PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Berkshire Community College (OLLI at BCC) Distinguished Speakers Series presents "Engaging with Bach and His Saint Matthew Passion" with Jack Brown, artistic director of Berkshire Lyric, on Wednesday, May 13 at 9 a.m. 

 

The talk precedes Berkshire Lyric's presentation of J.S. Bach's "Saint Matthew Passion" on Sunday, May 31 at Tanglewood's Seiji Ozawa Hall. 

 

The talk will be presented in person at Berkshire Community College and online via Zoom.  Admission is $10 for OLLI at BCC members, $15 for the general public, and free for students, staff and faculty from Berkshire Community College, MCLA, and Williams College; youth ages 17 and under; and those holding WIC, EBT/SNAP, or ConnectorCare cards. 

 

To register for the event, visit https://berkshireolli.org/event-6667136.  

 

Brown will explore the background of this three-hour monumental work that many believe may be the greatest single work of music in the entire western canon. Bach's dramatic and poetic power tells a grand story of betrayal, judgment, sacrifice and death. Above all, it is the story of the power of love, stated a press release. 

 

"Saint Matthew Passion" was not conceived as a concert work or as an opera, but as a transformative ritual that continues to reach across time and space. It has special resonance not only with professional musicians and scholars, but also with amateurs and the broader public. In this program, Brown will delve deep into parts of the music and share his behind-the-scenes view of the intense preparation required for the concert. The massive work calls for two choruses, a children's chorus, two orchestras and six top-level vocal soloists, continued a press release.  

 

Artistic Director of Berkshire Lyric Jack Brown brings a wide range of musical experience to the region's oldest and largest choral organization. 

 

Brown has conducted the Berkshire Lyric Chorus since 2007.