Each spring, we bring a special emphasis to our Bach Festival. Past foci have included women of the Baroque and the influence of Johann Sebastian Bach’s music on Mexican composers.
This year, we are proud to once again collaborate with Chorale Bel Canto for the Bach Festival Concert. They will be performing selections from their March 21st Bach concert entitled “Two Weddings and a Funeral”.
J.S. Bach: The Fabric of Inspiration
Saturday, March 21, 2026 4:00 p.m.
Chorale Bel Canto
Two Weddings and a Funeral
J.S. Bach: Cantatas and a Motet written for special occasions
First Friends Church 13205 E. Philadelphia St. Whittier, CA 90601
The 86th Bach Festival continues with two free, public events in the Memorial Chapel
Friday, March 27, 2026 12-1:00 p.m. Bach Poet Musicale Memorial Chapel
Sunday, March 29, 2026 Pre-concert lecture 5:30-6:00 p.m. Bach Festival Concert 6:00 p.m. Followed by a reception Memorial Chapel
Although from 1721 to 1750, Bach was primarily concerned with his work for regular Sunday and feast day worship, he was occasionally called upon to write music for weddings and funerals. These selections take us along to special events with music.
Motet: Komm, Jesu, komm, BWV 229 Cantata 192: Nun danket alle Gott, BWV 192
Bach in Brazil
Selections from the Bachianas Brasileiras (loosely translated as Bach-Inspired Brazilian Pieces)
The Bachianas Brasileiras are a series of nine pieces by the Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos, written for various combinations of instruments and voices between 1930 and 1945. They represent a fusion of Brazilian folk and popular music on the one hand and the style of Johann Sebastian Bach on the other, as an attempt to freely adapt a number of Baroque harmonic and contrapuntal procedures to Brazilian music.
Bachianas Brasileiras No. 6 for flute and bassoon Bachianas Brasileiras No. 1 for nine cellos Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5 for soprano and eight cellos
This festival is made possible in part by generous contributions from the Raymond F. and Irene E. Erickson Bach Festival Endowment Fund and the Colburn Foundation.
Join us at the Annual Bach Festival and experience the joy of live music. For more information or questions, please call 562.907.4237.
Chorale Bel Canto is a community-based chorale founded in 1982 by a group of Whittier College Choir alumni who wished to continue singing together after graduation. They have a deep history of performing at the Whittier College Bach Festival.
Download the Bach Festival logo
