Alongside around two hundred church cantatas that survived out of the approximately three hundred Bach composed, there is also a collection of cantatas not intended for church performance. Most of them were written for events related to court life.
Leipzig did not have its own opera house (unlike, for example, neighboring Dresden), so these secular cantatas served as a sort of substitute for opera for the city’s residents. Some of them were even called “Dramma per musica” by Bach himself, including those featured in tonight’s program. These cantatas were mostly performed at Zimmerman’s Coffee House – one of the main centers of musical life in Leipzig in the 18th century. Cantata 214 was performed inside the coffee house, while Cantata 207a was played in its courtyard; both spaces could accommodate at least around 200 audience members.
Cantata 207a is a parody from 1735 of another secular cantata by Bach numbered 207, which he composed in 1726. In those days, a “parody” was a composition in which the composer used material from an earlier work of his, modifying the text and adapting it to new needs. Bach wrote Cantata 207a in honor of the Name Day of Augustus III, King of Poland and Elector of Saxony.
Cantata 214 was written in 1733, also in honor of a festive event – the birthday of Maria Josepha, the wife of the same Augustus III. In the music of some parts of this cantata, Bach later reused, as a parody, music from a Christmas Oratorio.
Since both cantatas were written for festive occasions, in both of them Bach used instrumentation that characterizes his most brilliant works (similarly, for example, to the sections of the Mass in B minor, the Magnificat, Orchestral Suites, etc.): 3 trumpets and timpani, in addition to flutes, oboes, and strings.
These cantatas are performed in a manner established by Andrew Parrott, Joshua Rifkin, and others, following historical principles: all four soloists sing both arias, recitatives, and choral sections, with an additional 4 singers (ripienists) joining them in the choral sections.
The Jerusalem Baroque Orchestra
The Jerusalem Baroque Orchestra, the first Israeli ensemble to perform Baroque music on period instruments and with Baroque techniques, was founded in 1989 by harpsichordist Prof. David Shemer, who continues to be its musical director. As of 2006, Maestro Andrew Parrott has served as the orchestra’s honorary conductor. The JBO’s annual concert series takes place in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Nes Ziona and Haifa, offering performance of Baroque- and early Classical works and, hosting some of today’s most outstanding early music artists from Europe and the USA, among them, Andrew Parrott, Philippe Pierlot, Joshua Rifkin, Kati Debretzeni, Walter Reiter and Lina Tur Bonet, as well as leading Israeli Baroque musicians. The orchestra also places emphasis on educational activities. JBO recordings include “Hagar and Ishmael” (A. Scarlatti) and J.S.Bach’s “Goldberg Variations” (harpsichord: David Shemer). The orchestra holds several annual festivals: the “Bach in Jerusalem” Festival, taking place in March around the date of Bach’s birth, “Witches?” – a summer celebration of women and femininity in Baroque music and “Vocal Fantasy” in the autumn. Successful JBO concert tours have been to Germany, Estonia and, most recently, to Montreal, Canada. The Jerusalem Baroque Orchestra is supported by the Cultural Administration of the Israeli Ministry of Culture and Sport and by the Cultural Department of the Jerusalem Municipality.
David Shemer – artistic director of the JBO
Prof. David Shemer has long been one of the leading figures on the early music scene in Israel. He taught harpsichord and early music at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance and is often invited to hold master classes in Israel, Europe and the USA. David Shemer serves as artistic director and conductor of the Jerusalem Baroque Orchestra, which he established in 1989. As a soloist, chamber musician and conductor he appears and records in Europe and the USA. His recording of J.S.Bach’s “Goldberg Variations” has received enthusiastic reviews from critics and audiences alike. A double-album of all Bach’s harpsichord Partitas, his Op. 1, played by David Shemer, appeared recently.
Among his most notable projects in recent times – performing, together with the British violinist Walter Reiter, sonatas for violin and harpsichord obbligato at the Bach Festival in the composer’s birthplace in Eisenach, Germany. Last summer the project was recorded and will be released in 2023.
