W A S H I N G TO N B A C H C O N S O RT
Christmas with the Consort
J. Reilly Lewis, Music Director
WASHINGTON BACH CONSORT
J. REILLY LEWIS, MUSIC DIRECTOR
TODD FICKLEY, ASSISTANT CONDUCTOR
ANDREW FOUTS, CONCERTMASTER
2015–2016 SEASON
NATIONAL PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH | WASHINGTON, DC
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 20, 2015, AT 3:00 PM
CHRISTMAS WITH THE CONSORT
J. Reilly Lewis, conductor
Todd Fickley, organ
Vom Himmel hoch da komm ich her (Chorale), BWV 243a
Johann Sebastian Bach
Vom Himmel hoch da komm ich her, BWV 700
J.S. Bach
Todd Fickley, organ
Susanni
Grayston Ives
Swete was the song the Virgine soong
Stephen Caracciolo
Robin Beckman, soprano
The holly and the ivy
Matthew Owens
Kate Vetter Cain, soprano ~ Kyle Tomlin, tenor
O leave your sheep
Kenneth Leighton
Nuška Zakrajšek, soprano
Fantasia on Adeste Fideles
Bruce Neswick
Todd Fickley, organ
Little baby born at dark midnight
John Bertalot
Sussex Carol
David Willcocks
Lullaby my Jesus
Peter Warlock/Andrew Carter
A Patre Unigenitus
Carl Rütti
Rebecca Kellerman Petretta, soprano ~ Milena Gligic, alto ~ Natalia Kojanova, alto
Intermission
In dulci jubilo (Chorale), BWV 368
In dulci jubilo, BWV 729
Wassail Carol
No Small Wonder
Jesus, Jesus, rest your head
O mortal man
Bring a Torch, Jeanette Isabella
Todd Fickley, organ
J.S. Bach
J.S. Bach
William Mathias
Paul Edwards
Paul Halley
Herbert Howells
Keith Chapman
Todd Fickley, organ
The Salutation Carol
Alan Gibbs
Stille Nacht
Geoffrey Webber
Suzanne Karpov, soprano ~ Patrick Kilbride, tenor ~ Andrew Sauvageau, baritone
The little road to Bethlehem
Michael Head
Angelus ad virginem
Andrew Carter
Chorus
Soprano
Robin Beckman
Kate Vetter Cain
Suzanne Karpov
Rebecca Kellerman Petretta
Molly Grace Young
Nuška Zakrajšek
Alto
Milena Gligic
Sarah Davis Issaelkhoury
Natalia Kojanova
Meghen Tuttle
Tenor
Nicholas Fichter
Patrick Kilbride
Kyle Tomlin
John R. Wiggins
Bass
Scott N. Auby
Joshua Brown
Mark Duer
Andrew Sauvageau
Thomas Stork
WASHINGTON BACH CONSORT
The Washington Bach Consort ignites a passion for the music of J.S. Bach and his contemporaries, enriching every
life touched by this music through its value and relevance.
Our 2015-2016 Season
The Series at National Presbyterian Church
4101 Nebraska Avenue NW, Washington, DC
MASS APPEAL
Sunday, September 20, 2015, 3:00 p.m.
A program devoted J. S. Bach's Latin church music
CHRISTMAS WITH THE CONSORT
Sunday, December 20, 2015, 3:00 p.m.
Choral and organ music to celebrate the holidays
THE LITTLE ORGAN BOOK, PART 2
Sunday, March 13, 2016, 3:00 p.m.
The second half of this remarkable collection of musical miniatures
SIMPLY MAGNIFICAT
Sunday, April 24, 2016, 3:00 p.m.
Four settings of the Magnificat, by Bach and his contemporaries
The Chamber Series
First Congregational United Church of Christ
945 G Street NW, Washington, DC
CHIPS OFF THE OLD BACH
Friday, November 13, 2015, 7:00 p.m.
Instrumental treasures by Bach and sons
SUITE DELIGHTS
Friday, February 26, 2016, 7:00 p.m.
Music for solo lute, cello, and harpsichord
COFFEE CANTATA
Friday, April 8, 2016, 7:00 p.m.
A glimpse of the more personal side of Bach
4
The Noontime Cantata Series
Church of the Epiphany
1317 G Street NW, Washington, DC
Free admission, no tickets required
October 6, 2015, 12:10 p.m.
Cantata: Christus, der ist mein Leben, BWV 95
Prelude and Fugue in E Minor, BWV 548
J. Reilly Lewis, organ
November 3, 2015, 12:10 p.m.
Cantata: O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort, BWV 60
Prelude and Fugue in G Major, BWV 541
Joy-Leilani Garbutt, organ
December 1, 2015, 12:10 p.m.
Cantata: Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied, BWV 190
Passacaglia in C Minor, BWV 582
Chuyoung Suter, organ
March 1, 2016, 12:10 p.m.
Cantata: Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern, BWV 1
Prelude and Fugue in C Major, BWV 547
Jeremy Filsell, organ
April 5, 2016, 12:10 p.m.
Cantata: Am Abend aber desselbigen Sabbats, BWV 42
Prelude and Fugue in E-flat Major, BWV 552
Victoria Shields, organ
May 3, 2016, 12:10 p.m.
Cantata: Bringet dem Herrn Ehre seines Namens,
BWV 148
Toccata and Fugue in F Major, BWV 540
Todd Fickley, organ
CHRISTMAS WITH THE CONSORT
PROGRAM NOTES
CHORAL INTROIT
Vom Himmel hoch da komm ich her, BWV 243a
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750)
This choral fantasia is one of the four “Christmas interpolations” Bach inserted in the original (E-flat Major) version
of the Magnificat performed his first Christmas at the Thomaskirche in Leipzig on December 25, 1723. Sopranos sing
the chorale melody as a cantus firmus, while the lower voices imitate the melody in counterpoint fragments. The text
and the tune of this Christmas hymn are attributed to Martin Luther; they were first published in his Geistliche Lieder
printed in Wittenberg in 1535.
Vom Himmel hoch da komm ich her.
Ich bring euch gute neue Mär,
Der guten Mär bring ich so viel,
davon ich singn und sagen will.
From heaven above to earth I come
To bear good news to every home;
Glad tidings of great joy I bring
Whereof I now will say and sing.
