At 6.15 pm we invite you to the chamber hall for a pre-concert meeting, during which Piotr Matwiejczuk will talk about music. Free entrance.
The Christmas Oratorio is one of the greatest masterpieces of the genre and the greatest masterpieces of classical music in general. Bach wrote them for Christmas 1734, using excerpts from his earlier compositions, a common practice in the 18th century.
In fact, the Oratorio is a series of six cantatas, each written for a specific holiday: from Christmas (December 25) to Epiphany (January 6), i.e. Epiphany. The first part describes the birth of Jesus, the second - the revelation to the shepherds, the third - the adoration of the shepherds, the fourth - the circumcision and naming of Jesus, the fifth - the journey of the wise men from the east, the sixth - the adoration of the wise men. Each of the cantatas is a multi-movement structure that opens with a choir, is filled with arias and recitatives, and ends with a chorale. It takes almost three hours to perform the whole thing, so it is not surprising that for concert purposes, the choice is usually made. The first, second and third cantatas will be heard in Łódź.
Their performance will be conducted by the outstanding Ukrainian bandmaster Andriy Yurkevich, who as a guest conductor and music director was associated with, among others, with the National Opera in Lviv, the National Opera Theater in Odessa and the Grand Theater - National Opera in Warsaw.
