Friday, May 24
8 PM
Eastminster
United Church
(310 Danforth Ave)

Saturday, May 25
12 PM
St. Andrew's Church
(73 Simcoe St)

Saturday, May 25
4 PM & 8 PM
Church of the
Holy Trinity
(19 Trinity Square)

Sunday, May 26
4 PM
Eastminster
United Church
(310 Danforth Ave)

Sunday, May 26 • 1 PM
Eastminster United Church
(310 Danforth Ave)

Friday, May 24 • 8 PM
Eastminster United Church
310 Danforth Ave

Directed by Adrian Butterfield

The festival will open with The Game of Threes, as we welcome guest violin soloist and leader Adrian Butterfield to our stage. The concert will feature the magnificent Concerto for Three Violins, as well as the Concerto in A minor for solo violin, and will also examine some composers who influenced Bach, including Albinoni and Vivaldi. The concert will conclude with the masterful Brandenburg Concerto No. 3, a work in which Bach takes the concept of a triple concerto to the next level, as he writes for three groups of three instruments (violins, violas, and cellos), each with an independent part.

Featuring

Adrian Butterfield, violin
Patricia Ahern, violin
Cristina Zacharias, violin
John Abberger, oboe
The Toronto Bach Festival Orchestra

Programme

Concerto for Three Violins in D major, BWV 1064R
J.S. Bach

Ouverture in G minor
Johann Bernhard Bach

Violin Concerto in A minor, BWV 1041
J.S. Bach

Concerto for 4 Violins Op.3 No.1 in D major, RV 549
Antonio Vivaldi

Concerto for Oboe in D minor, Op.9 No.2
Tomasso Albinoni

Brandenburg Concerto No.3 in G major, BWV 1048
J.S. Bach

Saturday, May 25 • 12 PM
St. Andrew’s Church
73 Simcoe St

We are proud to feature Toronto organist Aaron James at the festival, as he presents a recital of Bach favourites, including the famous Toccata and Fugue in D minor, together with masterpieces of the north German repertory that Bach certainly knew. Mr. James will present his program on the dazzling Karl Wilhelm organ at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church.

Featuring

Aaron James, organ

Programme

Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565
J.S. Bach

An Wasserflüssen Babylon, BWV 653b
J.S. Bach

An Wasserflüssen Babylon
Johann Adam Reincken

Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern, BuxWV 223
Dieterich Buxtehude

Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern, BWV 739
J.S. Bach

Prelude and Fugue in C, BWV 547
J.S. Bach

Saturday, May 25
Two Performances: 4 PM & 8 PM
Church of the Holy Trinity
19 Trinity Square

Directed by John Abberger

Following a highly acclaimed debut at last year’s festival, we are pleased to present our Kaffeehaus concert again this year. Join us in a relaxed café setting as we regale you with a complete performance of Bach’s Hunt Cantata, including the famous aria “Sheep may safely graze,” together with movements from Brandenburg Concerto No. 1. We are also looking forward to presenting guest soloist Yeree Suh, the noted soprano now established in Stuttgart, in her Toronto Bach Festival debut. The spacious acoustic of the Church of the Holy Trinity (by the CF Toronto Eaton Centre) will provide an excellent location for our recreation of Zimmermann’s Leipzig coffee house, and the beloved Canadian actor R.H. Thomson will once again preside as Herr Zimmermann.

Featuring

Yeree Suh, soprano
Ellen McAteer, soprano
Charles Daniels, tenor
Jesse Blumberg, bass
The Toronto Bach Festival Orchestra

With Special Guests
R.H. Thomson
and students from the Collegium Musicum, University of Toronto

Programme To Include

Was mir behagt, ist nur die muntre Jagd (Hunt Cantata), BWV 208

Sunday, May 26  •  4 PM
Eastminster United Church
310 Danforth Ave

Directed by John Abberger

No festival would be complete without a generous sampling of Bach’s matchless vocal music, and our final concert How Brightly Shines will not disappoint. We’ll hear two settings of the beautiful chorale “Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern” (“How brightly shines the Morningstar”), one by Johann Kuhnau, Bach’s predecessor at the Thomas Kirche, and one by Bach himself. The artistry of guest soloist Yeree Suh will be featured in several arias, and there will be other cantatas to bring the festival to a joyous conclusion - not to be missed!

Featuring

Yeree Suh and Sinéad White, sopranos
Daniel Taylor and Nicholas Burns, altos
Charles Daniels and Shane Hanson, tenors
Jesse Blumberg and Martin Gomes, basses
The Toronto Bach Festival Orchestra

Programme

Gott, sende dein Licht
Johann Schelle

Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern
Johann Kuhnau

Wer da gläubet und getauft wird, BWV 37
J.S. Bach

Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern, BWV 1
J.S. Bach

Sunday, May 26  •  1 PM
Eastminster United Church
310 Danforth Ave

Beyond Bach: Music and Everyday Life in the Eighteenth Century

Presented by Andrew Talle

Who loved the music of J. S. Bach during the eighteenth century? Who hated it? This presentation will offer two contrasting examples. First, Dr. Andrew Talle will illuminate the musical life of a professional organist, who collected as many of Bach's works as he could while simultaneously working at an orphanage, buying gifts for his fiancée, and managing his own private students. Second, Dr. Talle will discuss the lives of two teenage girls who had little interest in the music of J. S. Bach but transcended the expectations of their time in other ways, not least by composing music that was more to their taste. 

310 Danforth Ave, Toronto, ON

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Located on the north side of Danforth Ave, one block west of Chester Station (TTC). The main entrance is on Danforth Avenue. The accessible entrance is off Jackman Avenue, on the east side of the church.

73 Simcoe St, Toronto, ON

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Located on the corner of King St W and Simcoe St, across from Roy Thomson Hall. Steps away from St. Andrew Station (TTC). The main entrance is on King St W. The accessible entrance is on Simcoe St near the rear of the church.

19 Trinity Square, Toronto, ON

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Located just east of Bay St beside the Marriott Hotel and behind the Eaton Centre, a short walk from both Dundas Station and Queen Station (TTC). The accessible entrance is on the south side of the church opposite Trattoria Mercatto restaurant.