—Martin Luther (1483-1546), 1535
trans., Catherine Winkworth, Lyra Germanica, 1855
PROCESSION
Vom Himmel hoch da komm ich her, BWV 700
J. S. Bach
The Consort enters to the earliest of Bach’s chorale preludes on Vom Himmel hoch, dating to his formative years in
Armstadt. Bach returned again and again to this robust melody that has inspired composers for more than four
centuries. The chorale melody forms the foundation of his set of five Canonic Variations on Vom Himmel hoch BWV
769, which Dr. Lewis performed last Christmas. In addition to three settings of the chorale melody in his Christmas
Oratorio, Bach based no less than five chorale preludes on this melody.
Todd Fickley, organ
Susanni (2011)
Grayston Ives, b. 1948
The same Martin Luther hymn tune, Vom Himmel hoch, but with a different text, Vom Himmel hoch, O Engel kommt, is
quoted in this setting in both voices and organ. “Susanni” is one of several variant spellings of the German root word
“Sauseninne,” meaning “lullaby,” according to the Grimms Wörterbuch of 1635, which cites this Luther text as an
exemplar of the word’s usage. The cry “eya” is a derivative of “ei,” the word “eiapopaia” being another word for
lullaby. William Ives, writing under the name Grayston Ives, is a singer, conductor, teacher, and composer who began
his musical career as a chorister at Ely Cathedral. A former member of The King’s Singers, he was for eighteen years
director of the Magdalen College Choir at Oxford.
From heaven high, O angels, come,
Come music, song, come pipe & drum,
Send forth your voices louder yet,
With organ and with flageolet,
Let every instrument join in,
Bring lute and harp and violin,
How heavenly must the music be, eya,
Because a heavenly Child is He,
To men on earth all peace may be,
And praise to God eternally,
—Martin Luther, Gesangsbuch, 1535
Eya, eya, susanni, susanni, susanmi
Alleluia, alleluia, of Jesus sing and Maria.
5
WASHINGTON BACH CONSORT
Swete was the song the Virgine soong (2001)
Stephen Caracciolo, b. 1962
Sung in Middle English pronunciation in a setting that evokes the style of that era, this anonymous Marian text comes
from a seventeenth-century manuscript held in the Library of Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland. Stephen Caracciolo is
assistant professor of voice and conducting at the University of Maryland, Baltimore Campus, and a professional bass
in the Choir of Men and Boys at Washington National Cathedral. Newly appointed artistic director of the Lancaster
(OH) Chorale, he previously founded Bel Canto Singers, a professional chamber choral ensemble in Columbus.
Swete was the song the Virgine soong,
When she to Bethlem Juda came
And was deliver’d of a Sonne,
Who blessed Jesus hath to Name.
‘My Sonne and eke [also] a Saviour borne,
which hath vouchsafed from an high
to visitt us that ware forlorne.
Lulla, lullaby.
“Lulla, lullaby, Swete Babe” soong she.
“Lulla, lullaby, Swete Babe” soong she
And rockt him gently one hir knee.
—William Ballet’s Lute-book, 1642
The holly and the ivy (2011)
Traditional English Carol
Matthew Owens, b. 1971
In a conflation of an ancient pagan ritual dance and Christian symbolism, two evergreen rivals—holly (masculine) and
ivy (feminine)—joust for supremacy in the forest. First published in an English broadside of 1710, this folk carol was
collected by Cecil Sharp and published in his English Folk Carols in 1911. This imaginative setting by Matthew Owens,
organist and master of the choristers of Wells Cathedral since 2005, combines dancing cross-rhythms, exuberant
melodic writing, and a sparkling organ part—with a brand new tune.
The holly and the ivy,
When they are both full grown;
Of all the trees that are in the wood,
The holly bears the crown.
The holly bears a berry
As red as any blood;
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
To do poor sinners good.
O the rising of the sun
And the running of the deer,
The playing of the merry organ,
Sweet singing in the choir.
The holly bears a prickle
As sharp as any thorn,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
On Christmas Day in the morn.
The holly bears a blossom
As white as any flower;
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
To be our sweet Saviour.
The holly bears a bark
As bitter as any gall,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
For to redeem us all.
O leave your sheep (1962)
Quittez, Pasteurs
—English broadside, 1710
Traditional French Melody
arr. Kenneth Leighton (1929–1988)
The French noël, Quittez Pasteurs, is clothed here in a tender and expressive arrangement for soprano solo, mixed
chorus, and organ by Kenneth Leighton, whose career as a professor at Leeds, Oxford, and Edinburgh was cut
short by death while in his mid-fifties. A prolific composer of opera, orchestra suites, chamber, and choral music,
Leighton’s choral writing has been characterized as “typically motivic and contrapuntal with rhythmic impetus and
at the same time beautifully lyrical.”
6
CHRISTMAS WITH THE CONSORT
O leave your sheep,
your lambs that follow after,
O leave the brook,
the pasture and the crook,
No longer weep,
turn weeping into laughter,
O shepherds, seek your goal.
Your Lord, Your Lord,
who cometh to console.
You’ll find him laid
within a simple stable,
A babe new born,
in poverty forlorn,
In love arrayed,
a love so deep ‘tis able
To search the night for you.
‘Tis he! ‘Tis he! ‘Tis he!
the Shepherd true!
O kings so great!
a light is streaming o’er you,
More radiant far
than diadem or star;
Forego your state!
a baby lies before you
Whose wonder shall be told:
Bring myrrh, Bring myrhh!
Bring frankincense and gold.
—words, Alice Raleigh
Fantasia on Adeste Fideles (1997)
Bruce Neswick, b. 1956
This setting of “O Come, All Ye Faithful” opens with a lyrical, jazz-like setting of the tune on a solo flute accompanied
by quiet harmonies reminiscent of Leo Sowerby’s style. The middle section features various phrases of the carol, growing
into a full toccata with double pedal. It subsides into a delicate duet between the carol in the pedals as the piece returns
to the lyrical mood of the opening. Bruce Neswick was founding music director of the Girl Choristers at Washington
National Cathedral and director of music for the St. Albans and National Cathedral schools. He is currently director of
music at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Portland, Oregon.
Todd Fickley, organ
Little baby born at dark midnight (1980)
Christopher’s Carol
Appalachian Mountain Melody
arr. John Bertalot, b. 1931
From 1983 to 1998, John Bertalot led one of the most ambitious Episcopal Church music programs in the United States
as director of music at Trinity Church in Princeton, where he founded the acclaimed Princeton Singers. Bertalot wrote this
simple and expressive carol for the christening of his godson Christopher. Bertalot’s text, a juxtaposition of opposites―
dark and light, kings and bare stable—is set to a traditional Appalachian melody.