Paul Goodwin, conductor
Renowned for his historically informed interpretations of music of all periods, his wide repertoire and hisinterest in contemporary music. He has a great passion for incorporating period style within the traditional orchestral worldand creating unusual and dynamic programs where he juxtaposes old and new compositions. He has held positions including Artistic Director of the Carmel Bach Festival in California, Principal Guest Conductor of the English Chamber Orchestra, Associate Conductorof the Academy of Ancient Music and is currently the Principal Guest Conductor of Capella Aquileia and Director of Historical Performance at Madrid’sEscuela Superior de Musica Reina Sofia. As an internally-known conductor due to his wide and varied symphonic repertoire, Paul Goodwin has conducted world-class ensembles such as the BBC Philharmonic, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Royal Scottish National Orchestra and Scottish Chamber Orchestra within the UK; the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra and the Philadelphia Orchestra,within the United States; and the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra and the Symphonie orchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks within Europe.While he was guest conductor of the English Chamber Orchestra he also collaborated with soloists Kiri TeKanawa, Joshua Bell, Maria João Pires, and Mastislav Rostropovich. In opera, Paul’s successes have included “Cosi fan Tutte” at the Royal Danish Opera, Copenhagen, Gluck’s “Iphigenie en Tauride” at the Komische Oper Berlin, Britten’s “Rape of Lucretia” at the Teatro Real Madrid, Handel’s “Jeptha” at Welsh National Opera and Orlando at both Scottish Opera and Opera Australia. In Carmel USA he has conducted Mozart’s “Idomeneo”, “Magic Flute”, “Cosi fan Tutti”, Purcell’s “Dido and Aeneas”, Stravinsky’s “The Rake’s Progress” and Bernstein’s “Trouble in Tahiti”. As an award-winning recording artist, Paul’s albums with The Academy of Ancient Music and Harmonia Mundi Records have been nominated for a Gramophone award for the 1998 release of Mozart’s “Zaïde” and have also received two Grammy nominations for Best Classical Contemporary Composition for albums Taverner’s “Eternity’s Sunrise” (1999) and Taverner’s “Total Eclipse & Agraphon” (2005). Further recordings include Harmonia Mundi’s release of Elgar: Nursery Suite with the English Chamber Orchestra and two Sony discs including a collaboration of Prokofiev’s “Peter and the Wol”f paired with Paddington Bear. In addition, he has also recorded CDs of Richard Strauss and Amadeus Hartmann with the SWR Orchestra and Handel operas “Lotario”, “Riccardo Primo” and “Athalia” with the Basel Chamber Orchestra for Harmonía Mundi .In 2007, Paul Goodwin was awarded the Handel Honorary Prize of the City of Halle (Saale) in recognition of his extraordinary services to performances of works by George Frederic Handel. In 2021, a Music Fellowship was set up in honour of Paul Goodwin’s 11 years tenure at the Carmel Bach Festival, in collaboration with CSUMB (California State University Monterey Bay). In the 2023 season Paul conducted the Warsaw National Philharmonic (Purcell and Turnage via Strauss and Ravel), the Krakow Philharmonic (Szymanowsky and Stravinsky), the Warsaw Chamber Opera, Capella Cracoviensis, the Mexico National Symphony Orchestra, the Rheinische Philharmonic, Graz Styriarte in Austria, the Israel Camerata, the National Youth Orchestra of Israel and the Reina Sofia Camerata in Madrid
Keren Motseri, soprano
Israeli-born Keren Motseri played the cello and completed a B.Sc. in Biology before graduating with an M.A. from the Dutch National Opera Academy. Her large repertoire ranges from Renaissance music to that of the 21st century.
