EW’S GUIDE TO THE OREGON BACH FESTIVAL 2008
Shanghai to Vienna World chamber music anchors mid-Fest days and nights
Traditionally Elegant Sarah Chang mixes it up with Vivaldi
Breathing Under Music New OBF exec John Evans speaks
OBF’08 Oregon Bach Festival sked & highlights!
OBF’08
Oregon Bach Festival sked & highlights!
* denotes a Best of Bach top recommendation from the EW faithful.
Helmuth Rilling |
Ya-Fei Chuang, June 29 |
Garrison Keillor, June 30 |
5 Browns, July 2 |
monday 6/23
7 pm InChoir (Silva)
Sing along with the OBF choir in a rehearsal of Bach’s great B Minor Mass.
friday 6/27
*7:30 pm **Choral-Orchestral Concert: B Minor Mass Portland (Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall)
Keep in mind that we’re only recommending this if you live in Portland. Otherwise, see below. (Some of us locals will be attending the Olympic Trials that night, and some of us might skip to Secret House for the Indigo Girls. But if you’re in Portland, go.)
saturday 6/28
11:30 am OBF Hayward: PICCFEST Choir (Hayward Field)
6:30 pm Inside Line: Robert Levin (The Studio)
*7:30 pm **Choral-Orchestral Concert: B Minor Mass (Silva)
Bring it home to where the festival is supposed to start — in Eugene, with the tried and true B Minor Mass (wait: Didn’t we hear this twice a mere two years ago?), with soloists we know and mostly love and in the familiar ol’ Hult, complete with a nod to founding festie folks Helmuth Rilling and Royce Saltzman. Cheers!
sunday 6/29
*4 pm OBF at the Shedd: Chuang-Levin Piano Duo (Jaqua Concert Hall)
Robert Levin: Insufferable lecturer, but along with his excellent musician wife, Ya-Fei Chuang, pretty good on the piano. To put it mildly.
7:30 pm PICCFEST Gala Concert (Silva)
monday 6/30
noon Let’s Talk: Helmuth @ 75 (The Studio)
*7:30 pm Garrison Keillor (Silva)
Yes, we know, we’ve heard enough “Prairie Home Companion” for the rest of this or five more lives, but have we seen Mr. Big and White in person? Not yet. Also, he’s singing with Maria Jette, which gives the whole thing a bit more flair.
tuesday 7/1
noon Hinkle Distinguished Lecture: Tom Hall (Soreng)
*4:30 pm **Discovery Series: Concertos for Violin and Oboe (Soreng)
We love Allen Vogel’s oboe. And we’re not going to apologize for it.
6:30 pm Inside Line: Rebecca Oswald (The Studio)
7:30 pm Bowerman: Man of Oregon (Silva)
wednesday 7/2
Noon Let’s Talk: The 5 Browns (The Studio)
4:30 pm **Discovery Series: St. John Passion 1 (Soreng)
7:30 pm The 5 Browns (Silva)
thursday 7/3
noon On the House: Puttin’ on the RITS (Hult Lobby)
*4 pm OBF Hayward: Bach Remix (Hayward Field)
Will DJ Smuve pull off a three-peat? Or do we see DJ Celsius coming up on the outside curve? Classical battle of the titans of the Eugene scene. Plus Bach. And free!
4:30 pm **Discovery Series: St. John Passion 2 (Soreng)
*7:30 pm Stangeland Family Youth Choral Academy (First Baptist Church)
Always a rewarding, glorious concert full of the tears and smiles and beautiful sounds we’ve come to expect from Anton Armstrong’s brilliant, hardworking youngsters.
friday 7/4
4 pm OBF Hayward: Trio Voronezh (Hayward Field)
saturday 7/5
11 am Green Eggs and Ham (Soreng)
noon On the House: SFYCA Soloists (Hult Lobby)
6:30 pm Inside Line: Stephen Rodgers (The Studio)
*7:30 pm Shanghai Quartet and orchestra members: Mendelssohn Octet (Soreng)
The gorgeous music. The Shanghai Quartet. OBF string principals. What’s not to love, here?
