| Münchener Bach-Chor | |
|---|---|
| Choir | |
 Soloists, Münchener Bach-Chor and Bachkollegium München after a concert at the Gasteig in 2008 | |
| Origin | Munich |
| Founded | 1945 |
| Genre | Mixed concert choir |
| Chief conductor |
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| Headquarters | Munich |
| Website | www |
Münchener Bach-Chor is a mixed choir for concert and oratorio in Munich. Performances, international tours and recordings with Karl Richter and the Münchener Bach-Orchester made the choir internationally known.
The choir was founded after World War II by Wilhelm Kamlah as Heinrich-Schütz-Kreis at the Protestant church St. Markus in Munich. The group introduced the music of the Protestant Heinrich Schütz to the predominantly Catholic Munich. The choir was later directed by Michael Schneider. In 1951 Karl Richter took over. [1]
In 1954 the choir was named Münchener Bach-Chor, and the focus shifted to the regular performance of Johann Sebastian Bach's works. Richter conducted several broadcasts, television productions and recordings, frequently with the Münchener Bach-Orchester that he had founded in 1953 of members of Munich orchestras and teachers of the Hochschule für Musik.
Hanns-Martin Schneidt was the choir's Artistic Director from 1984 to 2001. In 2005 conductor and organist Hansjörg Albrecht was chosen as his successor. [1]
The choir of about 80 voices performs cantatas, oratorios, Passions and a cappella music. Works of Johann Sebastian Bach dominate the repertoire, such as recordings of 75 Bach cantatas, [2] They recorded Bach's Mass in B minor also with Hans-Martin Schneidt and his Christmas Oratorio in 2005 with Peter Schreier as both conductor and the Evangelist.
Works of other composers from Baroque to contemporary are performed as well. The choir has collaborated with conductors such as Bruno Weil, Leonard Bernstein and Oleg Caetani, with the Ballet of John Neumeier and with the Bayerisches Staatsorchester. In a concert for Bach's 260th anniversary of death, the choir performed Bernstein's Chichester Psalms and Louis Vierne's Messe solennelle for choir and two organs, op. 16, and Charles-Marie Widor's Mass for two choirs, two organs and brass, op. 36. [3]
Karl Richter was a German conductor, choirmaster, organist, and harpsichordist.
Edith Mathis is a Swiss soprano and a leading exponent of the works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart worldwide. She is known for parts in Mozart operas, but also took part in premieres of operas such as Henze's Der junge Lord.
Fritz Werner was a German choral conductor, church music director, conductor, organist and composer. He founded the Heinrich-Schütz-Chor Heilbronn in 1947 and conducted it until 1973.
Kurt Huber is a Swiss tenor for concert and Lieder.
The Münchener Bach-Orchester is a classical music ensemble based in Munich, Germany, which specialises in the performance of works by Johann Sebastian Bach. It was founded in 1954 by the conductor Karl Richter. It works closely with its partner vocal ensemble, the Münchener Bach-Chor.
Pforzheim Chamber Orchestra is an internationally known German chamber orchestra based in Pforzheim.
Franz Kelch was a German bass-baritone lied and oratorio singer. His discography includes works of Johann Sebastian Bach, Dieterich Buxtehude, George Frideric Handel, and Claudio Monteverdi.
Ingeborg Reichelt was a German soprano singer known for her interpretation of works by Johann Sebastian Bach.
Ursula Buckel was a German soprano singer, known for singing works of Johann Sebastian Bach.
Johann Sebastian Bach composed the church cantata Herr, deine Augen sehen nach dem Glauben, BWV 102 in Leipzig for the tenth Sunday after Trinity and it was first performed on 25 August 1726.
Diethard Hellmann was a German Kantor and an academic in Leipzig, Mainz and Munich.
Howard Arman is an English choral conductor and opera director. He won the Handel Prize of the Handel Festival, Halle, in 1996, shaped the festival's orchestra and conducted operas of George Frideric Handel. He is a conductor of the Theater and Philharmonie Thüringen, also the Luzerner Theater. Since 2017 he is the Director of the Bayerische Rundfunk Chor.
Anna Reynolds was an English classical mezzo-soprano and contralto singer in opera and concert.
Du Hirte Israel, höre, BWV 104, is a church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. He composed it for the second Sunday after Easter in Leipzig and first performed it on 23 April 1724.
Antonia Fahberg was an Austrian lyric soprano in opera and concert. Her career focused on the Bavarian State Opera where she sang for 25 years. She performed regularly in concerts and recordings with Karl Richter and the Münchener Bach-Chor, and appeared at major opera houses and festivals in Europe.
Hanns-Martin Schneidt was a German conductor, harpsichordist, organist and academic. He held teaching positions in Berlin, Hamburg, Munich and Tokyo, was Generalmusikdirektor in Wuppertal, artistic director of the Münchener Bach-Chor and the Kanagawa Philharmonic Orchestra, and founded Bach ensembles in Berlin and Tokyo.
Ralf Otto is a German conductor, especially known as a choral conductor and academic teacher. He founded the Vokalensemble Frankfurt, focused on contemporary music and winning competitions including Let the Peoples Sing. Since 1986, he has been director of the Bachchor Mainz, with a tradition of performing Bach cantatas in broadcast church services. He added late romantic and contemporary works to their repertoire and made international tours with them. They made world premiere recordings of some cantatas by Bach's oldest son, Wilhelm Friedemann Bach, among other recordings. Otto was professor of choral conducting at the Folkwang Hochschule from 1990 to 2006, when he took the same position at the Hochschule für Musik Mainz.
Horst Laubenthal, real name Horst Neumaier, is a German operatic tenor and academic voice teacher. He is known internationally, both as an opera singer especially in Mozart roles such as Belmonte, Don Ottavio and Tamino, and as a concert and recital singer, with a focus on works by Johann Sebastian Bach. He has appeared at major opera houses and festivals, including the Glyndebourne Festival and the Salzburg Festival, and made many recordings, including rarely performed works such as Korngold's Violanta.
Kieth Engen was an American operatic bass who was a member of Munich's Bavarian State Opera for decades. Although his career was based in Munich, he appeared internationally as a guest singer at major opera houses and festivals and performed and recorded many of Bach's Passion oratorios and cantatas, primarily with the conductor Karl Richter. He was born Keith Sheldon Engen in Frazee, Minnesota, and died in Murnau am Staffelsee, Germany at the age of 79. He was given the title of Kammersänger in 1962 and was a recipient of the Bavarian Order of Merit. In the mid-1950s he also had a brief parallel career as a pop singer under the pseudonym Stan Oliver.
Ernst Gerold Schramm was a German baritone in opera and concert, and an academic voice teacher. He was a member of the Staatstheater Hannover and Oper Frankfurt ensembles and performed internationally. He taught at the Musikhochschule Frankfurt and the Universität der Künste Berlin.
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