From Vivaldi’s Gloria to Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas to Handel’s Theodora, the seventh edition of the Charlotte Bach Festival promises to be our most musically adventurous yet. There’s music from JS Bach, of course, and so much more.
Festival pass price does not include 7.25% local sales tax.
Credit card fees are optional for festival pass purchasers.
Premium Preferred Festival Pass: $395
Access to all public events
Reserved named preferred seating
VIP concierge
Invitation to private donor events
Tickets to “The Early American Singing Tradition”
Festival tote bag and poster
General Admission Festival Pass: $295
Access to all public events
General admission seating
Tickets to “The Early American Singing Tradition”
Festival tote bag
Festival Lineup
THURSDAY, MAY 28
Private Event
By invitation only.
FRIDAY, MAY 29
The Early American Singing Tradition
Early American sacred song and communal singing in celebration of America’s 250th, with food trucks.
SATURDAY, MAY 30
A Baroque Celebration: Vivaldi’s Gloria & Works by Handel
Vivaldi’s jubilant Gloria shines alongside beloved choruses and orchestral works by Handel, including favorite selections from Messiah, in a joyful Baroque celebration.
SUNDAY, MAY 31
Organ Recital
MONDAY, JUNE 1
Organ Masterclass
Listen Up, Lovers! Songs of Love and Desire
Claudio Monteverdi, Barbara Strozzi, and their contemporaries created intimate songs full of desire, heartbreak, and passion. Arwen Myers and John Lenti bring this fiery music to life.
TUESDAY, JUNE 2
Dall’Italia con amore
Led by Guy Fishman, this vibrant program celebrates the warmth, lyricism, and theatrical flair of the Italian Baroque, tracing the roots that shaped Handel’s voice and animated his music.
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 3
Tuning In:
JS Bach Cantata No. 9, “Es ist das Heil uns kommen her”
(It is our salvation come here to us)
Free to all, “Tuning In” combines an informal talk with a performance to help both newcomers and experienced listeners better understand the context of a particular work. In this cantata, Bach builds a theological argument through his musical structure for the Lutheran creed of salvation from sin by God’s grace alone.
Henry Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas
A gripping tale of love, betrayal, and heartbreak, powered by unforgettable music and one of the most haunting endings ever written.
THURSDAY, JUNE 4
Tuning In:
GF Handel: My song shall be alway (HWV 252)
Free to all, “Tuning In” combines an informal talk with a performance to help both newcomers and experienced listeners better understand the context of a particular work. Opening with a French-style overture, Handel alternates between choruses and solo movements, using contrast to shape extended moral reflection.
Bach and the French Influence
Led by Aisslinn Nosky and Sarah Stone, this elegant, dance-filled Baroque program explores how the color, rhythm, and flair of French style shaped Bach’s musical language.
FRIDAY, JUNE 5
Cathedrals and Candlelight
Emi Ferguson, Esther Jeehae Ahn, and Guy Fishman take flight on a high-voltage journey from sultry French nights to thrilling Romantic showpieces.
SATURDAY, JUNE 6
Handel’s Theodora
Ian Watson leads Handel’s most profound and affecting creation. A powerful drama of courage, faith, and moral resolve, Theodora unfolds through radiant arias and stirring choruses of extraordinary emotional force.
SUNDAY, JUNE 7
Organ Recital with Lester Ackerman
Experience the full spectacle of the organ in a vibrant recital by Lester Ackerman. The program spans the grandeur of Bach and Franck, the exuberant Americana of Ives’s Variations on “America,” the timeless beauty of Shenandoah, and a rousing Amazing Grace.
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Repertoire, musicians, dates, and venues are subject to change.
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