Viva Bach Peterborough is pleased to announce its 2023 festival, which will take place at the Peterborough Town House from October 20th – 22nd under the artistic direction of Veronika Schreiber. Building on its highly successful 2022 inaugural season, Viva Bach Peterborough will once again bring renowned musicians from across the country to play a full program of music by Johann Sebastian Bach. Also returning this year is the Viva Bach Festival Chorus consisting of professional and community singers from across Southern N.H. Colin Mann will once again conduct.
“I am thrilled that Viva Bach Peterborough can once again bring the music of J.S. Bach to the Monadnock Region”, said Artistic Director Veronika Schreiber. “Bach’s music encompasses everything human: our intelligence and emotions, our strengths and weaknesses, our multiplicity and singularity. Bach is needed, especially now, when our existence on the Earth is so fragile and our differences are highlighted like never before. Bach’s music teaches us that even the most complicated puzzles can be solved through harmony.”
2023 Festival Schedule
Friday, October 20th from 7:30-9:00 p.m.—The Goldberg Variations performed by pianist Sergey Schepkin. Hailed as “a formidable Bach pianist” by The New York Times. For nearly thirty years, Mr. Schepkin has been working on a large-scale project that aims to perform and record Bach’s keyboard works on the modern piano, while using historical performance practice as a source of inspiration. For a full bio click HERE.
Saturday October 21st from 7:30-9:00 p.m. – Concertos and Arias. Performing a program which includes four concertos and two arias are the musicians Veronika Schreiber (violin), Jaroslaw Lis (violin), Solomiya Ivakhiv (violin), Julia Glenn, (violin), Ignacy Gaydamovich (cello), Kemp Jernigan (oboe), Gregory Hayes (Harpsichord) and Mary Bonhag (soprano). For details of the specific program and performer bios, click HERE.
Sunday, October 22nd from 3:00-5:00 p.m. Cantatas. Conductor Colin Mann will lead a group of musicians, soloists and the Festival Chorus in Cantatas BWV 230, BWV 102, and BWV 140 and the motet BVW 229. Colin is a graduate conductor of the Eastman School of Music, conductor and Chorus Master of Viva Bach Peterborough. Presently, he is music director of the Hobart and William Smith Colleges Community Chorus. From 2018-2022, Mann served as Director of Choirs at the Williston Northampton School in western Massachusetts. For more musician bios, please click HERE.
Get your tickets!
Tickets to each individual concert are $25.00, with a 3-day pass costing $75.00. Children can attend for free. The organization also believes that everyone should have access to Bach’s music, regardless of ability to pay. Therefore, those requiring assistance will receive accommodation. To donate to the Festival go to https://vivabachpeterborough.org/donate.
Last year’s festival brought hundreds of people to downtown Peterborough for the three-day event. This benefitted many retail businesses, lodging and restaurants. “We are proud to expand the variety of arts programming that Peterborough is known for by bringing a world-class Bach festival to our town”, said Executive Director and Board President Cathy Lanigan. “The unique format of the festival also gives local singers from across the Monadnock Region the opportunity to perform with talented professionals”, she added.
About Viva Bach Peterborough
Notably, Artistic Director Veronika Schreiber is hailed as a ‘dazzling violinist’ by High Fidelity Magazine. Henryk Szeryng describes her as ‘a great artist ‘. She is active in both the USA and Europe as a soloist and a teacher. The audience applauded her performances at the most prestigious festivals in USA, Poland, France, Portugal and Italy. A soloist with many international orchestras in a wide range of repertoire and sought out chamber musician, Veronika particularly enjoys presenting the music of J.S. Bach. Her skills as an Artistic Director brought to life concerts and festivals on both continents. For a complete bio, click HERE.
Viva Bach Peterborough is a non-profit organization dedicated to celebrating the music of J.S. Bach via an annual Bach festival; to inspire young people to listen to, perform and enjoy his music; and to engage in activities that encourage and promote awareness of the music by J.S. Bach. For more information go to https://vivabachpeterborough.org/.
