See what I’m up to!
Can’t wait to get out on stage and do these concerts! Scroll down to see more about each event or click on a date!
WBC: Cantata 300
Chorister
This celebratory opening event uniquely commemorates the 300th anniversary of four of Bach’s finest cantatas, highlighting the rarely performed Dramma per Musica, “Zerreißet, zersprenget, zertrümmert,” commissioned in 1725 by the University of Leipzig with a classical text adapted by Picander, Bach’s longtime collaborator and librettist. The affective range of expression achieved across these works is astonishing, revealing Bach in ways that our audience will experience live for the first time!
Gott, der Herr ist Sonn und Schild, BWV 79
Ihr werdet weinen und heulen, BWV 103
Wer mich liebet, der wird mein Wort halten, BWV 74
Dramma per Musica: Zerreißet, zersprenget, zertrümmert die Gruft, BWV 205
WBC: B minor Mass
Chorister
Our season finale—Bach’s Mass in B Minor—is arguably among the greatest musical compositions in any tradition. Through this work, Bach has given us a reservoir of comfort and healing for the soul. Although he likely never performed the work in its entirety during his lifetime, Bach’s surviving documents suggest a plan for its complete performance. Today, the work remains among the most treasured of any era.
WBC: B minor Mass
Chorister
Our season finale—Bach’s Mass in B Minor—is arguably among the greatest musical compositions in any tradition. Through this work, Bach has given us a reservoir of comfort and healing for the soul. Although he likely never performed the work in its entirety during his lifetime, Bach’s surviving documents suggest a plan for its complete performance. Today, the work remains among the most treasured of any era.
WBC: Noontime Cantata Series
Ihr werdet weinen und heulen, BWV 103
Jinsun Cho, organist
Sylvia Leith, alto | Blake Beckemeyer, tenor | Ross Tamaccio, bass
Robert Beizer, underwriter of the Noontime organ preludes
Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, underwriters
The Noontime Cantata Series is supported by generous gifts from the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts
WBC: Noontime Cantata Series
Ihr werdet weinen und heulen, BWV 103
Jinsun Cho, organist
Sylvia Leith, alto | Blake Beckemeyer, tenor | Ross Tamaccio, bass
Robert Beizer, underwriter of the Noontime organ preludes
Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, underwriters
The Noontime Cantata Series is supported by generous gifts from the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts
WBC: Haydn’s Die Schöpfung The Creation: from Genesis to Milton’s Paradise Lost
Completed five decades after Bach’s death, Die Schöpfung (The Creation) offers a significant milestone in the development of the oratorio genre. Strongly influenced by Handel’s definitive examples of the high Baroque, Haydn’s Creation conveys Gottfried van Swieten’s German libretto in sharp musical focus, with vivid characterizations of the creation story described in the book of Genesis. Beginning with the captivating orchestral representation of Chaos, we experience a world brought into beautiful order in seven days, culminating with the union of Adam and Eve. This epic work is best experienced live, sung in the language of its premiere performance (German) and played on period instruments of the Classical era, allowing for the deepest possible level of connection with the musical drama.
WBC: Te Deum Sacred Grand Motets of Lully and Charpentier
J.S. Bach drew from the best of a variety of established European musical styles and combined them in his own unique voice. This concert will highlight influential composers of the French Baroque, featuring sacred grand motets of Jean-Baptiste Lully (1632–1687) and MarcAntoine Charpentier (1643–1704). Charpentier’s magnificent Te Deum will head a list of exquisite works that reflect the magnificence of French courtly and ecclesiastical grandeur.
Seraphic Fire Christmas
JAMES K. BASS, CONDUCTOR
Let the gentle glow of candlelight and angelic tones of Seraphic Fire a cappella voices usher you into the holiday season. A Seraphic Fire Christmas provides a moment of reflection and peace to connect with friends and loved ones. Enjoy festive carols from varied traditions alongside newer takes on classics from contemporary composers. We hope this concert becomes the soundtrack of your season—literally!—since it marks the release of Seraphic Fire’s newest Christmas album. Come hear this concert and bring all your favorites home with you.
PROGRAM TO INCLUDE:
Away in a Manger - William J. Kirkpatrick
Jesus Christ the Apple Tree - Elizabeth Poston
Silent Night - Franz Xaver Gruber
Seraphic Fire Christmas
JAMES K. BASS, CONDUCTOR
Let the gentle glow of candlelight and angelic tones of Seraphic Fire a cappella voices usher you into the holiday season. A Seraphic Fire Christmas provides a moment of reflection and peace to connect with friends and loved ones. Enjoy festive carols from varied traditions alongside newer takes on classics from contemporary composers. We hope this concert becomes the soundtrack of your season—literally!—since it marks the release of Seraphic Fire’s newest Christmas album. Come hear this concert and bring all your favorites home with you.
