Sibiu Bach Choir

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Sibiu Bach Choir
Home of the Bach choir: the Protestant parish church
Seat: RomaniaRomania Sibiu
Carrier: Evangelical parish church of Sibiu
Founding: 1931
Genus: mixed choir
Founder: Franz Xaver Dressler
Head : Juerg Leutert
Website : Website of the Hermannstädter Bachchor

The Hermannstädter Bachchor was founded in 1931 in the Transylvanian city of Hermannstadt ( Romanian : Sibiu), Romania . Originally a Bach choir of the evangelical parish, the Hermannstädter Bachchor has meanwhile become “ a non-denominational singing community in which people of different mother tongues make music with each other across all professions ” (self-definition).

The foundation of the choir

The initiator of founding a Bach choir in Sibiu was Franz Xaver Dressler (1898–1981), then city cantor. After it was founded in September, Giovanni Battista Pergolesi 's first public appearance followed in November 1931 with “ Stabat Mater ” .

Until the 1940s and in the immediate post-war period , works by Johann Sebastian Bach and Georg Friedrich Händel were among the focal points of the repertoire. The Hermannstädter Bachchor went on tours throughout the Kingdom of Romania and also performed in the Bucharest Athenaeum .

During the time of socialism

During the Stalinist phase of the post-war period, the choir was only able to continue its activities under the worst possible conditions (harassment and assignment for forced labor of choir members, including the choir director Dressler). At the end of the 1950s, the Bach Choir was forced to join the socialist-organized cultural life in order to prevent its dissolution. Interpretations of church music naturally took a back seat. Until 1978 the choir was led by its founder Franz Xaver Dressler.

After a slight easing of the circumstances from the mid-1960s , a significantly more difficult period for the choir again followed in the final phase of the Ceaușescu dictatorship during the 1980s. At that time (1985) Kurt Philippi (* 1949 ) took over the leadership of the Sibiu Bach Choir.

New beginning in the 1990s

The political change of 1989 brought back the freedom in terms of artistic design options, but caused the choir to face drastic personnel problems due to the massive emigration of the Transylvanian-Saxon members. On the one hand, these were resolved by merging with the Protestant church choir . On the other hand, the opening towards members of different languages ​​and different denominations began during the 1990s.

The Hermannstädter Bachchor today

Thanks to the strategy adopted at the time, the “non-denominational singing community” enjoys great popularity today. The focus of the repertoire is now again on Bach's works, but increasingly also sacred music from Transylvania, for example by Rudolf Lassel (1861–1918) or Hans Peter Türk (* 1940). In addition to numerous appearances in Romania, the Hermannstädter Bachchor has also undertaken choir trips to Austria and Germany since the fall of the Iron Curtain . The choir's first CD was released in 1996 . On Good Friday 2007, the year that was marked by the celebrations for the European Capital of Culture in Sibiu , the world premiere of Hans Peter Türk's “Transylvanian Passion Music on Good Friday” by the Meissner Kantorei and the Hermannstädter Bachchor under the direction of Christfried Brödel took place. Jürg Leutert has been leading the Hermannstädter Bachchor since February 2015. His wife Britta Falch Leutert is the cantor of the parish church.

Honors

In 2003 the Hermannstädter Bachchor was honored with the honorary prize of the “ Georg Dehio Culture Prize ”.

CD publications

  • Open the gates - Christmas music in Transylvania (1996, Strube-Verlag )
  • Lord, show me your way - psalm settings from Transylvania , Strube-Verlag
  • Rudolf Lassel - A Transylvanian Passion Music , Strube-Verlag

Web links and sources