Little baby born at dark midnight,
Came from God that man may walk in light;
Now a star is in the heav’n, and Christ on earth,
Christ over us all doth shine. Alleluia.
Mighty Monarchs offer gifts so rare,
To a baby in a stable bare;
Jesus Christ became the King of Kings for me,
Christ over all the world doth reign. Alleluia.
Loving Father standing there so tall,
Blessed Mother and the babe so small;
He was made a man that I God’s child might be,
Christ overwhelms my heart with love. Alleluia.
In a manger made of wood he lies,
On a cross all made of wood he dies;
For the carpenter will rise and set me free,
Christ overcame the grave for me. Alleluia.
Simple shepherds leave their flocks of sheep,
For a baby who is fast asleep;
Jesus Christ became the Lamb of God for me,
And leads me in the pastures green. Alleluia.
I’ll live with him eternally.
Sussex Carol (1998)
Traditional English Carol
arr. David Willcocks (1919–2015)
Sir David Willcocks, whose carol arrangements for organ and brass are synonymous with Christmas, died this past
September at the age of 95. As director of music at King’s College, Cambridge, from 1957 to 1974, he turned its Christmas
Eve live broadcast of A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols into appointment listening for millions around the world. He
served as music director of The Bach Choir of London for thirty-eight seasons. The Sussex Carol takes its name from the
region along the English coast, where Ralph Vaughan Williams first heard the music sung by a Harriet Verrall of Monk’s
Gate, near Horsham, Sussex, and noted it down for use in his Fantasia on Christmas Carols.
7
WASHINGTON BACH CONSORT
On Christmas night all Christians sing,
To hear the news the angels bring—
News of great joy, news of great mirth,
News of our merciful King’s birth.
When sin departs before His grace,
Then life and health come in its place;
Angels and men with joy may sing,
All for to see the new-born King.
Then why should men on earth be so sad,
Since our Redeemer made us glad,
When from our sin he set us free,
All for to gain our liberty?
All out of darkness we have light,
Which made the angels sing this night:
‘Glory to God and peace to men,
Now and for evermore. Amen!’
Lullaby my Jesus (1976)
Peter Warlock (1894–1930)
arr. Andrew Carter, b. 1939
From the Capriol Suite
According to Peter Warlock (the pseudonym of Philip Heseltine), he composed his Capriol Suite in 1926 based on tunes
he found in Thoinot Arbeau’s Orchésographie, a guidebook of Renaissance dances. The Siciliano rhythms of the fifth of its
six movements, “Pieds-en-l’air,” became the inspiration for Andrew Carter’s setting of his own text a half century later.
A native of Leicester, England, Carter read music at Leeds University and sang as a lay clerk for seven years at York
Minster under Francis Jackson. In 1965, he founded the mixed-voice Chapter House Choir at York Minster, which rose
to national prominence during his seventeen years as the choir’s conductor. In 1984, he returned to York and is today
the in-house composer for Oxford University Press.
Lullaby my Jesus, Lullaby my king.
Lullaby my lording whom I sweetly sing.
Slumber softly, slumber on your mother’s arm;
She will rock you, she will keep you safe from harm.
Lullaby my Jesus, lullaby my son.
Lullaby my child in whom God’s will is done.
Be at peace, soft dreams beguile you as you lie;
I will rock you, I will sing a lullaby:
Lalulla, Lullaby.
—text, Andrew Carter
A Patre Unigenitus (2010)
Carl Rütti, b. 1949
This fifteenth-century text for the Feast of the Epiphany honors the visit of the Magi and has been adapted and
translated by Hugh Keyte and Andrew Parrott. As with In dulci jubilo, this is a “macaronic” text. The original Latin was
an “abecedarian hymn, ” in which each verse began with sequential letters of the alphabet. This setting is by Swiss
composer Carl Rütti, who teaches at the Zürich Conservatoire. His fascination with the English choral tradition has
inspired him to write for a cappella choirs. His compositions have been performed numerous times as part of the Choir
of King’s College’s Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols.
A Patre Unigenitus [The only-begotten of the Father]
Is through a maiden come to us:
Sing we of him and say ‘Welcome!
Veni redemptor gencium. Eya! [Come, Redeemer of the Nations]
Agnoscat omne speculum [Let every age perceive (that)]
A bright star made three kings to come
Him for to seek with their presents,
Verbum supernum prodiens. Eya! [The high Word forthcoming]
A solis ortus cardine [From the rising of the sun]
So mighty a Lord is None as he,
And to our kind he hath him knit,
Adam parens quod polluit. [Which our father Adam defiled]
8
Make we joy now in this Fest
In quo Christus natus est. Eya! [In which Christ is born]
Maria ventre concepit, [Mary conceived in her womb]
The Holy Ghost was aye her with.
Of her in Bethl’em born he is,
Consors Paterni luminis. Eya! [Sharing in the light of his Father]
O Lux beata Trinitas! [O Light of the Holy Trinity]
He lay between an ox and ass,
Beside His mother maiden free:
Gloria tibi, Domine! [Gloria to Thee, O Lord!]
—anon. fifteenth-century words and tune, Bodleian Library
(Seldon MS.) adapt. and trans. by H. Keyte and A. Parrott
CHRISTMAS WITH THE CONSORT
In ducli jubilo (Chorale), BWV 368
J. S. Bach
In dulci jubilo is one of the earliest and best-known Christmas songs. According to a fourteenth-century German
manuscript in Leipzig University, this joyous carol was sung to a Dominican monk by angels who visited him in his
sufferings. Martin Luther included the tune in his Geistliche Lieder of 1535. It subsequently appeared in Michael Vehe’s
Gesangbuchlin of 1537 and in Piae Cantiones, a Finnish collection of sacred and secular medieval songs published in 1582.
In dulci jubilo is a prime example of a “macaronic,” or mixed language, text. Latin, the language of the Church, was
frequently interpolated in carols sung in the vernacular upper German dialect.
In dulci jubilo
Nun singet und seid froh!
Unsers Herzens Wonne
leit in praesepio,
und leuchtet als die Sonne
Matris in gremio
Alpha es et O,
Alpha es et O!
In quiet joy,
Now sing and be glad!
Our hearts’ desire
Lies in a manger,
And shines like the sun
in His mother’s bosom.
You are Alpha and Omega,
You are Alpha and Omega.
