Ottawa Bach Choir’s 20th season a stunner
By Emily O’Kane
The Ottawa Bach Choir (OBC) is excited to welcome you to its 20th season of stunning choral music. Over the past 19 years, the professional ensemble has not only travelled the world and received national and international recognition, it also has many “firsts” to its credit, including a 2020 JUNO award in the category Best Classical Album of the Year: Vocal or Choral for the album Handel: Dixit Dominus, Bach & Schütz: Motets. The choir will record its eighth album this season and has been invited to return to the world’s most prestigious international Bach festival, Bachfest Leipzig, next June 2022 as one of a select number of ensembles worldwide and the only Canadian ensemble to present the entire chorale cantata cycle of Bach.
The choir is delighted to be able to safely offer an entire season of choral music in 2021-22 with in-person live concerts as well as in our successful Digital Concert Hall.
The season opens with Bach’s masterpiece, Mass in B Minor, considered his greatest work, on Saturday, November 27 with Ensemble Caprice baroque orchestra and world-class soloists. Performed in the beautiful setting of Carleton Dominion-Chalmers Centre in Ottawa, you won’t want to miss this.
Following this grandiose first performance, OBC presents French Baroque Treasures on Sunday, March 12. Featuring glorious French Baroque music, including Charpentier’s chef d’œuvre, Missa assumpta est Maria and Dominus regnavit by Mondonville, the captivating selections will be performed with Ensemble Caprice baroque orchestra and soloists from the choir in the lush acoustics at Knox Presbyterian Church.
The final concert of the season, Prelude- Europe 2021, on Saturday, May 7 features thrilling music that the choir will take on its fifth European tour, A Bach Pilgrimage, in conjunction with its performance at Bachfest Leipzig in June. It will include works by German Baroque masters, Bach, Schütz, Telemann, Pachelbel and others as well as contemporary gems by Mealor, Murphy, Pärt and more. Canadian organist Jonathan Oldengarm joins the choir for this exciting concert at St. Matthew’s Church.
Regular subscription tickets, at a 10-per-cent discount, will be on sale as of September 11. Tickets for individual and subscription concerts in the Digital Concert Hall will also be available, including the Bach Motets digital concert, postponed from May and available as of October 2. For more information visit the website at www.ottawabachchoir.ca or e-mail info@ottawabachchoir.ca.
The Ottawa Bach Choir is overjoyed to return to in-person performances, continuing to offer performances through the Digital Concert Hall and sharing the love of choral music with all patrons. Join us and come discover the best that choral music has to offer!
Emily O’Kane is the new administrative manager for the Ottawa Bach Choir. She brings passion and enthusiasm to the OBC.