Most recent engagements include the lead role in Hana Ajiashvili’s opera Cut Glass in Tel Aviv and a concert with the Studio for New Music Moscow in the Pierre Boulez Saal in Berlin. Recent seasons saw her in a performance of ‘Yitzhak Rabin: Chronicle of an Assassination’ by director Amos Gitai at the Lincoln Center Festival in New York; ‘Beyond the Score: A Portrait of Pierre Boulez’ at the Holland Festival, with the Asko|Schönberg (Etienne Siebens); a concert and CD recording of ‘Passion’ by Pascal Dusapin with Ensemble Modern (Franck Ollu); the world premiere of the complete Pessoa Cycle by Jan van de Putte with Asko|Schönberg (Reinbert de Leeuw) at Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw; and Bach’s St. Matthew Passion (Joshua Rifkin), and Bach’s B minor mass (Andrew Parrott), both at JBO’s Bach Festival. Notable concert collaborations include the Nederlandse Bach Vereniging (with conductors Richard Egarr and Jos van Veldhoven), the Residentie Orkest (Jaap van Zweden), the Dutch Radio Philharmonic (Peter Eötvös) and MusikFabrik (Daniel Reuss) and Stockhausen’s Aus Licht at the Dutch National Opera.
Hamish McLaren, countertenor
London based countertenor and history graduate of St. John’s College, Cambridge, and of the Royal Academy of Music. Between 2013 and 2016 he appeared as Oberon (Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Marcellina (Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro), Damon (Rameau’s Les Sauvages), and as Vava, an excessively petulant mistress in Shostakovich’s Cheryomushki Moskva. In 2016 Hamish moved to London to study at the Royal Academy of Music. In November 2017 he appeared at the V&A Museum in Tim Watts’ opera Kepler’s Trial, and in September 2018 covered Ferdinand in BYO’s production of The Enchanted Island by Jeremy Sams. In May 2019 Hamish was Arsace in Handel’s Partenope (Hampstead Garden Opera), which was revived at the Valletta Baroque Festival at the Teatru Manoel in 2022. In 2020 he reprised Oberon for The Royal Academy of Opera, as well as appearing as a witch in Dido and Aeneas at The Master Shipwright’s House in Deptford. 2021 saw Hamish as a sorcerer(ess) in Hurn Court Opera’s production of Dido and Aeneas, and he also covered the role of Dorian for ETO’s animated film Aidan, a contemporary retelling of Handel’s Amadigi for children. In the summer of 2023 Hamish will cover the role of Athamas (Handel’s Semele) for the Glyndebourne Festival. In January 2019 Hamish joined The Monteverdi Choir and has since toured Europe, Russia, and South America. In May 2021 Hamish released his debut album “Sphinx” on the Orchid Classics label. “Sphinx” explores Russian and Soviet art song, and includes premier recordings of Shostakovich, Myaskovksy, and Firsova.
Richard Resch, tenor
Began his musical education in the Boys‘ Choir at Regensburg Cathedral and then studied music, piano and classical singing at the Leopold-Mozart-Zentrum in Augsburg, completing his early music studies at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in Basel. Richard has won prizes at several international opera singing competitions, and in 2012 he was awarded the Arts Prize of the City of Augsburg. He has performed at several German theatres, the Austrian Landestheater in Bregenz, the French Opéra National de Bordeaux and the Bavarian State Opera in Munich. He has worked with conductors including Howard Arman, Christoph Eschenbach, Ton Koopman, Sigiswald Kuijken, Andrea Marcon, Marc Minkowski, Andrew Parrott, Philippe Pierlot, Joshua Rifkin, Helmuth Rilling, Christophe Rousset, Andreas Spering and Jos van Veldhoven. His performances have led him to renowned concert halls like the Berliner Philharmonie, the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing and Takemitsu Hall in Tokyo and at music festivals all over Europe like Bachfest Leipzig, Beethovenfest Bonn and Mozartwoche Salzburg as well as in Asia and the Americas. Recently his solo debut CD “Wenn ich nur Dich hab” with Northern German baroque music has been published at Carpe Diem Records.
Guy Pelc, baritone
Graduated in voice and orchestral conducting from the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance. He furthered conducting studies in the Meitar Ensemble’s Tedarim project for new music. He conducted the Moran Singers Ensemble (2014-2019) and is the founder of the Cecilia Ensemble.