—Martin Luther, Geistliche Lieder, 1535
In dulci jubilo, BWV 729
J. S. Bach
A young Sebastian Bach wrote this setting as one of seven “Arnstadt congregational chorales,” so called because of their
alleged association with his reprove by the Arnstadt Consistory on February 21, 1706, “for having hitherto made many
curious variations in the chorales and mingled many strange notes in them, with the result that the congregation has been
confused.” Shortly thereafter, Bach decamped to Weimar. Since 1938, BWV 729 has been played each year as the first
organ voluntary at the close of the BBC’s live broadcast of the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at King’s College,
Cambridge.
Todd Fickley, organ
Wassail Carol, op. 26, no. 1 (1965)
William Mathias (1934–1992)
The music of Welsh-born and Wales-identified composer William Mathias, who died at age 57, has been described as
“civilized modernism, sophisticated but free of exhibitionistic affectation, optimistically tonal but occasionally somber,
brilliantly idiomatic in instrumentation, and unequivocally populist in its euphonious appeal.” It has been remarked that
“this serene carol bears the hallmarks of Mathias’s unmistakable craftsmanship, such is the seamless contrast between
the chromatic opening material and the rich tonal harmonies of the sustained lullaby sections.”
Wassail, sing we in worship of Christ’s nativity
Now joy be to the Trinity,
Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
That one God is in Trinity,
Father of heaven, of mightès most.
Bethlehem and the star so shen,
That shone three kingès for to guide,
Bear witness of this maiden clean;
The kingès three offered that tide.
And joy to the virgin pure
That ever kept her undefiled,
Grounded in grace, in heart full sure,
And bare a child as maiden mild.
And shepherd heard, as written is,
The joyful song that there was sung:
Gloria in excelsis!
With angel's voice it was out rung.
Now joy be to the blessedful child,
And joy be to his mother dear;
Joy we all of that maiden mild,
And joy have they that make
good cheer.
—anonymous, sixteenth century
Balliol College, Oxford, MS, 354, printed
in The Early English Carols (Greene)
9
WASHINGTON BACH CONSORT
No Small Wonder, op. 204 (1983)
Paul Edwards, b. 1955
“I well remember Friday 18th November 1983, when the morning post brought Paul [Wigmore’s] text beginning,
‘Small wonder the star,’” recalls Paul Edwards. “I was on my way to the nearby ‘Washeteria’, so I took the verses and
some manuscript paper with me to while away an idle hour. And so it was that ‘No Small Wonder’ came into being.”
A prolific composer from Bedfordshire, Edwards began his career as a chorister at St. Paul’s Cathedral, London.
Small wonder the star,
small wonder the light,
the angels in chorus,
the shepherds in fright;
but stable and manger for God no small wonder!
Small wonder the kings,
small wonder they bore
the gold and the incense,
the myrrh to adore;
but God gives his life on a cross no small wonder!
Small wonder the love,
small wonder the grace,
the power, the glory,
the light of his face;
but all to redeem my poor heart no small wonder!
—Words, Paul Wigmore (1925-2014)
Jesus, Jesus, rest your head (1998)
Southern Appalachian Melody
arr. Paul Halley, b. 1952
This unaccompanied eight-part arrangement of the traditional Appalachian Christmas carol simply and poignantly
describes the humbleness of Jesus’s birth. Composer Paul Halley, former director of music at St. John the Divine in
New York City, was for eighteen years principal composer and keyboardist of the Paul Winter Consort. Today, he is
director of chapel music at the University of King’s College in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Kentucky folklorist John Jacob
Niles (1892-1980) collected this song in Hardin County, Kentucky, in the early twentieth century.
Jesus, Jesus, rest your head,
You have got a manger bed.
All the evil folk on earth
Sleep in feathers at their birth.
Jesus, Jesus, rest your head,
You have got a manger bed.
Have you heard about our Jesus?
Have you heard about his fate?
How his mother went to that stable
On that Christmas eve so late?
Winds were blowing, cows were lowing,
Stars were glowing, glowing, glowing.
O mortal man (early 20th c.)
Sussex Mummers’ Carol
-
To that manger came the wise men,
Bringing things from hin and yon
For the mother and the father
And that blessed little son;
Milkmaids left their fields and flocks
And sat beside the ass and ox.
—Southern Appalachian Folksong
Traditional English Melody
arr. Herbert Howells (1892–1983)
This traditional tune is arranged by Herbert Howells, one of the leading figures of twentieth-century British music.
This piece “remained unperformed until 1994,” according to Stephen Farr, conductor of the Choir of Worcester
College, Oxford, “when it was premiered by the choir of St. Paul’s Cathedral under the direction of John Scott. The
two manuscripts of the piece, discovered in the library of the Royal College of Music where Howells was a student and
later a teacher, are undated, but certain stylistic features suggest it is an early work. The two texted verses, which invite
the listener to contemplate aspects of the Passion, as well as the Nativity of Christ, are separated by a wordless a cappella
harmonization of the melody.”
O mortal man, remember well
When Christ our Lord was born,
He was crucified between two thieves,
And crownéd with the thorn.
10
God Bless the master of this house,
With happiness beside;
Where e’er his body rides or walks,
Lord Jesus be his guide.
—Collected by Lucy Broadwood in
English Traditional Songs and Carols, 1908
CHRISTMAS WITH THE CONSORT
Bring a Torch, Jeanette Isabella (1976)
arr. Keith Chapman (1945–1989)
This is one of many Provençal carols sung in torchlight processions on Christmas Eve as children, often dressed as
shepherds, walk to Midnight Mass carrying torches. This rollicking twentieth-century organ arrangement was made by
Keith Chapman, the virtuoso organist who presided for twenty-three years over the largest operational pipe organ in the
world, housed at Philadelphia’s famed John Wanamaker store. His premature death was a great loss to music.
Todd Fickley, organ
The Salutation Carol (1960)
Fifteenth-century Carol
arr. Alan Gibbs, b. 1932
Alan Gibbs studied organ at Durham University. After National Service, he entered into a three-decade teaching career as
music director at Archbishop Tenison’s School, located in the London Borough of Lambeth and founded in 1685 by the
future Archbishop of Canterbury. Gibbs’s lively a cappella arrangement (made in 1960 for his Grammar School Choir)
expresses the mystical nature of the Angel Gabriel’s visit to the Virgin Mary by giving to the sopranos the words recorded
in the fifteenth-century text, while the lower voices hum or join in the jaunty syncopated refrain.
