
In the first of two appearances at this year’s Festival la Chaise Dieu, Dunedin Consort perform’s Bach’s John Passion — or his ‘little Passion’, as Schumann famously called it. It was Bach’s first Passion, and although more slender than the Matthew that would follow three years later, it remains his first piece of grand storytelling. While the Matthew Passion is a more monumental, contemplative piece, the John is arguably more dramatic, placing greater emphasis on the tensions and humanity at the heart of the passion story. It is a work of hope and promise that looks forward to the prospect of a glorious resurrection.