Vocal Polyphony: Bach's Polyphonic Heritage

Vocal Polyphony: Bach’s Polyphonic Heritage is a Washington Bach Consort Chamber Series performance exploring the vocal traditions that influenced Johann Sebastian Bach. Devised by Bach scholar Dr. Daniel R. Melamed, the program traces Bach’s musical inheritance through motets and liturgical works written for four to eight voices during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

Eight Washington Bach Consort singers, accompanied by organ and violone, perform music by Palestrina, Gallus, Andrea Gabrieli, Bernhard, Schütz, Walter, Knüpfer, Johann Christoph Bach, and Johann Ludwig Bach. Together, these works illustrate the expressive skill and devotional intensity of the polyphonic tradition that shaped Bach’s own compositions.

When: November 6 and November 7, 2026

Showtimes: 7:00 p.m. on both evenings

Venue: Live! at 10th & G on November 6; St. Paul’s Episcopal Church on November 7

Series: Chamber Series

Program: Motets and liturgical works for four to eight voices from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries

Performers: Eight vocalists from the Washington Bach Consort, with organ and violone

Selections: Works by Palestrina, Gallus, Andrea Gabrieli, Bernhard, Schütz, Walter, Knüpfer, Johann Christoph Bach, and Johann Ludwig Bach

Program concept: The performance examines the ancestors, predecessors, and musical models whose vocal traditions contributed to Bach’s creative environment and later resonated in his own writing.

Tickets: Price not available

Run time: Not stated

Age guidance: Not stated

Accessibility: Not stated