Considering the sheer amount of music J.S. Bach produced in his lifetime, it’s easy to imagine his work being fuelled by a strong coffee. In fact, coffee was indeed one of Bach’s great pleasures, and the coffee houses of eighteenth-century Leipzig featured prominently in its cultural life, as a place where music and ideas were freely exchanged by artists and intellectuals.
In this unique event, John Butt and Dunedin Consort reimagine the special atmosphere of the Enlightenment coffee house, performing two effervescent cantatas alongside the third orchestral suite, complete with its famed air. As part of this, renowned Bach expert John Butt will lead a fascinating discussion of the wider social context for Bach’s music alongside Simon Frith, former Rock critic and Tovey Chair of Music at University of Edinburgh.
Come along and take all of this in, coffee-in-hand!
Programme:

BWV 165 Cantata O heilges Geist- und Wasserbad
BWV 31 Cantata Der Himmel lacht! Die Erde jubilieret
BWV 1068 Orchestral Suite no 3 in D Major