{"id":120714,"date":"2026-01-06T10:54:40","date_gmt":"2026-01-06T15:54:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=120714"},"modified":"2026-01-06T13:00:02","modified_gmt":"2026-01-06T18:00:02","slug":"preview-rachel-podger-tafelmusik-perform-brandenburg-concertos-world-premiere","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2026\/01\/06\/preview-rachel-podger-tafelmusik-perform-brandenburg-concertos-world-premiere\/","title":{"rendered":"PREVIEW | Rachel Podger & Tafelmusik Perform The Brandenburg Concertos \u2014 And A World Premiere"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Tafelmusik
Tafelmusik and Rachel Podger on stage at Trinity St. Paul\u2019s centre in Toronto (Photo: Dahlia Katz)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Bach\u2019s Brandenburg Concertos have been among the most beloved works in Tafelmusik\u2019s repertoire for many years. From January 29 to February 1, Tafelmusik and Principal Guest Director Rachel Podger will perform the first four of the Brandenburgs, along with the world premiere of a newly orchestrated version of Prelude & Fugue in E-flat \u201cSt. Anne\u201d, after BWV 522.<\/p>\n

Tafelmusik\u2019s 1995 recording of the Brandenburgs won a JUNO Award, along with international accolades.<\/p>\n

\u201cBoth Tafelmusik and Rachel Podger have earned world-wide accolades for their interpretations of Bach, and this joining of musical minds for the Brandenburg Concertos is sure to dazzle and enchant,\u201d says Artistic Co-Director Cristina Zacharias<\/strong> in a statement.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlways eager to find new ways to experience Bach\u2019s music, we are also thrilled to present Bach\u2019s Prelude and Fugue in E-flat in a new orchestral arrangement by Artistic Co-Director Dominic Teresi, which debuted to critical acclaim on our recent West Coast tour.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Rachel
Rachel Podger and Tafelmusik musicians on tour (Photo: Gary Payne)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Bach\u2019s Brandenburg Concertos<\/h2>\n

\u201cBach\u2019s Brandenburg Concertos are some of the most innovative pieces to have been written during the Baroque era,\u201d says director and violin soloist Rachel Podger.<\/strong> \u201cEach concerto features a unique combination of solo instruments which in turn dazzle, sparkle, soar, sigh and mesmerise while their roles continuously shift between virtuosic solo displays, dialogues and being part of the ensemble. Bach\u2019s writing is extremely virtuosic, strikingly beautiful and irresistibly joyful, and these pieces still sound fresh and modern, even today.\u201d<\/p>\n

Each of the Concertos has its own distinct character, and display Bach\u2019s gift for orchestration, using a precedent setting variety of instruments. The First Concerto, the largest, incorporates three oboes, bassoon, two horns, a solo violin, and strings. The Third Concerto, inspired by Vivaldi\u2019s L\u2019Estro arm\u00f3nico, creates an ensemble with three solo violins three violas, and three cellos.<\/p>\n

\"Bach\u2019s
Bach\u2019s handwritten original title page for what we now call the Brandenburg Concertos, including the dedication to the Margraviate of Brandenburg (Photo courtesy of Tafelmusik)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Fate of the Brandenburgs<\/h3>\n

Bach\u2019s original title for what have become iconic works was simply \u201cSix Concertos with Several Instruments\u201d. The composer presented the works to Christian Ludwig, Margrave of Brandenburg-Schwedt, younger brother of King Frederick I of Prussia, in 1721, although it\u2019s believed that he wrote them earlier (probably between 1711 and 1720). When he compiled them, he wrote most of them by hand instead of using a copyist, as was his usual practice.<\/p>\n

Of note is the fact that Bach\u2019s tenure as director of music at the court of C\u00f6then was coming to an end, and he was sending out feelers for future work. The Margrave never even acknowledged their receipt, but Bach, in any case, found his calling at the Thomasschule in Leipzig shortly afterwards.<\/p>\n

It seems incomprehensible now, but the Concertos were not particularly valued during Bach\u2019s lifetime. It\u2019s uncertain whether, in fact, the Margrave ever heard the Concertos, and they did not appear in the inventory of his library. They next reappear in the possession of one of Bach\u2019s pupils, who bought them for a small sum, and subsequently bequeathed them to Princess Anna Amalia, herself a German composer, on his death. She in turn left the collection of manuscripts to a boy\u2019s school near Brandenburg, which then transferred them to the Royal Library of Berlin. The original manuscripts were nearly lost during WWII when they were being transported out of the city for safekeeping, and the train itself was bombed. The librarian entrusted with their journey to Prussia jumped from the still moving train and fled into the woods with the music hidden underneath his coat. They were returned to the Berlin State Library in 2023.<\/p>\n

The 5th Concerto, with its prominent part for harpsichord, was the only one that received any attention, and even that came after Bach\u2019s death. German music theorist, editor, teacher and librarian Siegfried Diehn discovered the manuscripts in Anna Amalia\u2019s library in 1849, and finally had them published for the world to enjoy about a century after Bach\u2019s death.<\/p>\n

\"Tafelmusik
Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra (Photo: Dahlia Katz)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Program<\/h2>\n

The Tafelmusik performance includes the first four Concertos and the world premiere.<\/p>\n