mission of BCV is to perform the great masterworks of the 16th-18th centuries with attention to historically informed practice and the highest standards of musical performance. At the helm of this multi-ensemble, multi-generational celebration is ChristopherCock, Senior Research Professor in Music at Valparaiso University. As Director of the Bach Institute at Valparaiso from 2001-2022, he led multiple performances of all of Bach’s major works and numerous cantatas. This distinguished conducting experience combined with his critically acclaimed performances as a Bach Evangelist have made him one of America’s foremost experts on the music of J. S. Bach.
It was a rich and beautiful performance, enhanced for us by the many friends who sang in the choir and other friends in attendance. To listen to the performance, find the link on this page. As Bach wrote, “The aim and final reason for all music should be the glory of God and the refreshment of the soul; where this is not remembered there is no real music but only devilish hubbub.” We are thankful to live in a place that is full of music opportunities and offer this prayer:
O God of majesty, whom saints and angels delight to worship: Pour out your Spirit on your servants who, with the gifts of music, enliven our praises and proclaim your word with power. Through this ministry give us new awareness of your beauty and grace, and join our voices with all the choirs of heaven, both now and forever; through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (ELW, p. 74)