Nowell! Nowell! Nowell! Nowell!
This is the salutation of the angel Gabriel.
Tidings true there be come new, Sent from the Trinity
By Gabriel to Nazareth, City of Galilee.
“A clean maiden, a pure virgin, By her humility
Shall now conceive the Person Second in Deity.”
When that he presented was Before her fair visage,
In most demure and goodly wise He did to her homage;
And said, “Lady, from heaven so high, That Lordés heritáge,
For he of thee now born will be; I’m sent on his message.
“Hail, virgin celestial, The meek’st that ever was!
Hail, temple of the Deity! Hail, mirror of all grace!
Hail, virgin pure! I thee ensure, Within a little space
Thou shalt conceive, and him receive, That shall bring
great solace.”
Then bespake the maid again And answered womanly,
“Whate’er my Lord commandeth me I will obey truly.”
With “Ecce sum humillima Ancilla Domini;
Secundum verbum tuum.” She said, “Fiat mihi.”
—Bodleian Library. MS. Arch. Selden B. 26. XV Century
Stille Nacht (1989)
Franz Xaver Gruber (1787-1863)
arr. Geoffrey Webber, b.1959
This luscious arrangement of the beloved Austrian carol has cameo appearances for tenor and bass soloists and a more
extensive role for the soprano soloist. Educated at Oxford University, Dr. Geoffrey Webber served as organ scholar at
New College until his appointment as University Organist at Magdalen College. He has been Precentor at Gonville and
Caius College, Cambridge, since 1989, where he directs the Caius College Choir.
Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht!
Alles schläft, einsam wacht
Nur das traute, hochheilige Paar.
Holder Knabe im lockigen Haar,
Schlaf in himmlischer Ruh’.
Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht!
Hirten erst kund gemacht
Durch der Engel Halleluja,
Tönt es laut von fern und nah:
Christ, der Retter ist da!
Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht!
Gottes Sohn, o wie lacht
Lieb’ aus deinem göttlichen Mund,
Da uns schlägt die rettende Stund’.
Christ, in deiner Geburt!
Silent night, holy night,
All is calm, all is bright.
Round yon virgin, mother and child,
Holy infant so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace.
Silent night, holy night,
Shepherds quake at the sight,
Glories stream from heaven afar,
Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia,
Christ the Saviour is born!
Silent night, holy night,
Son of God, love’s pure light,
Radiant beams from thy holy face,
With the dawn of redeeming grace,
Jesus, Lord at thy birth.
—Franz Mohr (1792–1848)
11
WASHINGTON BACH CONSORT
The little road to Bethlehem (1945)
Michael Head (1900–1976)
A quality of reflective intimacy pervades The little road to Bethlehem, the best known of Michael Head’s choral works. A
sheep-bell figures prominently in Margaret Rose’s text, said to have been inspired by the sight of the lambs in the fields
at sunset in North Weald, Essex. Michael Head was pianoforte professor at the Royal Academy from 1927 until his
retirement in 1975. Throughout the London Blitz, Head continued teaching in London and gave hundreds of concerts
in factories and in small towns.
As I walked down the road at set of sun,
The lambs were coming homeward one by one.
I heard a sheep-bell softly calling them,
Along the little road to Bethlehem.
Across the air the silver sheep-bell rang.
“The lambs are coming home,” sweet Mary sang.
“Your Star of gold is shining in the sky.
So sleep, my little King, go lullaby.”
Beside an open door, as I drew nigh,
I heard sweet Mary sing a lullaby.
She sang about the lambs at close of day,
And rocked her tiny King among the hay.
As I walked down the road at set of sun,
The lambs were coming homeward one by one.
I heard a sheep-bell softly calling them,
Along the little road to Bethlehem.
—text, Margaret Rose, c. 1936
Angelus ad virginem (1981)
arr. Andrew Carter, b. 1938
Devotion to the Virgin Mary was particularly strong in the Middle Ages. Angelus ad Virginem is a fourteenth-century Latin
carol of the Annunciation, believed to be Franciscan in origin, which appears in a Dublin missal. It is mentioned in “The
Miller’s Tale,” the second of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, as sung by Nicholas, the Clerk of Oxenford: “And all above ther
lay a gay sautre (psaltery)/On which he made anightes melodye /So swetely that all the chamber rang/ And Angelus ad
virginem he sang.”
Angelus ad virginem
Subintrans in conclave
Virginis formidinem
Demulcens inquit, “Ave,
Ave! regina virginum,
Coeli terraeque Dominum
Concipies
Et paries Intacta,
Salutem hominum:
Tu porta coeli facta,
Medela criminum.”
The angel, coming secretly
Ad haec virgo nobilis
to the Virgin’s room,
Respondens inquit ei:
calming the Virgin’s fears,
“Ancilla sum humilis
“Ave.” said, “Hail!
Omnipotentis Dei.
Hail, Queen of Maidens!
Tibi coelesti nuntio,
The Lord of Heaven and Earth
Tanti secreti conscio,
you shall conceive,
Consentiens
and give birth, still a maiden,
Et cupiens Videre
to the Salvation of mankind;
Factum quod audio;
you, made the Gateway of Heaven, Parata sum parere.
the remedy for sins.”
Dei consilio.”
“Quomodo conciperem
Quae virum non cognovi?
Qualiter infringerem
Quod firma mente vovi?”
Spiritus Sancti gratia
Perficiet haec omnia;
Ne timeas,
sed gaudeas, Secura,
Quod castimonia
Manebit in te pura
Dei potentia.”
“In what way shall I conceive,
who have not known a man?
How shall I break that which
I vowed with constant mind?”
The grace of the Holy Ghost
will do all this;
don’t be afraid
but be pleased and safe,
for chastity
will remain in you, pure
by the power of God.”
To these words the noble maiden,
replying, said to him,
“I am the humble handmaiden
of the all-powerful God.
By your heavenly announcement
I am made aware of great secrets;
I am in agreement
and I desire to see
done the things of which I hear.
I am ready to give birth
according to God’s will.”
Eia mater Domini, “O Mother of the Lord,
Quae pacem reddidisti who has given back peace
Angelis et homini,
to the angels and mankind
Cum Christum genuisti; when you bore Christ,
Tuum exora filium.
pray to your Son that he
Ut se nobis propitium show himself
Exhibeat,
to be gracious to us,
Et deleat Peccata;
and that he cancel our sins
Praestans auxilium
granting refuge,
Vita frui beata
for the enjoyment of felicity,
Post hoc exilium.
after this exile.
