The St John Passion is one of Bach’s best-loved works and one of the greatest masterpieces of sacred music.  Iain Ledingham’s lecture will provide a ‘guided tour’ of the work, revealing the various ways in which Bach treats the Passion narrative (chapters 18-19 of St John’s Gospel).  The Evangelist (tenor soloist) and Christus (bass soloist) sing the narrative and the words of Jesus in recitative, while the choir takes on multiple roles in the story - followers of Jesus, Roman soldiers and the angry crowd seeking the death of Jesus.  The work is framed by the great opening and closing choruses, while the soloists express the Christian response to Christ’s passion in deeply felt, lyrical arias.  The work is further enriched by the many chorales (Lutheran hymns) which express a corporate response to the story.  It is an endlessly fascinating work, and this lecture will seek to reveal something of the richness and wonder of it.

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Tickets: £17.50  Students £5.00

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