Bach's Magnificat

Show & Culture

1723 marks a pivotal year for Johann Sebastian Bach. Appointed Cantor of the city of Leipzig, the composer had to provide a new cantata for St. Thomas Church every Sunday. For his first Christmas, Bach amazed the faithful with his splendid Magnificat. The following year, the German musician once again amazed with the cantata Mache dich, mein Geist, bereit, some of whose arias foreshadow the sublime tragedy of the St. Matthew Passion. With her two ensembles (Insula orchestra and accentus) and a sumptuous vocal quartet, conductor Laurence Equilbey leads us to the heights of baroque music with the magnificent Gloria in excelsis Deo.