Inaugural Season Of Music Worcester's International Project THE COMPLETE BACH Concludes in April

THE COMPLETE BACH, Music Worcester's 11-year project to present live performances of all known works by J.S. Bach wraps up its first season on Sunday April 27th at 4pm with an afternoon of all-organ music, Moveable Feast: Bach Organ Recital.

Beginning at Trinity Lutheran Church and ending at First Baptist Church, the afternoon will take concert goers to two musical houses of worship a short walk apart on Worcester's scenic Salisbury Street. Tickets are on sale now at musicworcester.org.

“One of the great glories of the music scene in Worcester is the many first-rate organs that can be found in its concert halls and churches-- to say nothing of the wonderful organists who play them,” said Chris Shepard, the artistic director of TCB. 

“In our first few years of THE COMPLETE BACH, we want to showcase those local organs and organists, beginning with Mark Mummert at Trinity Lutheran Church and Wesley Hall at First Baptist Church.  After hearing Mark, we'll all head up the street to hear Wesley play the second half of the concert!  What a wonderful way to spend a Sunday afternoon.”

The afternoon will begin at Trinity Lutheran where Cantor Mark Mummert will perform Fantasia and Fugue in G Minor, BWV 542; Schmucke dich, o liebe Seele (Deck thyself, my soul, with gladness), BWV 654; and Adagio and Fugue in C Major, BWV 564. 

After an intermission, the concert continues nearby at the First Baptist Church to hear Minister of Music Wesley Hall.  He'll play Fantasia and Fugue in C Minor, BWV 537; Allein Gott in der Höh sei Ehr (Glory to God in the Highest), BWV 711 and BWV 715; Wenn dich unglück tut greifen an, BWV 1104; and Praeludium and Fugue in C Major, BWV 566a.

“The TCB project showcases Music Worcester at its very best,” stated Adrien Finlay, Executive Director, “as our Worcester community welcomes artists and ensembles from around the world these next ten seasons. This inaugural year has already exceeded goals related to attendance and audience building, and we look forward to announcing the second full season of programming later this spring.”   

Mark Mummert is Cantor at Trinity Lutheran Church where he leads the music in all worship services, conducts the Trinity Choir, and is artistic director of the Music at Trinity fine arts series. He is also the Assistant Director & Accompanist for The Worcester Chorus of Music Worcester, and the director of The Worcester Chorus Women's Ensemble, and serves on the voice faculty at Hanover Theater Conservatory.  He was the 2015 Distinguished Visiting Cantor at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg, PA, and served as the Director of Worship at Houston's Christ the King Lutheran Church (2008-2015) and as Seminary Musician at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia (1990-2008).

Wesley Hall is a dynamic organist and early musician with a passion for translating the music of the past into the context of today's audience. Wesley serves as Minister of Music and the Arts at the First Baptist Church, and as Organist for the Saint Mark's School in Southborough, Massachusetts. He is an Academic Collaborator at Worcester Polytechnic Institute where he teaches organ and collaborates with vocal ensembles. As both a solo artist and collaborator, his performances have been heard across the United States, Canada, and Europe. On TikTok, he is known as “Westpiper” where he has over 200,000 followers. His videos have received millions of views, and he looks forward to bringing organ music to even more people who haven't yet experienced it. 

About THE COMPLETE BACH

Every season, beginning with 2024-2025, Music Worcester will feature a dozen concerts with music from each genre of Bach's massive compositional output. In addition to partnering with members of the Worcester Bach Collective, other music partners include Emmanuel Music, The Handel and Haydn Society, and The Sebastians, as well as individual musicians such as Jeremy Denk, pianist Simone Dinnerstein (and her Brooklyn-based chamber orchestra Baroklyn), violinist Vijay Gupta, and conductor/keyboardist Ian Watson. THE COMPLETE BACH will total 132 concerts and is believed to be the first project to present live performances of all of J.S. Bach's works since his own lifetime.

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