—Franciscan origin, 13th-century Harley MS, British Library
Program Notes by Margaret Shannon © 2015.
12
CHRISTMAS WITH THE CONSORT
Meet the Artists
J. Reilly Lewis has served as the music director of the Washington Bach Consort since founding
it in 1977. He was raised in Washington and studied at Oberlin Conservatory and The Juilliard
School of Music. While at Oberlin, Dr. Lewis was the youngest contestant ever to win the prestigious
National Organ Playing Competition. His teachers have included Nadia Boulanger, Anthony Newman
and Albert Fuller. As a Fulbright Scholar, Dr. Lewis spent a year in Germany studying the music of
Johann Sebastian Bach with Helmut Walcha. He is recognized internationally as an accomplished
conductor and keyboard artist as well as a leading specialist of baroque music, particularly the music
of J. S. Bach.
Dr. Lewis has served as organist and choirmaster at Clarendon United Methodist Church in Arlington, Virginia, since 1971
where, in addition to leading the well-established adult choir, he also developed an outstanding youth music program, both
chorally and instrumentally. In 1985, he was appointed music director of the Washington Cathedral Choral Society. As
a keyboard artist, Dr. Lewis has been very active both in the United States and abroad. Over the years, Dr. Lewis has
performed with virtually all of this area’s distinguished choruses and orchestras as well as in prominent chamber ensembles.
His performing and conducting career has included appearances with the Minnesota Orchestra, the Buffalo Philharmonic
Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, the Handel Festival in Halle, the International Bach Festival in Leipzig, the Aspen
Music Festival, the Cologne New Music Festival, and the Mozart Festival in New York and Washington. He made his
National Symphony Orchestra debut in December 2002 guest conducting Handel’s Messiah at the John F. Kennedy
Center for the Performing Arts.
Dr. Lewis has received many honors and awards including the Paul Hume Award, presented by the Levine School of Music,
for outstanding commitment to enriching the cultural life of Washington. His active work with children and youth includes
the education and outreach programs of both the Washington Bach Consort and the Cathedral Choral Society. In April 2004,
Dr. Lewis received the Distinguished Washingtonian Award presented by the University Club of Washington, DC, in honor
of its centennial. Washingtonian magazine named Dr. Lewis as a 2005 Washingtonian of the Year. Dr. Lewis has also received
many other awards recognizing and honoring his commitment to and excellence in the arts, including a Cultural Leadership
Citation from Yale University and an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Virginia Theological Seminary.
Todd Fickley is the assistant conductor and keyboard artist of the Washington Bach Consort.
In addition, he is the associate music director and chorus master of the Cathedral Choral Society,
assistant director and keyboard artist for The Choralis Foundation, and the organist of The Falls Church
Anglican in Falls Church, Virginia
A native Washingtonian, Mr. Fickley began his organ studies at the Washington National Cathedral
under Bruce Neswick. He spent years teaching and preparing choirs of all ages using the Royal School
of Church Music system for performances of repertoire such as Bach’s Passions and Cantatas, Handel’s
Messiah, and annual Nine Lessons and Carols programs.
At the age of 23, Mr. Fickley was made a Fellow of the American Guild of Organists (AGO). He also holds the AGO
Choirmaster Diploma as well as the M.A. in Organ Performance with High Distinction from the University of Wales.
A prize-winning organist, Mr. Fickley has been featured numerous times on NPR and PRI and has performed and conducted
across the United States, Israel, and Europe. In 2014 he launched “The Bach Project.” a cycle of concerts performing and
recording all of Bach’s organ works, the first time in almost a quarter of a century that such a project has been undertaken
in the DC area. Two volumes of this cycle have been released on the MSR Classics label and the first was praised in Fanfare
Magazine as “some of the most enthralling Bach organ playing you are likely to hear anywhere by anyone”. Mr. Fickley is
frequently seen as conductor, soloist, accompanist and speaker in the Washington DC metro area. He is an officer in the
Order of St. John. www.toddfickley.com
13
WASHINGTON BACH CONSORT
artistry - tradition - magnificence
The Washington Bach Consort wishes to thank its generous donors. This list
represents gifts made between December 1, 2014, and December 10, 2015.
If you notice an error in your listing, please accept our apologies and contact us at 202.429.2121 during business hours so we may correct it.
ANGELS $15,000 AND ABOVE
Arcana Foundation
AT&T
Betty J. Beard
Robert Beizer
The Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation
Mr. & Mrs. David P. Condit
DC Commission on the Arts & Humanities
Chris & Susan DeMuth
Tamera Luzzatto & David Leiter
The Millstream Fund in Honor of John D.
Rockefeller
The National Endowment for the Arts
The Estate of Cecil S. Richardson
The Honorable & Mrs. John D. Rockefeller IV
BACH SOCIETY $7,500 TO $14,999
L. Brent & Norma Bozell
Clark-Winchcole Foundation
The Estate of Gertrude Delfino
Jill Kent & Mark Solomons
Charles Reifel & Janie Kinney
Billy Rose Foundation
Christine Stelloh-Garner
Isabel T. Wallop
Stephen C. Wright
CONDUCTOR’S CIRCLE $5,000 TO
$7,499
Elizabeth Carl & Victoria Hill
The Community Foundation for the National
Capital Region
Shannon & Jim Davis
Lynne & Joe Horning
Girl Reporter Fund
Mary and Daniel Loughran Foundation
Hope P. McGowan
Pew Charitable Trusts Employee Matching
Gift Program
Mr. & Mrs. William T. Semple
Catherine Ann Stevens
US Cellular
Mr. & Mrs. John D. Van Wagoner
Sally Wells
DIRECTOR’S CIRCLE $2,500 TO
$4,999
Admiral & Mrs. Charles Abbot
Anonymous
Scott N. Auby & Jill R. Newman
14
Richard & Beth Ayres
Dallas Morse Coors Foundation
Davis Construction
Deutsche Telekom, Inc.
Stephenie Foster
Glen S. Fukushima
Mary Ann L. Gardner
Mr. & Mrs. Charles L. Kinney
Alan J. Kriegel
Laura Linderman
Dr. Brian R. McNeill & Kathryn McKenzie
Christopher & Allison Putala
Siemens Corporation
Arina van Breda
Mrs. Beatrix von Hoffmann
Walt Disney Company
Elizabeth K. Weisburger, Ph.D.
