“That’s like asking me to pick my favorite child,” says Nafziger, who relishes the years-long process that goes into the programming, repertoire and selection and invitation of featured artists. “Each year, the music changes and that means the festival stays new and exciting in different ways for different audiences. Every year, some will say, ‘This is the best one ever,’ and that freshness is exciting.”

The week-long event will be June 14-21 on the ��ݮ���� campus, where both Nafziger and executive director are senior members of the music faculty.

The festival, which draws an estimated 4,000 people, is named in honor of Johann Sebastian Bach, a German composer born in 1685, but showcases an ever-changing repertoire of classical music from different eras.

“The festival tagline is ‘Bach is just the beginning,’” Adams said, “and the diversity within our concerts truly reflects that.”

Three concerts and more

The June 14 opening concert showcases five instrumental concertos, all composed by Bach.

Concert 2 features works by Haydn, including Symphony No. 31 in D Major (Hornsignal), Concerto No. 4 in D Major for Harpsichord with ‘95, Te Deum with the Festival Choir, and Symphony No. 102 in B-flat major.

Concert 3 features music by African-American composers Aldophus Hailstork, William Grant Still and Edmund Thornton Jenkins, including a rare performance of Charlestonia, one of the first compositions in which American black music themes are mixed with the European concert tradition. A suite from George Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, set in the black community of Charleston, concludes the theme. Soprano and baritone are the soloists, joined by the choir.

A Leipzig service, honoring Bach’s service as a church musician, brings the festival to a conclusion on Sunday, June 21. The service includes organ music, hymn singing, a cantata and other music for choir, soloists and orchestra, with a homily by . A is offered afterwards.

Additional featured artists include , trumpet; , flute; , oboe; and , violin; , viola; , organ; , countertenor; and , tenor.

Smaller ensembles and a more informal style are offered through the week at the noon chamber music concerts at First Presbyterian Church. No tickets are required; a $5 donation is suggested.

Musicians enjoy fellowship, hospitality

The Festival Orchestra includes professional musicians from around the country, many of whom return year after year. One bass trombonist annually drives from Florida and stays with the same local host, Nafziger said. “There’s not a huge call for bass trombonists, so he plays in two or three pieces, but stays for the whole week… The fellowship and hospitality here are an important part of why the festival is so successful.”

When musicians want to take a festival season off, they usually ask for “a leave of absence,” Nafziger said. “We don’t have that, but what they mean is, ‘Save my seat so I can come back the next time.’”

Another source of energy is limited rehearsal time, Nafziger says. Musicians arrive and rehearse during the first weekend of the festival, achieving a high standard of quality in a short period of time.

“It’s rewarding to me every year how much work you can do if you clear everything away in your life but what you love doing,” he said. “It’s an exhilarating and exhausting 10 days.”

While professional musicians perform with the Festival Orchestra, the Festival Choir, a volunteer ensemble, allows both professional and amateur vocalists to perform celebrated works. Musicians also come into Harrisonburg for the , a five-day concurrent workshop with masterclasses and coaching sessions in harpsichord, violin, viola da gamba, recorder, lute, and vocal performance.

Tickets

Three-concert ticket packages cost $65 for adults; $55 for seniors ages 65 and older, and $15 for youth ages 22 and younger.

Advance single tickets cost $27 for adults; $22 for seniors and $5 for youth; tickets cost $2 more at the door.

Tickets for groups of 12 or larger cost $22 for adults; $17 for seniors and $5 for youth.

Donations collected for Leipzig and noon chamber music series.

Tickets may be purchased at the door, or by calling 432-4582.

Schedule of Events

• Concert 1: 3 p.m. June 14 at the Lehman Auditorium on EMU campus.
• Concert 2: 7:30 p.m. June 19 at the Lehman Auditorium.
• Concert 3: 7:30 p.m. June 20 at the Lehman Auditorium.
• Noon Chamber Music Series: 12 p.m. June 15-20 at the First Presbyterian Church in Harrisonburg.
• Leipzig Service: 10 a.m. June 21 at the Lehman Auditorium.
• Father’s Day Brunch following the Leipzig service June 21 in the Northlawn Dining Hall. Make reservations by June 15.

“It adds a beauty and an enjoyment [to life]. … It touches the deepest part of our soul in a way not much else does,” she remarked.

As the executive director of the 22nd annual  (SVBF), Adams is looking forward to sharing her passion for classical music at the week-long event to be held June 8-15 at ��ݮ����.

Adams, who estimates the event draws a crowd of roughly 4,000 annually, says the festival is respected nationwide for its high-quality performances, and even attracts some international audience members. According to Adams, the even called the SVBF the “jewel in Harrisonburg’s crown.”

“It’s such an intense week,” she added. “The musicians are playing from the moment they get to town until they leave 10 days later.”

This year’s featured musical artists include , , , , , , , , and .

Adams says that Nafziger — the artistic director/conductor — keeps the shows fresh from year to year.

“He makes a point of making it new,” she praised.

Though the SVBF will offer classical music from six different eras, the festival is named in honor of Johann Sebastian Bach, a German composer born in 1685.

