BACH@Bath275 – Christmas music

As well as the shorter Christmas chorale preludes, larger works included this evening are the poetic Pastorale in F BWV 590, the youthful and energetic Prelude and Fugue in G major BWV 550 and the stylish Prelude and Fugue in C major BWV 547 - often nicknamed ‘hickory dickory doc’ because the opening of the prelude sounds uncannily like the popular folk song!.

Three beautiful chorale preludes from the Eighteen (or ‘Leipzig’) set on ‘Allein Gott in der Höh sei Ehr’ (‘Glory to God in the highest) are also featured; these are considered to be amongst the most beautiful works that Bach wrote.