Reinhard Wieck
John C. Wohlstetter
ARTISTS’ CIRCLE $1,250 TO $2,499
Jon Adelstein
Donald Baker & Nina McLemore
Amy Berger & Glen Nager
Howard Brown
C. John & Janet C. Buresh
Joan Challinor
Nancy M. Folger
The Honorable & Mrs. Paul M. Homan
Captain & Mrs. Don P. Johnson
Edward Killham
Mary Elizabeth Lewis
Thomas G. MacCracken
Dr. Lee Monsein
Bradley J. & Martha A. Olson
Lilian M. Penna
David Post & Nancy Birdsall
Alfred S. Regnery
Donald & Lydia Rice
Mr. & Mrs. Hank Schlosberg
Mr. & Mrs. McKim Symington
PATRONS $750 TO $1,249
Herschel Abbott
Sandra M. Baer
Catherine H. Beauchamp
Mary Martha Churchman
David Edminster
Ted Hirt
Michael Horowitz & Devra Marcus
T. Michael & Erna Kerst
David A. Klaus, in Memory of
Margaret Anthon
Dr. William M. Leach
David & Becky Legge
Dr. & Mrs. Wayne J. Lehrer
Rosemary Monagan
Drs. Doreen Moreira & Marc Schlosberg
Robert & Beatrice Newkirk
QVC, Inc.
Mark & Jean Raabe
William D. & Annette D. Reilly
Mr. & Mrs. Peter D. Robinson
Margaret Shannon
Joy Fowler Spragens
RDML Robert J. Steele (USN, Ret.)
Lynn Trundle
Mr. Hans N. Tuch
Kendrick R. Lee
David Miller
Nancy & Herb Milstein
Jeffrey Mora & Wendy Fuller-Mora
William B. Munier, MD
Carolyn Nagler
Ms. Julia O'Brien
John Odling-Smee
Yoshie Ogawa
Barbara Negri Opper
Frances Pratt
Mr. Corey Ramsden
Raymond P. Rhinehart
James E. Rich
Liz Savage
Carol M. Sikkelee
Guy T. Steuart II
Mr. & Mrs. Viguen Ter-Minassian
Heike Terrell
United Way of the National Capital Area
BENEFACTORS $350 TO $749
Carmela Veneroso
Ann Stuart Anderson & Nina Haramis
Anderson, in Honor of the 91st Birthday of Stephen & Diana Watkins
Carleen Dixon Webb
Rev. Father Alister Anderson
Dorothy B. Wexler
Anonymous
Anita L. Woehler
Judith Barnett
Gretchen Young
Patricia Bauman
Janet Bickel
Mary Ellen Bork
SUPPORTERS $200 TO $349
N. Prentice Bowsher & Sally Steenland
Eric P. Andersen & W. David Young II
Geraldine Carr
Larry & Sue Anderson
James Chin
Anonymous
Douglas Cochrane
Jean Bedenbaugh
Dr. Rafael J. Convit
Irene Berns
William Craven
Kathleen A. Brion
Stanley & Ann Degler
Margarita Brose
Susan Dillon
William and Michelle Patrick Bukowski
Joyce & Barry Eisenstein
Michael F. Butler
Joe Francis
Antonio Cardona, in Honor of
Marilyn Wong Gleysteen
Charles Reifel
Margaret Gonglewski & John Heins
Karen C. Coe
C. Boyden Gray
Alan F. Coffey & Janet S. Potts
Karen L. Handorf
Clark Conkling
Rebecca G. Hayes
Albert & Nancy Currier
The Katherine Lindsay Howell Fund
Alison Drucker & Tom Holzman
David Hoover & Bill Roberts
Jan Dugoff
Robert E. Jamroz & Jordan L. Morgenstern
Marc Eisenberg
Anna Karavangelos
Elise R. Fisher
Norris & Miriam Keeler
Tom & Margaret Greene
David & Anne Kendall
William & Margaret Greer
Robert Kessler & Swanee Busic
Julia Habrecht
Willard & Carolyn Larkin
Nancy Hardy
Judith M. Harper
Lindy Hart
Mr. & Mrs. Louis Hering
Frederick S. Hird
Erika Joyce
Mr. & Mrs. Louis E. Kahn
Janie Kinney, in Honor of Charles Reifel
Peter Koltay & Rosemary Hogan
Cathy & Mark Knepper
Dominique Lallement
Mr. David W. Lankford
Steve & Rosalie Learned
Ray & Eleanor Lewis
Justin & Stephanie Lilley
Kenneth Lowenberg
Frances M. Lussier
Verna Joy Macdonald
Hanna H. Marks
Jean Matthews
Leilane G. Mehler
Dan Moore
Sondra Myers
Mark & Martha Orling
Alec Orudjev
Mr. & Mrs. Robert E. Park
Laurence Pearl
Lawrence A. Plumlee
Lindsay Reifel, in Honor of Charles Reifel
David Pozorski & Anna Romanski
Larry & Eva Ravitz
Renaissance Charitable Foundation
Mr. & Mrs. Fred T. Richards Jr
Jo Ellen & Mark Roseman
Mr & Mrs. Doug Rumble
In Honor of Liz Savage
Madeleine & James Schaller
Mrs. Patricia R. Schettino
Gregory Schoepfle
Schwab Charitable Fund
Kathryn Seddon
Daniel B. Silver
Thomas M. Sneeringer
Ilse Stauffer
Barbara Steingaszner
Mr. & Mrs. Roger Stone, in Memory
of Kathleen Warner
Pierre & Claire Wagner
FRIENDS $100 TO $199
Dr. Stephen Ackert
Eleanor Adams
Alister & Ann Anderson
Anonymous
Livia & David Bardin
Bob & Peggy Barry
Panagiota Batsakis
Jeffrey D. Bauman
Michael & Elizabeth Biernoff
Dwayne Blair
Mr. Thomas Bleha
Inga C. Blust
James Bromley
Janet & Norman Brown
Michael Calingaert
Toni Carey
Ms. Susan F. Carter
Tim & Glenda Christenson
Mr. David A. Churchill
Claudia Copeland
Mr. & Mrs. Frank Correl
Marcia P. Crandall
Dimitri Darras
Jolly de Give
Mary Ann Dickie
Sharrill Dittmann
Sally Katzen Dyk
Nicolas Eberstadt
Murray Eisenberg
Emerson & Joyce Elliott
Mr. & Mrs. Richard Fidler
Dr. & Mrs. Dennis Fitzgerald
Mr. & Mrs. Karl Flicker
Mary Foster
Gary & Linda Glick
Susan Grad
Susan Grosser
Jon Haber & Bonnie Levin
Hannah Hall
Robert Hanrott & Martha Horsley
David R. Hearn
Patricia Hevner
Eric Hirschhorn
Marjorie Hobart
Thomas M. Hollenhorst
Patricia H. Horan
Joshua Horwitz & Ericka Markman
John Howe
Richard Hunt
Mary K. Huntington
Edward Hurwitz
Gabriel Paul Johnson
Dennis Kaspar
John Keck
Hans Keithley
Grace Kent
Ms. Veronique Kessler
David Keto
Pamela King
Richard Koretz
Dale & Joanne Krumveide
Ms. Faye Laing
Ms. Janice Lockard
