18 October 2023 - 0 Comments

To close out a highly successful 2023 programme, New Zealand's leading chamber choir and orchestra Bach Musica NZ will ring in the holiday season with joyous cheer at the Auckland Town Hall on Sunday 10 December.
 
The ensemble will perform the colourful and majestic Christmas Oratorio by their namesake Johann Sebastian Bach. Conducted by the renowned Rita Paczian, the performance will take the audience through parts 1-3 of this famous composition written with the intention of being performed during the Christmas season. The first part describes the Birth of Jesus, the second the annunciation to the shepherds and the third the adoration of the shepherds.
 
In Europe and the United States, the timeless masterpiece is as popular as Handel’s Messiah is in New Zealand and can be heard everywhere during the Christmas season. The oratorio is a style of opera written for concert performance with a large orchestra, choir and four vocal soloists.
 
Alongside Bach Musica NZ’s celebrated choir, a formidable group of soloists take the spotlight. Joanna Foote (Soprano), who toured Europe in the role of Susanna in Le Nozze di Figaro, Stephen Diaz (Countertenor), a winner of the prestigious New Zealand Aria, and runner up in the Lexus Song Quest, Iain Tetley (Tenor), well-known throughout NZ and who once performed in an octet for the Queen, and James Harrison (Bass), who performs extensively in New Zealand and internationally.

“There is no Christmas without the Christmas Oratorio for me. Its timeless beautiful music has enchanted generations of many continents”, says Rita Paczian.

“Every orchestra section deserves genuine praise for skilful, committed and sensitive playing.” – Rainer W. Buhmann, April 2023

To close out their popular workshop series for the year, Bach Musica NZ will also host another Singing Workshop on 28 October at Somervell Presbyterian Church. An exciting opportunity to sing alongside members of the highly acclaimed chorus of Bach Musica NZ, culminating in a performance of Mozart’s Coronation Mass.

www.bachmusica.com

Bach Christmas Oratorio Parts 1 – 3

Sunday 5 December 2023, 5pm – Auckland Town Hall

Tickets are available via Ticketmaster

Rita PaczianConductor
Joanna Foote Soprano
Stephen Diaz Countertenor
Iain Tetley Tenor
James Harrison Bass

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