70 musicians to perform the Passion according to Saint-Matthew in Caen
Through Maxence Gorrègues
Published on
The work is rarely interpreted, because it is greedy in musical talents, and long. A little more than 2:45. On Saturday, December 4, 2021, the walls of the Abbaye-aux-Dames in Caen (Calvados) will resonate with the sound of the Passion according to St. Matthew, composed by Johann Sebastian Bach in the first half of the 18th century, he who has always been guided by faith when it comes to composing. “It’s a real musical Mont Saint-Michel,” explains Danielle Lapierre, conductor. Both for the colossal dimension of the work, as for its spiritual side. “
The Passion according to Saint Matthew recounts the last hours of Jesus’ life, the last meal, the arrest, the death sentence and the crucifixion. It is distinguished by the fact that it must be interpreted with two choirs and not just one, as is the case with the Passion according to Saint John. And this is what will probably seize the spectators from the start.
The urgency to tell a story
From the outset, the urgency of telling a story, of spreading the news, transpires from the playing of the two choirs which respond to each other during the first minutes. To facilitate comprehension, a large screen showing the subtitles will be installed, in order to offer a translation of the texts, from German into French.
The Passion according to Saint-Matthew remains a powerful work. About 70 people composing for the occasion the choirs and the orchestra, not to mention the soloists, with in particular the tenor Serge Goubioud who interprets the evangelist. He is involved in forty of the 78 issues of the work. “He has a little remote control, he’s the one who turns on the characters one after the other,” laughs Danielle Lapierre. He too translates in his own way the intensity of the work.
Practice. The Passion according to Saint-Matthew, Saturday 4 December at the Abbaye-aux-Dames in Caen (7:30 p.m.), Sunday 5 at Bayeux Cathedral (5:30 p.m.). Ticket office on site. 15 € full price, 10 € half price
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