As a vocal soloist, he has performed with the Israel Camerata Jerusalem, the Israel Symphony Orchestra Rishon LeZion, the Israel Sinfonietta Beer Sheva, the Haifa Symphony Orchestra, the Israel Contemporary Players, the Taverner Consort (UK), Capella Cracoviensis (Poland), the Weimar Orchestra (Germany), the Dohnanyi Orchestra Budafok (Hungary) and the Jerusalem Baroque Orchestra. His operatic roles include Aeneas in Dido and Aeneas (Purcell), Seine in Vivaldi’s Festival on the Seine, Pimpinone in Pimpinone (Telemann and Albinoni), Zurga in Les pecheurs de perles (Bizet), Otton in L’incoronazione di Poppea (Monteverdi), Chutner in The Wonderous Woman Within (Osnat Netzer) and Apollo in Montecerdi’s Orfeo.
His recordings include the role of Apollo in Orfeo (Monteverdi), conductor: Andrew Parrott, and the Taverner Consort, and Songs of the Land, Israeli songs arranged for voice and piano by Menachem Wiesenberg, IMI label.
Naomi Burla Levy, soprano
A master’s student at the Buchman-Mehta School of Music in Prof. Sharon Rostorf-Zamir’s class. Her operatic roles include the Fire and the Nightingale in “The Boy and the Magic” (Ravel), Calori Bassis and Galathea (Handel), First Child in “The Magic Flute” (Mozart). Her concert performances include Gloria (Vivaldi), Dixit Dominos (Handel), Stabat Mater (Pergolzi), Mass in B minor (Bach) and more. She appeared as a soloist under the baton of Ronan Burszewski, Ian Shaw, Gil Shohat and others. Recently appeared as a soloist in the series Excellence – Generation of the Future at the Eden-Tamir Music Center. Member of the Lilac Baroque Ensemble, with which she won second place in the TARF 2021 competition. Winner of the Buchman Mehta School of Music’s merit scholarships, and the Colton Foundation scholarship.
Doreen Sassine, alto
Currently studying for her Master’s degree in Opera at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance, as a versatile alto she has performed alongside prestigious orchestras like the Israeli Philharmonic, Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra and Jerusalem Barouqe Orchestra. Some of her most notable projects include contributions to works such as Mozart’s Requiem and Verdi’s Requiem. Notable roles include the Third Knabe in Mozart’s “The Magic Flute” and Alfred in Strauss II’s ‘Die Fledermaus”. Doreen’s repertoire spans from classical to contemporary, with a keen interest in Baroque. She has also enriched her musical journey through participation in numerous workshops exploring various styles including Baroque, Bel Canto, and modern dance fusion.
Jamil Freij, tenor
Born and raised in Jerusalem. He began his musical studies in the Magnificat Institute of Music, studying piano and voice. Freij obtained his Bachelor’s degree from the Conservatorio di Vicenza in Renaissance & Baroque Singing. Freij took part in many masterclasses and workshops with notable masters such as: Paolo di Napoli, Marco Borroni, Lia Serafini, Alessandro Quarta, Francesco Miotti, Dominique Visse, Sonia Tedla, and Claire Meghnagi. Freij is currently enrolled in the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance-Master’s Degree in Classical Performance with Jeffrey Francis and David Sebba.
Roi Witz, baritone
Graduate of the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance. Witz is a young and promising talent in opera, performing in various roles with the Israeli Opera and participating in different productions and concerts with leading orchestras.Witz is an active member of the Israeli Opera Studio.
His opera repertoire includes roles such as Falke in “Die Fledermaus” (J. Strauss), Papageno in “The Magic Flute”, Guglielmo in “Cosi fan tutte”, Publio in “La clemenza di Tito”, Bartolo in “Le nozze di Figaro” (Mozart), Demetrius in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” (Britten), Dandini in “La Cenerentola” (Rossini), and more. He has performed with the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, the Be’er Sheva Symphony Orchestra, the Tel Aviv Soloists Ensemble, the Jerusalem Baroque Orchestra, and others.