Bachtoberfest: Third Annual Cincinnati Bach Festival

Want to hear baroque music in unusual settings?  

Johann Sebastian Bach

Collegium Cincinnati has just the programs and places to hear unique offerings in the third annual Cincinnati Bach Festival, dubbed Bachtoberfest.  A historically-informed ensemble, Collegium Cincinnati presents music the way the composer intended.  If it was meant to be heard in a living room, that's where the group will perform.
  
Artistic director Christopher Eanes said Collegium Cincinnati decided to change the festival this year from March to October since the Lutheran Church did not permit music in the church during Lent.  Also, the school year was a better time to promote the series, according to Eanes.

As a young musical group, Collegium Cincinnati has found its niche and passion.  A choral musician at heart, Eanes helps his musicians  focus on what they do well.  One challenge is funding.  Collegium relies on grants, donors, ticket sales and Christ Church Cathedral.

"We rarely use the same venue for events," said Eanes, who earned his doctorate in musical arts in 2011 from the Thornton School of Music at the University of Southern California. "We continue to explore the depth and keep the quality high."

Patrons attend from as far as Indiana, so the market draw is regional as well as local.  Several hundred people came to last year's performances; this year Eanes hopes for 1,000.

Eanes’ full­time job is director of the  Cincinnati Boychoir.

Collegium performances will occur throughout October. New this year is a “Culinary Baroque:  Bad Boys of the Baroque” event, which pairs food and music.

Chef Jose Salazar of Salazar Restaurant in Over­ the Rhine, will host the first in the series.  He will demonstrate the techniques and artistry of several dishes created especially for the event, while Collegium musicians serenade.

Another innovative offering is "The Mighty Motet," featuring top hits of the 16th and 17th centuries.  For example, Salve Regina by Josquin des Prez and Miserere by Allegri precede "Singet dem Herrn" by Bach.

“This is music candy for your ears,” said Eanes.

Here is the schedule:


 

Cocktails & Concertos II
Bach, Brandenburg Concertos Nos. 2 & 3
Sip a cocktail and listen to two of Bach’s masterwork chamber pieces by
Collegium musicians led by Manami White.
October 4
Doors open at 4:00 p.m.; concert begins at 4:30 p.m.
Bromwell’s Härth Lounge
125 West 4th Street
Cincinnati, OH
Must be over 21 to attend
Bach Vespers
Bach: Cantata 77
Du sollt Gott, deinen Herrn
Presented by the Bach Ensemble of St. Thomas Episcopal Church
Carlton Monroe, conductor
Sunday, October 11
5:00 p.m.
St. Thomas Episcopal Church
100 Miami Avenue
Terrace Park, OH
Free admission

Music Live at Lunch
Join the instrumental core of Collegium Cincinnati for chamber music selections from the Baroque and Classical periods.
Tuesday, October 13
12:10 pm
Christ Church Cathedral
318 East 4th Street
Cincinnati, OH
Free admission

The Mighty Motet
Top hits of the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries
From Allegri’s Miserere to Bach’s Singet dem Herrn
Saturday, October 17
7:30 p.m.
Christ Church Cathedral
318 East 4th Street
Cincinnati, OH
6:30 p.m.: Pre­-concert talk by Suzanne Bona, host of WGUC FM’s Sunday Baroque.
Sunday, Oct. 18
3 p.m.
Knox Presbyterian Church
3400 Michigan Ave.
Cincinnati, OH
2 p.m.: Pre­-concert talk by Suzanne Bona, host of WGUC’s Sunday Baroque.
Tickets: $30 for priority (reserved) seating
$25, student/senior priority
$20, general admission
$15, Student & Senior General Admission

Music Live at Lunch
Join the vocal core of Collegium Cincinnati for selections from the
lighter side of the Renaissance
Tuesday, October 20
12:10 pm
Christ Church Cathedral
318 East 4th Street
Cincinnati, OH
Free admission

Culinary Baroque: Bad Boys of the Baroque
Join Cincinnati chef José Salazar and musicians from Collegium Cincinnati.
Chef Salazar will demonstrate the techniques and
artistry behind several dishes created especially for this event, while
musicians from the Collegium serenade.
Only 20 tickets are available for this event.
Ticket price: $250 for one, $450 for two
$100 of each ticket will be considered a tax-deductible donation to Collegium Cincinnati.
Ticket price includes food and beverage pairings.
Sunday, October 25
3:00-6:00 pm
Salazar Restaurant
1401 Republic Street
Cincinnati, OH

Masquerade
The Capulets’ Ball
Join Romeo and Juliet from Cincinnati Shakespeare Company, musicians
from Collegium Cincinnati and the singers of the Young Professionals
Choral Collective of Cincinnati under the direction of KellyAnn Nelson.
Tuesday, October 27
Doors open at 6:30 pm; concert begins at 7:30 pm.
Must be over 21 to attend.
The Woodward Theatre
1404 Main Street
Cincinnati, OH

Best of the Italian, French, and German Baroque
Presented by the University of Cincinnati College-­Conservatory of
Music Chamber Choir, Philharmonia Chamber Orchestra, and student
soloists
Earl Rivers, conductor
Saturday, Oct. 31
7:30 pm
Christ Church Cathedral
318 East 4th Street
Cincinnati, OH
Handel:
Dixit Dominus HWV 232 (1707)
Mondonville: Dominus Regnavit
(1734)
Bach:
Magnificat in D, BWV 243 (1723)
Information at www.CollegiumCincinnati.org