Bachs Matthäus Passion – Introduction

Bach's St. Matthew Passion, introduced by Bach lover and 'professional' evangelist Jan van Elsacker

Who is the most important person in the St. Matthew Passion? Jesus Christ, you might say, after all the story revolves around his life and suffering?! Still: the most important person is the one who tells the story, and that is the evangelist. He pulls people in and ensures that they stay inside for two and a half hours. No one does this with more passion and knowledge than the Flemish tenor Jan van Elsacker, who has been the 'narrator' of the St. Matthew Passion by Kempenkoor in the St. Peter's Basilica in Oirschot for years. We asked him to speak about this passion from his vision and long experience as an evangelist. 'You're welcome,' said Jan, 'very nice to do, I also have something to say about it, not only substantively, but also anecdotally'! On March tenth he will be in Domusdela, with a bag full of stories and a suitcase full of music.

For many years the Matthäus Passion van Johan Sebastian Bach is the most appreciated work among Radio4 listeners. Not surprisingly, no composer has managed to convey as much empathetic emotion in one work as Bach in his St. Matthew Passion. The Christian faith may have been losing followers in our region for years, but the Passion story – especially that according to Matthew – has lost none of its significance.

In no other country are Bach's passions sung as often as in the Netherlands. Before corona, ZingMagazine's Passion Barometer stood at two hundred and fifty performances, the vast majority of which were Matthäussen. Now, after a few lost years, the counter is approaching that again. In the Eindhoven region alone, six different versions (five of the St. Matthew Passion and one of the John Passion) can be heard in March.

Tenor Jan van Elsacker studied singing and piano and broke through as a baroque singer in the mid-1990s. He sang with various leading baroque ensembles, gave recitals and established a name for himself as a connoisseur of early music. He also sings songs; ten years ago he released a much-discussed recording of Schubert's Winterreise. He works a lot with young singers and 'still enjoys so much beautiful music and so many beautiful voices'. Jan van Elsacker is a sought-after evangelist in the passions of Bach. In this region it is inextricably linked to the now traditional St. Matthew Passion in the St. Peter's Basilica in Oirschot.

Podium Klassiek Eindhoven organizes this afternoon together with Kempenkoor.