Right from its monumental opening chorus, Bach’s Matthew Passion makes its intentions clear. Set for the expansive forces of two orchestras and choruses, it is a truly epic retelling of the Easter story and draws on Bach’s most expressive compositional capabilities. More meditative than the John Passion, the Matthew Passion explores the fullest range of human emotions from the bitterest sorrow and grief, through guilt and shame, in its quest for universal redemption. Using similar forces