PEORIA -- Part Two of Bach's Saint Matthew Passion plays at 7:45 p.m. Friday, June 11 at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church in downtown Peoria, 135 NE Randolph. If it's half as wonderful as Part One, on Thursday, June 10, it will be spectacular, an amazing treat.
With two adult choirs, a children's choir, a small orchestra and several operatic-quality soloists, this production is as good as anything you might see in Europe. The historic church is lovely, a perfect setting with good acoustics for the music.
It's the highlight of this year's Bach Festival at the church.
Bach's work is actually an early opera with characters singing the story of the betrayal of Jesus and his arrest, in Part One. It's sung in German, with an English version in the program beside the German lyrics, so the audience can follow the story.
It's riveting.
The Thursday event was performed flawlessly. It received a long standing ovation, well deserved.
And here are questions for skeptics to ponder: Is religion's chief value its inspiration for the arts? Does Bach make you believe in God?
Think about that when you hear this music. (Here's a good video from YouTube with links to many others.)
-- Elaine Hopkins
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