“Most of the composers who came afterwards, to this day, use his music as a model,” explained Adams, adding that Bach’s works are at the event’s “heart.”

Adams encourages all locals to attend the festival, and says there’s no need to be a musical expert. With the help of program guide notes and explanations from the stage, she insists that even a novice can enjoy the experience.

“The music lover is really going to understand and appreciate everything going on with this … but we really do try to get people who don’t know much about classical music in there, too.”

Three-concert ticket packages cost $60 for adults; $50 for seniors ages 65 and older, and $15 for youth ages 22 and younger.

Advance single tickets cost $25 for adults; $20 for seniors and $5 for youth; tickets cost $2 more at the door.

Tickets for groups of 12 or larger cost $20 for adults; $15 for seniors and $5 for youth.

Donations collected for leipzig and noon chamber music series.

Tickets may be purchased at the door, online at emu.edu/box-office or by calling 432-4582.

Schedule of Events

• Concert 1: 3 p.m. June 8 at the Lehman Auditorium on EMU campus.
• Concert 2: 7:30 p.m. June 13 at the Lehman Auditorium on EMU campus.
• Concert 3: 7:30 p.m. June 14 at the Lehman Auditorium on EMU campus.
• Leipzig Service: 10 a.m. June 15 at the Lehman Auditorium on EMU campus.
• Noon Chamber Music Series: 12 p.m. June 9-14 at the First Presbyterian Church in Harrisonburg.
• Father’s Day Brunch following the leipzig service June 15 in the Northlawn Dining Hall. Make reservations online by June 1.

For a complete list, visit schedule.

Courtesy of the Daily News Record, May 14, 2014

The Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival, with Kenneth J. Nafziger as artistic director and conductor, continued its tradition of artistic excellence by offering unparalleled classical music concerts with the highest caliber of musicians. This year’s theme, “Bach and Some Admirers,” featured works that reflect other composers’ admiration for Bach.

Dr. Kenneth Nafziger directs the Bach Festival orchestra, chorus and soloists Thomas Jones and Sharla Nafziger in Johannes Brahms’ “Requiem” the evening of June 16.
Photo by Jim Bishop

The ability of music to both inspire and bring healing was exemplified in the appearance on campus of internationally-acclaimed Canadian pianist Janina Fialkowska. She first collaborated with the Bach Festival in 1999 and was diagosed with a cancerous tumor in her left arm in 2002.

Ms. Fialkowska returned to the Lehman Auditorium stage to play Chopin’s “Concerto No. 2 in F Minor for Piano and Orchestra” and “Concerto No. 1 in E Minor for Piano and Orchestra” during the second festival concert June 15. She received a rousing standing ovation for each concerto performance.

In addition to her concert performances, at the Thursday noon concert, June 14, at Asbury United Methodist Church in Harrisonburg.

The monumental Johannas Brahms’ “Requiem” was performed June 16 by the festival chorus and orchestra, with featured soloists Sharla Nafziger, soprano, and Thomas Jones, baritone. It was Ms. Nafziger’s fifth appearance as a guest artist and Jones’ third at the festival.

The opening concert Sunday afternoon, June 10, featured the Bach “Concerto for Two Violins” with soloists Joan Griffing and Susan Black, and music of South American composers Hietor Villa-Lobos and Astor Piazzolla and of Felix Mendelssohn.

Festival performers presented shorter works in well-attended daily noon concerts Monday through Saturday, June 11-15, at Asbury United Methodist Church in downtown Harrisonburg. On June 16, local young musicians were featured.

The festival concluded Sunday morning, June 17, with the Leipzig service, a re-creation of an 18th century worship service at St. Thomas Lutheran Church in Leipzig, Germany, where Bach was cantor and composed a cantata for each week’s service.

“For a brief period each year, Harrisonburg becomes Leipzig, Germany, and Lehman Auditorium is transformed into St. Thomas Lutheran Church,” Dr. Nafziger stated. Bach’s “Cantata No. 100” was the featured work, with Father James Massa, a priest of the Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, N.Y., as homilist.

Some musicians return every year to participate in the Bach Festival; a few, like Harrisonburg native Mark Hartman, have participated every year since the festival began in 1992.

Hartman, who teaches violin, viola and music theory at Cental College in Pella, Iowa, looks forward to playing violin in the festival, noting: “The performers and the music come together and develop a personality under the direction of Ken (Nafziger).

Mark Hartman, now teaching in Iowa, and colleague Philip Stoltzfus, Northfield, Minn., rehearse the Bach “Orchestral Suite.” They return to Harrisonburg every year to play in the Bach Festival orchestra.
Photo by Jim Bishop

“The Bach Festival has become fine-tuned, with a different theme every year, but the basic purpose remains – an opportunity for musicians to perform and audiences to experience a week of great music,” Hartman said.

Suzanne K. (Sue) Cockley of Harrisonburg has sung in the festival chorus several years and read scripture at this year’s Leipzig service. She deemed it a “luxury to immerse myself in a full week of classical music – exhaustive but inspiring.”

“For 14 years I have returned to the Bach Festival for the great music, great performances and great camaraderie. It is one of the most meaningful constants in my life,” said Sandra Gerster of Baltimore, principal oboist in the festival orchestra.