PROGRAM TO INCLUDE:
Away in a Manger - William J. Kirkpatrick
Jesus Christ the Apple Tree - Elizabeth Poston
Silent Night - Franz Xaver Gruber
Seraphic Fire Christmas
JAMES K. BASS, CONDUCTOR
Let the gentle glow of candlelight and angelic tones of Seraphic Fire a cappella voices usher you into the holiday season. A Seraphic Fire Christmas provides a moment of reflection and peace to connect with friends and loved ones. Enjoy festive carols from varied traditions alongside newer takes on classics from contemporary composers. We hope this concert becomes the soundtrack of your season—literally!—since it marks the release of Seraphic Fire’s newest Christmas album. Come hear this concert and bring all your favorites home with you.
PROGRAM TO INCLUDE:
Away in a Manger - William J. Kirkpatrick
Jesus Christ the Apple Tree - Elizabeth Poston
Silent Night - Franz Xaver Gruber
Seraphic Fire Christmas
JAMES K. BASS, CONDUCTOR
Let the gentle glow of candlelight and angelic tones of Seraphic Fire a cappella voices usher you into the holiday season. A Seraphic Fire Christmas provides a moment of reflection and peace to connect with friends and loved ones. Enjoy festive carols from varied traditions alongside newer takes on classics from contemporary composers. We hope this concert becomes the soundtrack of your season—literally!—since it marks the release of Seraphic Fire’s newest Christmas album. Come hear this concert and bring all your favorites home with you.
PROGRAM TO INCLUDE:
Away in a Manger - William J. Kirkpatrick
Jesus Christ the Apple Tree - Elizabeth Poston
Silent Night - Franz Xaver Gruber
Seraphic Fire Christmas
JAMES K. BASS, CONDUCTOR
Let the gentle glow of candlelight and angelic tones of Seraphic Fire a cappella voices usher you into the holiday season. A Seraphic Fire Christmas provides a moment of reflection and peace to connect with friends and loved ones. Enjoy festive carols from varied traditions alongside newer takes on classics from contemporary composers. We hope this concert becomes the soundtrack of your season—literally!—since it marks the release of Seraphic Fire’s newest Christmas album. Come hear this concert and bring all your favorites home with you.
PROGRAM TO INCLUDE:
Away in a Manger - William J. Kirkpatrick
Jesus Christ the Apple Tree - Elizabeth Poston
Silent Night - Franz Xaver Gruber
Seraphic Fire Christmas
JAMES K. BASS, CONDUCTOR
Let the gentle glow of candlelight and angelic tones of Seraphic Fire a cappella voices usher you into the holiday season. A Seraphic Fire Christmas provides a moment of reflection and peace to connect with friends and loved ones. Enjoy festive carols from varied traditions alongside newer takes on classics from contemporary composers. We hope this concert becomes the soundtrack of your season—literally!—since it marks the release of Seraphic Fire’s newest Christmas album. Come hear this concert and bring all your favorites home with you.
PROGRAM TO INCLUDE:
Away in a Manger - William J. Kirkpatrick
Jesus Christ the Apple Tree - Elizabeth Poston
Silent Night - Franz Xaver Gruber
Seraphic Fire Christmas
JAMES K. BASS, CONDUCTOR
Let the gentle glow of candlelight and angelic tones of Seraphic Fire a cappella voices usher you into the holiday season. A Seraphic Fire Christmas provides a moment of reflection and peace to connect with friends and loved ones. Enjoy festive carols from varied traditions alongside newer takes on classics from contemporary composers. We hope this concert becomes the soundtrack of your season—literally!—since it marks the release of Seraphic Fire’s newest Christmas album. Come hear this concert and bring all your favorites home with you.
PROGRAM TO INCLUDE:
Away in a Manger - William J. Kirkpatrick
Jesus Christ the Apple Tree - Elizabeth Poston
Silent Night - Franz Xaver Gruber
Seraphic Fire Christmas
JAMES K. BASS, CONDUCTOR
Let the gentle glow of candlelight and angelic tones of Seraphic Fire a cappella voices usher you into the holiday season. A Seraphic Fire Christmas provides a moment of reflection and peace to connect with friends and loved ones. Enjoy festive carols from varied traditions alongside newer takes on classics from contemporary composers. We hope this concert becomes the soundtrack of your season—literally!—since it marks the release of Seraphic Fire’s newest Christmas album. Come hear this concert and bring all your favorites home with you.
