Johann Sebastian Bach: Cantates pour Luther

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Scandalized by the abuses of the Catholic clergy, on October 31 1517, the Augustinian monk Martin Luther posted his Ninety-Five Theses on the door of All Saints’ Church in Wittenberg. The document condemned the selling of indulgences, advocated radical reforms, and set out his doctrine of justification by faith alone.

Every October 31 since the early 16th century, Lutheran communities have celebrated the Feast of the Reformation. In his role as cantor at the Saint Thomas church in Leipzig, Bach wrote two cantatas to be sung for the occasion: the first version of BWV 80, likely composed in 1723, and two years later BWV 79. Cantata BWV 76 was written for the second Sunday after Trinity, and the second part was offered to the church of Saint Paul for its Reformation celebrations in 1724, 1729, 1740, and 1745.


Montréal Baroque
Susie Napper: artistic director
Montreal Baroque brings together some of Montreal’s finest early music performers. The ensemble was created especially for the Montreal Baroque Festival, which is held in June since 2003 in Old Montreal. An initiative of cellist and gambist Susie Napper, the Festival offers a unique opportunity to hear music of the 17th and 18th centuries, performed by Canadian and international celebrities, in appropriate and unusual settings. In addition, educational activities seek to encourage current and future audiences to discover the many beauties of early music.

Eric Milnes
Eric Milnes has been critically acclaimed throughout North and South America, Europe and Asia as one of the most dynamic, creative and compelling choral directors and keyboard artists of his generation. A native New Yorker, his imaginative and energized performances have been applauded at the Utrecht, Bremen, Potsdam, Boston, Mostly Mozart, Montréal, Vancouver, Ottawa, Toronto, Berkeley, Santa Fe, and Orford Festivals, and in performances in every major North American and European cultural center. As conductor he has directed New York Baroque, The Seattle Baroque Orchestra, The National Symphony Orchestra of Santiago (Chile), The New York Collegium, Trinity Consort, The Portland Baroque Orchestra, Les Boréades, and La Bande Montréal Baroque. His complete discography contains over 40 CDs as conductor, harpsichordist and organist. As founding co-director of L’Harmonie des saisons (Quebec) he has conducted over 50 performances with that group.


Hélene Brunet
Canadian soprano Hélene Brunet is hailed by the critics as "a singer of tremendous quality" with "a voice of perfect beauty" and "sincere expression". Recognized for her interpretations of the works of Bach, Handel and Mozart, her repertoire extends from Baroque to the music of the 20th and 21st centuries.
In the concert repertoire, Hélene is invited to perform with reputed orchestras and ensembles across North America, notably with American Bach Soloists in San Francisco, with American Classical Orchestra at the Lincoln Center in New York City, with the Seattle Baroque Orchestra, Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, McGill Chamber Orchestra, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, Arion Baroque Orchestra, I Musici de Montréal, Orchestre Métropolitain de Montréal, and ensembles Caprice and Les Boréades.
Prestigious distinctions include the Johannes Somary Award at the Lyndon Woodside Oratorio-Solo Competition at Carnegie Hall in New York, and a Juno Award for the album Las Ciudades de Oro where she is featured with ensemble l'Harmonie des Saisons (ATMA Classique).
Hélene is a recipient of a professional development grant from the Canada Council for the Arts.

Jesse Blumberg
Baritone Jesse Blumberg enjoys a busy schedule of opera, concerts, and recitals, performing repertoire from the Renaissance to the 21st century. He has performed roles at Minnesota Opera, Pittsburgh Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, Atlanta Opera, Boston Early Music Festival, Opera Atelier, and at London’s Royal Festival Hall. Jesse has made concert appearances with American Bach Soloists, Boston Baroque, Apollo’s Fire, Arion Baroque, Early Music Vancouver, and on Lincoln Center’s American Songbook series, and has performed recitals with the New York Festival of Song, Marilyn Horne Foundation, and Mirror Visions Ensemble. His other recordings include Rosenmüller in Exile with ACRONYM, Winterreise with pianist Martin Katz, St. John Passion with Apollo's Fire, and Steffani and Charpentier operas with Boston Early Music Festival. Jesse is also the founder of Five Boroughs Music Festival in New York.

Philippe Gagné, tenor
Recognized for his depth of expression, refined musical sensitivity, rare vocal agility, and singular beauty of tone, Philippe is currently enjoying an international career specializing in baroque repertoire. He has worked with many established ensembles, including Les Talens Lyriques, Tafelmusik, les Violons du Roy, Arion Baroque Orchestra, the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, the Orchestre symphonique de Québec, Les Boréades, the Studio de musique ancienne de Montréal, Ex Tempore, La Bande Montréal Baroque, Le Palais Royal and Mannheimer Hofkapelle. Conductors with whom he has collaborated include Bernard Labadie, Eric Milnes, Ivars Taurins, Alexander Weimann, Fabien Gabel, the late Christopher Jackson, Florian Heyerick, Hervé Niquet and Christophe Rousset. In 2014, Philippe Gagné was first prize winner among tenors of the CBC Bruce Haynes International Vocal Competition for the Singing of Bach. He also received a 2016 JUNO Award for his participation in Las Ciudades de Oro with L’Harmonie des Saisons under ATMA Classique Label.

Michael Taylor
Acclaimed in the press for his “great virtuosity” and “vocal radiance”, Canadian countertenor Michael Taylor picked up his first instrument - the violin - at age three, despite an enthusiasm for Bach’s solo partitas, he soon discovered his instrument of choice when he began his vocal training as a treble with St. Michael’s Choir School at age nine. After a brief intermission in which he completed a degree in Physics and Neuroscience at McGill University, Michael took up further vocal studies in Germany, and went on to win numerous international singing competitions, including grants from the Jacqueline Desmarais Foundation and the Canada Council for the Arts. Highlights on stage include L’Orontea at the Hamburg State Opera, Rinaldo in Mainz, Luci mie traditrici in Kiev, A Midsummernight’s Dream in Norfolk, Phaedra and Sosarme in Halle, L’Elpidia with Opera Settecento, Handel’s Messiah with the Grammy-Nominated Trinity Choir in New York and Bach’s St. Matthew Passion in Berlin, Osaka and Montreal. Performances with the Bande Montreal Baroque include several Bach cantatas and the world-premiere of Althea, the opera Bach never wrote, created by Bruce Haynes and Susie Napper.