Hear Bach’s outstanding church music in the hands of some of today’s leading exponents
Explore the rich musical heritage of Leipzig with visits to sites related to Bach, Mendelssohn and Schumann
Visit the Handel House and W F Bach House on an excursion to Halle
"Sandy [was] attentive, knowledgeable and took care to weld the group together right from the start of the tour"
- Previous ACE customer on tour with Sandy Burnett
Leipzig lies at the heart of the classical music tradition: Wagner was born here, Mendelssohn died here and Bach spent nearly three decades as Kapellmeister at the Thomaskirche. It is fitting, therefore, that Leipzig plays host to a magnificent annual festival centred on Bach and the composers he inspired.
Delving into this rich line-up, our tour weaves a carefully selected programme of festival performances around cultural visits, both in and within striking distance of Leipzig.
The tour features some of today’s leading Bach interpreters, including Philippe Herreweghe, the Collegium Vocal Gent, the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra, Ton Koopman, the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra and Thomaskantor Andreas Reize directing the choir of St Thomas’s Church. As well as performances of two of Bach’s towering masterpieces, the St John Passion and the B minor mass, there will be the intriguing experience of witnessing an opera using Bach’s music to tell the story of the sixteenth-century Anabaptist leader Jan van Leyden – a great opportunity to hear Bach’s much-loved music in a fresh context.
We will stay throughout the tour in the centre of Leipzig at the Seaside Park Hotel, a four-star Art Deco residence situated within easy walking distance of the Thomaskirche.
This tour will be led by Sandy Burnett, a musician and broadcaster who spent over a decade as one of the best-known classical music presenters on BBC Radio 3. He has conducted many orchestras and choirs, and has masterminded a complete cycle of J S Bach’s sacred cantatas.
Tour Director Sandy Burnett writes:
“It’s always a great pleasure to return to the Bachfest in Leipzig to explore the music of this astonishing composer in its rightful place. What makes the 2024 festival especially interesting is its focus on the cantatas that Bach wrote in his second year in his Leipzig post; this is material that I got to know from the inside while directing my complete performing cycle of Bach cantatas over thirteen years.”
8
£3895
BACH-24
Included: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, performances as described, seven breakfasts, four lunches (one packed), five dinners with water & coffee, excursions & admissions, gratuities & all taxes.
Not Included: travel insurance, small double room for single use supplement £265.
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