sunday 7/6
1 pm OBF Hayward: The Shanghai Quartet (Hayward Field)
3 pm Inside Line: Thomas Somerville (The Studio)
*4 pm **Choral-Orchestral: Bach’s Magnificat & Haydn’s Holy Mass (Silva)
Special pricing for the performance of this most magnificent combo.
monday 7/7
noon Let’s Talk: Shanghai Quartet (The Studio)
4:30 pm **Discovery Series: St. John Passion 3 (Soreng)
6:30 pm Inside Line: Stephen Rodgers (The Studio)
7:30 pm Shanghai Quartet: China Song (Soreng)
tuesday 7/8
noon Organ Interlude: EIRay Stewart-Cook (Central Lutheran Church)
4:30 pm Discovery Series: Orchestral Suite No. 2 in B Minor (Soreng)
6:30 pm Inside Line: Stephen Rodgers (The Studio)
*7:30 pm Shanghai Quartet: Le Salon Français (Soreng)
Yes. Yes. Yes.
wednesday 7/9
*noon Let’s Talk: Nicholas McGegan (The Studio)
Hear the period instrument expert speak as he brings welcome diversity to the usual modern instrument obsession of the OBF.
2 pm Hinkle Seminar: St. John Passion (The Studio)
4:30 pm **Discovery Series: St. John Passion 4 (Soreng)
6:30 pm Inside Line: Stephen Rodgers (The Studio)
*7:30 pm Shanghai Quartet: Schubertiade (Soreng)
thursday 7/10
noon Organ Interlude: Duoing Keyboards (First United Methodist)
*7:30 pm The Four Seasons (Silva)
Sarah Chang is Hott.
friday 7/11
noon On the House: Mood Area 52 (Hult Lobby)
7:30 pm Organ Recital (Central Lutheran Church)
saturday 7/12
11 am Jungle Book (Soreng)
noon On the House: Do the Tango (The Studio)
*7:30 pm OBF at the Shedd: Trio for Nuevo Tango (Jaqua Concert Hall)
¡Tango! Grammy-award winning maestro Pablo Ziegler leads the trio to new joys.
sunday 7/13
*3 pm **Choral-Orchestral: Bach’s St. Matthew Passion (Silva)
Don’t miss the closing concert, when the 17 days wrap up with one last great effort
from the orchestra, the soloists, the chorus and of course Our Hero, Helmuth Rilling.
6:30 pm Closing Night Gala at King Estate (King Estate Winery)
**Conducted by Helmuth Rilling
Programs subject to change.
OBF Kids!
Listen up, kids and parents! The Oregon Bach Festival has three events planned just for young audiences.
The first of OBF’s kids’ events is the gala concert of the Pacific International Children’s Choir Festival at 7:30 pm Sunday, June 29, in the Silva hall at the Hult. More than 350 children will perform in the concert featuring nine children’s choirs from across the U.S. Tix are $12 for adults and $9 for kids.
“Green Eggs and Ham,” a musical performance of two classic Dr. Seuss stories Green Eggs and Ham and Gertrude McFuzz, takes place at 11 am Friday, July 11, in the Soreng theater at the Hult. The mini-opera features popular singer Maria Jette as a Grinch-like character.
Dance Theater Oregon performs The Jungle Book through dance and poetry at 11 am Sunday, July 12, in Soreng. Adult and youth dancers will tell the story of Mowgli’s adventures in the jungle to the sounds of contemporary and traditional Indian music. — Inka Bajandas
Bach to the Track
Taking advantage of coinciding with the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials, the Oregon Bach Festival will hold four free events at Hayward field. The first of these events is the kick-off concert of the annu al Pacific International Children’s Choir Festival at 11:30 am on Saturday, June 28. The event will feature more than 350 young singers, part of nine children’s choirs from across the U.S, performing together. Bach Remix, the third annual DJ competition to put the best spin on mixing Bach with hip hop, rejoins the field at 4 pm Thursday, July 3, on the Eugene ’08 festival stage. Playing traditional Russian instruments, Trio Voronezh performs classical and Russian folk music at 4 pm Friday, July 4. The Shanghai Quartet (see p. 2) gives a free concert on the last day of the trials at 1 pm Sunday, July 6. — Inka Bajandas