Streaming platform: YouTube – Netherlands Bach Society
Date: Friday, 12 December 2025
Time: 20:00 (local time, GMT+1) — 19:00 GMT
Venue: TivoliVredenburg, Utrecht, Netherlands
Performers: Netherlands Bach Society; Richard Egarr, conductor; Johanna Ihrig (soprano I); Mary Bevan (soprano II); Helen Charlston (alto); Guy Cutting (tenor); Matthew Brook (bass)
Programme: J. S. Bach – Mass in B minor, BWV 232
Note: This webcast can only be watched live.
Bach’s musical testament, live from Utrecht
The Netherlands Bach Society continues its Christmas tour with a live performance of Johann Sebastian Bach’s Mass in B minor, broadcast from TivoliVredenburg in Utrecht. Considered one of the composer’s culminating achievements, the Mass brings together some of Bach’s finest and most expressive writing — a work often described as his musical testament.
The ensemble performs under the direction of Richard Egarr, who reflects on the score with characteristic clarity. “Some musical compositions are simply greater than any performance can realise: Beethoven’s Missa solemnis and Bach’s Mass in B minor are two such examples,” he notes. These “transcendental masterpieces,” he says, were created as “messages of hope for posterity,” offering performers and audiences a humbling artistic journey.
Across its expansive structure — from the austere Kyrie to the radiant Dona nobis pacem — the Mass combines choral grandeur, intricate counterpoint, and a remarkable sequence of arias, duets, and instrumental solos. The Netherlands Bach Society brings together a distinguished cast of soloists for this tour: Johanna Ihrig, Mary Bevan, Helen Charlston, Guy Cutting, and Matthew Brook.
Founded in 1921, the Netherlands Bach Society has long been dedicated to sharing early music with broad audiences. Their internationally acclaimed initiative All of Bach aims to perform and record Bach’s complete works and make them freely accessible online.
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