PROGRAM TO INCLUDE:
Away in a Manger - William J. Kirkpatrick
Jesus Christ the Apple Tree - Elizabeth Poston
Silent Night - Franz Xaver Gruber
Seraphic Fire Christmas
JAMES K. BASS, CONDUCTOR
Let the gentle glow of candlelight and angelic tones of Seraphic Fire a cappella voices usher you into the holiday season. A Seraphic Fire Christmas provides a moment of reflection and peace to connect with friends and loved ones. Enjoy festive carols from varied traditions alongside newer takes on classics from contemporary composers. We hope this concert becomes the soundtrack of your season—literally!—since it marks the release of Seraphic Fire’s newest Christmas album. Come hear this concert and bring all your favorites home with you.
PROGRAM TO INCLUDE:
Away in a Manger - William J. Kirkpatrick
Jesus Christ the Apple Tree - Elizabeth Poston
Silent Night - Franz Xaver Gruber
BBCP: BWV 37– Wer da gläubet und getauft wird
Beckemeyer and Barry team up to direct BWV 37 in their first return to the Bloomington Bach Cantata Project this season.
The cantata features a intricate duet for soprano and alto, and a tenor aria with lost violin solo. The performance will utilize Masaaki Suzuki’s reconstruction.
Seraphic Fire: First | Last: A 20th Anniversary Concert
To honor the conclusion of our 20th Anniversary season, Seraphic Fire celebrates with a program containing both the oldest and newest pieces in our repertoire. William Billing’s Invocation was the first work performed by Seraphic Fire, and the first line of this American hymn—“Majestic God, our Muse inspire, and fill us with Seraphic fire”—is the source for the ensemble’s name. Shawn Crouch’s The Road From Hiroshima was the first piece of music commissioned and premiered by Seraphic Fire. Representing Seraphic Fire’s newest projects are three world premiere performances of works by Alvaro Bermudez, Sydney Guillaume, and Tawnie Olson. The ensemble’s first performance of Thomas Tallis’ massive 40-voice motet Spem in alium is the icing on the birthday cake in this celebration of 20 years of glorious music.
Seraphic Fire: First | Last: A 20th Anniversary Concert (Copy)
To honor the conclusion of our 20th Anniversary season, Seraphic Fire celebrates with a program containing both the oldest and newest pieces in our repertoire. William Billing’s Invocation was the first work performed by Seraphic Fire, and the first line of this American hymn—“Majestic God, our Muse inspire, and fill us with Seraphic fire”—is the source for the ensemble’s name. Shawn Crouch’s The Road From Hiroshima was the first piece of music commissioned and premiered by Seraphic Fire. Representing Seraphic Fire’s newest projects are three world premiere performances of works by Alvaro Bermudez, Sydney Guillaume, and Tawnie Olson. The ensemble’s first performance of Thomas Tallis’ massive 40-voice motet Spem in alium is the icing on the birthday cake in this celebration of 20 years of glorious music.
Seraphic Fire: First | Last: A 20th Anniversary Concert (Copy)
To honor the conclusion of our 20th Anniversary season, Seraphic Fire celebrates with a program containing both the oldest and newest pieces in our repertoire. William Billing’s Invocation was the first work performed by Seraphic Fire, and the first line of this American hymn—“Majestic God, our Muse inspire, and fill us with Seraphic fire”—is the source for the ensemble’s name. Shawn Crouch’s The Road From Hiroshima was the first piece of music commissioned and premiered by Seraphic Fire. Representing Seraphic Fire’s newest projects are three world premiere performances of works by Alvaro Bermudez, Sydney Guillaume, and Tawnie Olson. The ensemble’s first performance of Thomas Tallis’ massive 40-voice motet Spem in alium is the icing on the birthday cake in this celebration of 20 years of glorious music.
