by InTrieste
For more than two decades, the Choir of Friuli Venezia Giulia has been pursuing an ambitious musical undertaking: performing the complete cycle of Johann Sebastian Bach’s sacred cantatas, a body of roughly 200 works that stands among the most intricate and spiritually charged in the Baroque canon. This long-term project, supported since its inception by Fondazione Friuli, has now reached a notable milestone, with 110 cantatas performed to date — a feat matched by only a handful of professional ensembles worldwide.
On Thursday, Dec. 4, at 8.30 pm the choir will present two of Bach’s Christmas cantatas at Trieste’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, a venue whose intimate scale and resonant acoustics are especially suited to Protestant sacred repertoire. The performance marks the ensemble’s return to the city following the success of its St. John Passion last March at the Cathedral of San Giusto.
The concert will feature the Orchestra da Camera di Pordenone, performing on period instruments, and a distinguished guest: the internationally acclaimed baroque trumpeter Gabriele Cassone. Considered among the leading interpreters of natural trumpet repertoire, Mr. Cassone is expected to bring a festive radiance to the evening, supported by the characteristic timbres of trumpets, timpani and the richly textured orchestration typical of Bach’s most celebratory works.
Joining the choir are soloists Delia Stabile (soprano), Claudio Zinutti (tenor), and two Trieste-born singers, Fabiana Polli (contralto) and Manuel Sedmak (bass). The ensemble will be led by conductor Elia Macrì, a Trieste-based musician known for his refined pianism and expertise in historical performance practices.
The concert opens the fifth cycle of Bach cantatas undertaken by the choir and underscores the ensemble’s role as one of the region’s foremost cultural institutions. Tickets are available at the symbolic price of 5 euros and may be purchased at the venue.
More info here.
