Bay Area Classical Harmonies (BACH) Presents...
Messiah, By G.F. Handel
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December 1, 2, 7, 8 2007

Bay Area Classical Harmonies (BACH) is proud to present George Frideric Handel's masterpiece Messiah, performed by the BACH Ensemble. Conducted by BACH's Assistant Director and Associate Conductor John Michael Boyer, this will be the ensemble's first time presenting this work. The production provides a rare opportunity for listeners in the Bay Area to hear the work in its entirety, and not in the form of a sing-along. The soloists are some of the Bay Area’s top singers, all regular performers in professional music ensembles, including the BACH Chorus. Co-sponsored by Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in San Jose and St. John Armenian Apostolic Church in San Francisco the program will be performed December 1 through 8 at 4 different venues around the Bay Area: San Francisco, Berkeley, Kensington and San Jose.

Also known as the Sacred Oratorio, Messiah remains Handel's best known work. This piece was composed in London in 1741 and premiered in Dublin in 1742. Although it was originally conceived for Lent and Easter, since his death it is traditionally performed during the Christmas season.

About B.A.C.H.                            
Founded by Andrew J. Chung in 1998, BACH began as a student group at UC Berkeley. The founding members sought to establish a supportive, challenging organization in which young musicians could develop a variety of skills, including leadership and teamwork as well as artistic virtuosity. The group was so successful, becoming known as "the most versatile classical music organization in the Bay Area," that as its members graduated, they decided to keep the momentum going. Moving from a student group to a professional-level ensemble, BACH became a 501(c) 3 non-profit organization in 2002, dedicated to the performance of fine classical music in the greater San Francisco Bay Area, Central Valley and Southern California, with regular tours to Modesto, Bakersfield and Long Beach. Since then, BACH has grown into a presenting organization, producing events for a varied list of performers and ensembles, all-the-while maintaining its own impressive concert season, as The BACH Ensemble.

As a presenting organization, BACH promotes a variety of programs, including following: The Last Friday Concert Series at the ProArts Gallery in Oakland, a series which hosts a wide range of ensembles crossing artistic genres; The Josquin Singers, a vocal chamber ensemble specializing in liturgical music of eastern and western Europe; and the Seemorgh Ensemble, specializing in Iranian opera and choral music.

The BACH Ensemble's repertoire includes cantatas, oratorio, concerti, symphonies and masses, most notably: J.S. Bach's Johannes Passion; W.A. Mozart's Requiem, Clarinet and Flute Concerti; Beethoven's 1st Symphony, and Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto. Its Opera division, first created in order to present a concert version of Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro, went on to perform a modern staging of The Magic Flute, and traditional full staging of Don Giovanni.