Seraphic Fire: First | Last: A 20th Anniversary Concert
To honor the conclusion of our 20th Anniversary season, Seraphic Fire celebrates with a program containing both the oldest and newest pieces in our repertoire. William Billing’s Invocation was the first work performed by Seraphic Fire, and the first line of this American hymn—“Majestic God, our Muse inspire, and fill us with Seraphic fire”—is the source for the ensemble’s name. Shawn Crouch’s The Road From Hiroshima was the first piece of music commissioned and premiered by Seraphic Fire. Representing Seraphic Fire’s newest projects are three world premiere performances of works by Alvaro Bermudez, Sydney Guillaume, and Tawnie Olson. The ensemble’s first performance of Thomas Tallis’ massive 40-voice motet Spem in alium is the icing on the birthday cake in this celebration of 20 years of glorious music.
Christ Church Cathedral: Evangelist/Arias, Johannes-Passion
Blake Beckemeyer, Evangelist/Arias/Tenor Concertist
Christ Church Cathedral Choir
Christopher Caruso-Lynch, conductor
Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra
Beckemeyer has his debut as the Evangelist and singing the arias in the Bach Johannes-Passion, BWV 245. The original conception of the work as argued by Daniel Melamed in "Hearing Bach’s Passions” is that there was one tenor who sang all arias, ensembles, and recitatives. Though a larger choir will be singing the larger ensembles, the performance will be with historical instruments and with soloists as concertists.
BBCP: BWV 215, "Preise dein Glucke, gesegnetes Sachsen."
Beckemeyer joins the cantata project for the third presentation of its spring cantata, directed by baroque cellist Joanna Blendulf.
The work is secular cantata BWV 215, “Preise dein Glucke, gesegnetes Sachsen.” You will notice the first movement if you are a lover of Bach’s large-scale works. He reuses the title movement as the “Hosanna” in Messe in h-moll. Performances at the BBCP consist of two presentations of the cantata with a lecture given by renowned Bach scholar and IU musicology professor Dr. Daniel Melamed.
About the Director, Joanna Blendulf
Joanna Blendulf is associate professor of music in baroque cello/viola da gamba at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.
Blendulf has performed and recorded with leading period-instrument ensembles throughout the United States and abroad. She is currently co-principal cellist and principal viola da gamba player of the Portland Baroque Orchestra. She has also performed as principal cellist of Pacific MusicWorks, Pacific Baroque Orchestra, American Bach Soloists, Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra, Apollo’s Fire Baroque Orchestra, and the New York Collegium. She was a principal cellist of the New World Symphony under Michael Tilson Thomas and has performed with other modern orchestras, including the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and the Nashville Chamber Orchestra.
Blendulf is an avid chamber musician, performing regularly on major concert series and appearing on numerous recordings with her groups, including the Ensemble Electra, Ensemble Mirable, Music of the Spheres, Nota Bene Viol Consort, and Wildcat Viols. She appears as a frequent guest viol player with the Catacoustic Consort and Parthenia, and has collaborated with acclaimed artists such as Monica Huggett, Stephen Stubbs, Matthias Maute, Bruce Dickey, and Joan Jeanrenaud. Blendulf’s world-premiere recording of the complete cello sonatas of Jean Zewalt Triemer with Ensemble Mirable was released in 2004.
Blendulf’s festival engagements have included performances at Tage Alter Musik Regenburg, Musica Antigua en Villa de Leyva in Colombia, the Bloomington, Boston, and Berkeley early music festivals, and the Ojai Music Festival, as well as the Carmel and Oregon Bach Festivals. She is also sought after as a teacher and chamber music coach and has served as a classroom and private instructor at the University of Oregon and the Berwick Academy. As an active member of the Viola da gamba Society of America, she teaches regularly at viol workshops such as the annual Conclave, Viols West, and Young Players Weekend, and has served as a national Circuit Rider teacher.
She holds performance degrees with honors from the Cleveland Institute of Music and the Jacobs School of Music, where she earned a Performer's Certificate for her accomplishments in early music performance.
BBCP: BWV 101
Beckemeyer returns to Bloomington for the Bloomington Bach Cantata Project and joins Dana Marsh for BWV 101
Seraphic Fire: Old | New
Guest conductor Jason Max Ferdinand leads a program that sees contemporary composers breathing new life into traditional melodies and texts. Aaron Copland’s Old American Songs blur the line between historic and contemporary. Originally written for baritone William Warfield and tenor Peter Pears, the Old American Songs dress traditional tunes in 20th-century clothing. Masterpieces by modernist Betty Jackson King and Renaissance man Thomas Tomkins meld with arresting contemporary gems by Ken Burton and Stacy Gibbs, sparkling against a backdrop of bedrock works by William Dawson, Moses Hogan, and Hal Johnson.
