The Santa Cruz Chorale News

Bach’s cantatas: For God, the Church, the World During his life as a church musician, Bach composed cantatas for the liturgical year of the Lutheran church. We know of five complete year-long cycles for Sundays and feast days, which would amount to somewhere between 270 and 320 cantatas. He also wrote cantatas for occasions such [...]

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How Did He Find the Time? Imagine: it’s the beginning of the 18th century, and Johann Sebastian Bach is a young musician working his way up. He’s a bit impetuous and sometimes gets into trouble. At Arnstadt, he asks for a four week leave to visit the North German composer Buxtehude, then makes the 280-mile [...]

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On Music and Family Bonds It’s tempting to think of Johann Sebastian Bach as a singular genius, a force that came out of nowhere. In truth, he was born into a century-old musical family. It isn’t easy to document what young Johann was doing in the 1690s, as a child, but music historians believe that his [...]

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Hope in Turbulent Times Winter winds bluster and sheets of rain beat against darkening windows. In the bay, the surf rises and pounds the shore. Then suddenly, brilliant sunshine and calm skies. In the garden, trees and shrubs give a shake and begin to bloom. In Santa Cruz County, Winter is full of drama.As the [...]

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Arvo Pärt, one of the world’s most famous living composers, was born and raised in Estonia. Characterized as “mystic minimalism,” Pärt’s compositional style is unique, otherworldly. However, the religious themes of his music led to censorship and suppression during the long years that his country was under Soviet domination. Magnificat, which you can experience at […]

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