Dear BACH supporters, friends, and families,

We are excited to share you our upcoming concert with the Baroque Artists of Champaign Urbana on February 25th at 7:30 (Sinai Temple, Champaign) and hope you will be able to come! Here is some information:

Music of the Synagogue - February 25, 2024

As Music Director of the Baroque Artists of Champaign-Urbana, it is my privilege to showcase not only gems by Bach and Handel, but also works with fascinating stories that have not often been told. We can trace the development of European Baroque music back to medieval and Renaissance music, in which the literacy and rituals of the Church made sacred vocal music the center of innovation in notation and composition. The adoption of polyphonic choral music and instrumental accompaniment in Jewish music was a result of borrowing the Baroque style used in the European churches and courts. The same phenomenon occurred on a much larger scale in the 1800s, with composers such as Lewandowski and Sulzer writing for grand forces of large synagogue choirs, operatic cantors, and organs. While Lewandowski’s music can be heard in many congregations today, viewed as “traditional,” Salamone Rossi’s considerable output lives particularly in the domain of early music specialists. The music on the first half of our program is much lesser known, due to the lack of widespread distribution since its rediscovery. 

We are grateful to Sinai Temple for hosting this concert, allowing us to perform Jewish music in a fitting place. At a time with so much turmoil in the Middle East, it is important for us to be compassionate toward our neighbors and to value the art and culture throughout our communities.

Sarah Riskind, BACH Music Director