Seraphic Fire: Old | New
Guest conductor Jason Max Ferdinand leads a program that sees contemporary composers breathing new life into traditional melodies and texts. Aaron Copland’s Old American Songs blur the line between historic and contemporary. Originally written for baritone William Warfield and tenor Peter Pears, the Old American Songs dress traditional tunes in 20th-century clothing. Masterpieces by modernist Betty Jackson King and Renaissance man Thomas Tomkins meld with arresting contemporary gems by Ken Burton and Stacy Gibbs, sparkling against a backdrop of bedrock works by William Dawson, Moses Hogan, and Hal Johnson.
Seraphic Fire: Old | New
Guest conductor Jason Max Ferdinand leads a program that sees contemporary composers breathing new life into traditional melodies and texts. Aaron Copland’s Old American Songs blur the line between historic and contemporary. Originally written for baritone William Warfield and tenor Peter Pears, the Old American Songs dress traditional tunes in 20th-century clothing. Masterpieces by modernist Betty Jackson King and Renaissance man Thomas Tomkins meld with arresting contemporary gems by Ken Burton and Stacy Gibbs, sparkling against a backdrop of bedrock works by William Dawson, Moses Hogan, and Hal Johnson.
Seraphic Fire: Old | New
Guest conductor Jason Max Ferdinand leads a program that sees contemporary composers breathing new life into traditional melodies and texts. Aaron Copland’s Old American Songs blur the line between historic and contemporary. Originally written for baritone William Warfield and tenor Peter Pears, the Old American Songs dress traditional tunes in 20th-century clothing. Masterpieces by modernist Betty Jackson King and Renaissance man Thomas Tomkins meld with arresting contemporary gems by Ken Burton and Stacy Gibbs, sparkling against a backdrop of bedrock works by William Dawson, Moses Hogan, and Hal Johnson.
A Seraphic Fire Christmas: South Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center
Within a serene candle-lit setting, the hustle and bustle of the holiday season will quiet and the a capella voices of Seraphic Fire will fill the room with musical peace and joy. Enjoy familiar favorites such as the hauntingly simple, yet lush Jesus Christ the Apple Tree and the enchanting Silent Night, and come away cherishing a newly discovered gem. Associate Conductor James K. Bass and the ensemble are pleased to present seasonal carols and heart-warming music in the 20th season of A Seraphic Fire Christmas.
A Seraphic Fire Christmas: Coral Gables II
Within a serene candle-lit setting, the hustle and bustle of the holiday season will quiet and the a capella voices of Seraphic Fire will fill the room with musical peace and joy. Enjoy familiar favorites such as the hauntingly simple, yet lush Jesus Christ the Apple Tree and the enchanting Silent Night, and come away cherishing a newly discovered gem. Associate Conductor James K. Bass and the ensemble are pleased to present seasonal carols and heart-warming music in the 20th season of A Seraphic Fire Christmas.
A Seraphic Fire Christmas: Miami
Within a serene candle-lit setting, the hustle and bustle of the holiday season will quiet and the a capella voices of Seraphic Fire will fill the room with musical peace and joy. Enjoy familiar favorites such as the hauntingly simple, yet lush Jesus Christ the Apple Tree and the enchanting Silent Night, and come away cherishing a newly discovered gem. Associate Conductor James K. Bass and the ensemble are pleased to present seasonal carols and heart-warming music in the 20th season of A Seraphic Fire Christmas.
A Seraphic Fire Christmas: Boca Raton
Within a serene candle-lit setting, the hustle and bustle of the holiday season will quiet and the a capella voices of Seraphic Fire will fill the room with musical peace and joy. Enjoy familiar favorites such as the hauntingly simple, yet lush Jesus Christ the Apple Tree and the enchanting Silent Night, and come away cherishing a newly discovered gem. Associate Conductor James K. Bass and the ensemble are pleased to present seasonal carols and heart-warming music in the 20th season of A Seraphic Fire Christmas.
A Seraphic Fire Christmas: Ft. Lauderdale
Within a serene candle-lit setting, the hustle and bustle of the holiday season will quiet and the a capella voices of Seraphic Fire will fill the room with musical peace and joy. Enjoy familiar favorites such as the hauntingly simple, yet lush Jesus Christ the Apple Tree and the enchanting Silent Night, and come away cherishing a newly discovered gem. Associate Conductor James K. Bass and the ensemble are pleased to present seasonal carols and heart-warming music in the 20th season of A Seraphic Fire Christmas.