Mrs. Sieglinde B. Lord
Thomas Lott
Frank & Dale Loy
Nancy & Alan Mandel
M. Lynne Martin
Mark Mattucci
Edward & Tessa McBride
Susan McCloskey
Patrick McDermott
Mr. David R. McGown
Kathleen Meagher, in the Name of
Marc Eisenberg
Theodore Myer
Reverend & Mrs. Bernard F. Nass
George Newman & Barbara Fairchild
David Ogilvie & Louisa Woodville
Mark W. Ohnmacht, in Honor of Ren Stelloh
Mr. & Mrs. David Osnos
Ellen & Ed Passman
Elizabeth Peterson
Dr. & Mrs. Stephen Peterson
Patricia Pickard
Susannah Prindle
Mr. & Mrs. Lloyd Randolph
Elizabeth W. Ratigan
Noel Reifel, in Honor of Charles Reifel
Mark Reifel, in Honor of Charles Reifel
Evelyn & Frederick Rooney
Peter & Anne Sandlund
Ann Imlah Schneider
Ms. Eleanor Schreiber
Alan Schwartz
David Seidman & Ruth Greenstein
Donald Shapero
Marlene Shaul
John & Linda Sibert
Anne Soens
Irene Solet
Milford Sprecher
Thomas Stanley
L. Bradley Stanford
Inge Steiner
Mr. & Mrs. Philip M. Teigen
Leslie Tentler
Roy & Carol Thomas
Mr. & Mrs. Charles F. Trunk, III
Jane Udelson
United Way of Greater Philadelphia &
Southern New Jersey
Frederik van Bolhuis
David Wallace
Marilyn Wandrus
In Memory of Kathleen Warner—
the Ascher Kalb Family
Drs. Richard & Elisabeth Waugaman
Anne & Ernest Weissenborn
George Whitley & Candace Ballard
Elsa Williams
Dr. Katherine J. Williams
David & Theolyn Wilson
The Winkler Family, in Honor of
Ren & Bee Stelloh
Edith C. Wolff
Ms. Patricia Woods
Mr. & Mrs. Stephen W. Worrel
S. Zilliacus
The Washington Bach Consort honors the members of the
1685 Society
GIVING BACH TO THE FUTURE
L. Brent & Norma Bozell
Mr. & Mrs. David P. Condit
Shannon & Jim Davis
Jill E. Kent & Mark E. Solomons
Dr. & Mrs. J. Reilly Lewis
Mary Elizabeth Lewis
Tamera Luzzatto & David Leiter
Dr. Brian R. McNeill & Kathryn McKenzie
Michael Ochs
Laura E. Phillips*
Charles Reifel & Janie Kinney
William T. & Sally Semple
Isabel T. Wallop
Sally Wells
Stephen C. Wright
*in memoriam
By making the Washington Bach Consort a beneficiary
of your estate, you will support the artistic and education
programs of the Consort for years to come. Create a lasting
legacy to the Consort and ensure that future generations
will continue to enjoy the music of J.S. Bach here in our
nation’s capital. Contact us for more information.
Ritornello Society
“A term, diminutive of the Italian ritorno (‘return’)
signifying a ‘little return’ of a short recurring passage.”
—The New Grove Dictionary of Music & Musicians
Join the Ritornello Society by pledging to make a monthly
gift of $10 or more. Call the Bach Consort office or visit
BachConsort.org to set up a monthly giving plan.
15
Washington Bach Consort
Board of Directors
Tamera Luzzatto, President
Stephen Wright, Vice President
Charles Reifel, Treasurer
David Condit, Secretary
Our Mission
The Washington Bach Consort is a professional choral and orchestral
ensemble based in Washington, DC that is committed to ensuring that
current and future audiences experience the music of Johann Sebastian
Bach and his contemporaries, by:


Herschel Abbott, Jr.
Richard Ayres
Sandra Baer
L. Brent Bozell III


performing the music of Bach and his contemporaries to the highest
artistic standards,
sharing the joy of Bach’s music by broadening audiences in the
nation’s capital,
nurturing the appreciation of Bach’s music through education and
community outreach activities, and
interpreting the music of Bach for audiences of today, thereby
ensuring his legacy.
Shannon Davis
Melvin Dubee
Glen S. Fukushima
Jill Kent
Charles Kinney
Mary Elizabeth Lewis
Doreen Moreira, MD
Christopher Putala
Alfred Regnery
The Honorable John D. Rockefeller IV
Joy Spragens
Catherine Ann Stevens
Giving Bach
Throughout its history The Washington Bach Consort has made music
education programs and audience outreach activities central to its mission.
Its Giving Bach to the Community initiatives have offered a range of free
or low-cost educational and enrichment activities to residents of the
greater Washington DC area. Designed to bring the mastery of Bach’s
music as well as the artistry of the Consort to those who, for reasons of
cost, location, schedule or lack of familiarity with the music, are unlikely
to be regular attendees at any classical music concert, the program includes
Bach to School, the Noontime Cantata Series, and Talking Bach. These
programs showcase the talents of Consort musicians, guest artists and
guest lecturers, and provide thousands of DC area residents with the
opportunity to hear, learn, and be inspired by top-notch classical music
performances.
Reinhard Wieck
John Wohlstetter
Staff
J. Reilly Lewis, Founder & Music Director
Marc Eisenberg, Executive Director
Janey Moskowitz, External Affairs Manager
Carolyn Purcell, Patron Services Manager
Carolyn Davies, Operations Manager
Jared Chamoff, Administrative Assistant
Adam Jackson, Assistant to Dr. Lewis
Institutional Partners
This program is brought to you in part by these generous sponsors.