Bach, the Universe & Everything 21-22 season at Kings Place

In Praise of Peptides

Sunday 31 October 2021, 11.30am, Kings Place

The Music: BWV 192 Nun danket alle Gott (Now thank ye all our God) We are grateful to return to Kings Place for another season of Bach, the Universe and Everything and so we begin with a cantata about giving thanks. Today's performance also marks 504 years to the day that Martin Luther began the reformation by nailing his theses to the church door, so we can thank him that we're singing in German this morning and not Latin.

The Science: Continuing on the theme of gratitude, Dr Louise Walport from the Francis Crick Institute and Imperial College London enlightens us on the many things in our epigenetics that we can thank peptides for.

Can you Hear the Shape of a Drum?

Sunday 21 November 2021, 11.30am, Kings Place

The Music: BWV 26 Ach wie flüchtig, ach wie nichtig (Ah, how fleeting, ah how insignificant) Today's cantata is a cheery one about our impending death. The sense of futility is well captured in the opening chorale which feels frantic and primeval. All souls welcome.

The Science: Professor Jon Chapman from the University of Oxford invites us to ponder the fleeting moment when sound waves reach our ears before it disappears. Using some careful calculations, Jon suggests that we might even be able to hear the shape of a drum.

Infant Musicality

Sunday 12 December 2021, 11.30am, Kings Place

The Music: BWV 62 Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland (Now come, Savior of the Heathens) "Wondrous birth! O wondrous Child" This Advent Cantata is a joyful celebration of the birth of Jesus, the miracle child. The Bach buffs among us may recognise elements of this festive cantata from the aria "Großer Herr und starker König" from Bach's Christmas Oratorio.

The Science: Research on the sounds that caregivers exchange with infants has profound implications for the way we understand classical music; how we sing and play these scores and how music moves us. In this talk, Professor Daniel Leech-Wilkinson of King’s College London invites us to consider how we can use musical performance to empathise with others.

Schooled by Randomness

Sunday 30 January 2022, 11.30am, Kings Place

The Music: BWV 81 Jesus schläft, was soll ich hoffen?

(Jesus sleeps, what shall I hope for?)

Today's cantata draws upon those moments in life when confusing and random obstacles in our path make us fear for the future and we turn to God to show us the way.

The music was written to accompany the Gospel of Matthew about Jesus calming the storm. Listen out for the third movement especially; its frantic singing and lively tempo pulls you into the eye of the storm and spits you back out again, all the wiser for it.

The Science: There’s been a mistake. The venue has provided the wrong piano.

The black notes are sticking, the white notes are out of tune, the pedals don’t work and the instrument itself is just too small. What do you do? Tim Harford talks about how random obstacles and frustrations can inspire us to be more creative.

Take What is Yours and Go Away

Sunday 13 February 2022, 11.30am, Kings Place

The Music: BWV 144 Nimm, was dein ist, und gehe hin (Take what is yours and go away) Cantata BWV 144 tells of the labourers from St Matthew's Gospel who feel that they have been underpaid. It begins with a merciless fugue: don’t complain and go away. Lest there was any confusion, Bach goes on to feature the figure 'gehe hin' (go away) a whopping sixty times in this piece. Hint taken.

The Science: CRISPR is the new technique in biomedical science that allows us to effectively cut out and fix glitches in our genes. The science is still pretty new, and some might say that advancements in gene-editing is controversial. In this talk we have the opportunity to learn more about the science behind the technique, and to make up our own mind.

Choose Your Own Adventure

Sunday 20 March 2022, 11.30am, Kings Place

The Music: BWV 54 Widerstehe doch der Sünde (Just resist sin) "He who sins is of the devil" warns Bach in this cantata that challenges us to take responsibility for our actions.

The Science: In this talk, Professor Samuel Cohen from the University of Oxford encourages us to reflect on our personal ambitions and ask "How can I be sure that tomorrow's decisions will satisfy today's objectives?"

Hi! We are the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment.

We like to ask questions about how traditions have emerged and share stories about the things we have learned along the way.

Every time we perform, you will see a stage full of intriguing instruments and hear our passion for making the old feel new.

What is Bach, the Universe & Everything?

We like to think of the series as a community, similar to the one Bach enjoyed in Leipzig where he produced innovative music for the weekly services at the church where he worked from 1723 to 1750.

At that time, the congregation was as open to science and new ideas as it was united by faith. It is in that spirit that we come together for a thought-provoking cantata and a talk from a leading scientist.

For tickets, please visit www.oae.co.uk