“I come back every year because the trust, respect and integrity that Ken Nafziger brings to the Festival is unsurpassed. He cultivates a safe environment where we are encouraged to take artistic risks, to try to perform something in a new way, where the musical process is valued and where the performances are truly expressions of emotion, not plastic displays of static perfectionism,” she said.

“I return because my colleagues have become my family, and I am constantly inspired, awestruck, heartened and buoyed by them,” Gerster added.

Such sentiments were echoed by Mary Kay Adams, Bach Festival coordinator and principal flutist in the festival orchestra.

Ms. Adams said she relished the chance “to work closely with so many wonderful people who played a vital role in making the festival successful – the musicians, board members, community volunteers, EMU staff, donors, families who house musicians and Ken Nafziger and Joan Griffing.

“This festival continues to exceed my expectations on both musical and personal levels each year,” Adams said. “I’ve played in the orchestra since the beginning, 15 years ago, and have a deep appreciation for the outstanding musical quality. And because of the friendships established with returning musicians through the years, we look forward to working together each summer and renewing those bonds.”

Next year’s Bach festival will be held June 8-15, 2008, on the theme, “Bach and String Things.” Information is available on-line at .

The , held each year at ��ݮ����, is a massive undertaking, requiring considerable planning, intense rehearsals of many singers and musicians and major financial support.

And, audience expectation levels keep going up – understandably so, given the quality of the programs.

So, why has invested his time and energy as artistic director and conductor of the weeklong event for 13 years?

"The people I work with sustain this effort," Dr. Nafziger, long-time professor of music at EMU, said. "There’s always enough music to select from, but it’s this incredible group that comes together every year that makes all the difference.

"The orchestra members come prepared, they know what to expect," Nafziger said. "Rehearsal begins for the opening concert, and we pick up where we left off from last year. Participants gain strength from the musical experience. Everyone benefits and is nourished," he added.

This year’s festival, held June 12-19 on the EMU campus, combined the glorious masterworks of prolific German composer Johann Sebastian Bach with the works of other "Bs" – Brahms, Bartok, Berstein, Britten, Boccherini, Bruch and Berlioz.

The opening concert featured Bach’s "Concerto for Flute, Violin and Harpsichord in A Minor" with Pedro Aponte, flute; Joan Griffing, violin; and Bradley Lehman, harpsichord. Other "Bs" on the program were Leonard Bernstein’s "Missa Brevis," Bela Bartok’s "Romanian Folk Dances" and Benjamin Britten’s "Simple Symphony."

Viola players Christy Heatwole (l.), Lancaster, Pa., and Karen Johnson, Cincinnati, Ohio, compare notes during a festival orchestra rehearsal.
Photo by Jim Bishop

The "sense of community and family-like atmosphere" that pervades the Bach Festival was underscored by several participants.

Susan Black, a violinist in the festival orchestra, has returned to play each year since 1997. She said she comes back to experience the "excellent musicianship" and the "cameraderie in playing Bach’s music together," adding that she found playing Beethoven’s ‘Ninth Symphony’ "a challenge."

A teacher at Mary Baldwin College in Staunton, Black is in her 14th year of playing second violin in the Charlottesville and University Symphony Orchestra and has participated in the Eastern Music Festival at Greensboro, N.C., for 25 years.

Sandra Gerster, principal oboist in the festival orchestra, has taken part in every Bach Festival at EMU but the first one. "The music, friends, food and cameraderie among my colleages all bring me back every year," she said. "There’s a positive aura here."

Ms. Gerster, a regular performer with the North Carolina, Richmond and Annapolis Symphony orchestras, noted that she found the ‘Four Serious Songs’ by Brahms challenging to play and was "moved to tears" by soloist Daniel Lichti’s interpretation of them.

For mezzo-soprano Heidi Kurtz of Philadelphia, Pa., performing as a soloist in the Bach Festival is like coming home. A 1989 music graduate of EMU, she sang roles in "Les Nuits d’Ete, Op. 7" by Hector Berlioz in the opening festival concert, Beethoven’s "Symphony No. 9 in D Minor" and Bach’s "Cantata No. 45" in the closing Leipzig service.

"It’s great to do this," Ms. Kurtz said of the Bach Festival. "Ken [Nafziger] is a major reason for my returning several times. He encouraged me to work toward a professional career in music when I studied under him."

Kurtz is soprano soloist at All Saint’s Episcopal Church and a member of the Philadelphia Singers.

Kurtz found it challenging to sing three different types of music from Bach to Berlioz. "Receiving energy from the audience helps my performance. It’s so important," she said.

Sandwiched between the main festival concerts were daily noon chamber music programs that filled the Asbury United Methodist Church sanctuary in downtown Harrisonburg. The programs ranged from a young artists concert to lighter works by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II to Bach harpsichord numbers performed by Bradley Lehman.

In 2004, Lehman discovered Bach’s method of tuning harpsichords and organs, encoded graphically on the title page of the "Well-Tempered Clavier." His article about this finding was published in the February and May 2005 issues of "Early Music," published by Oxford University Press.

The festival concluded with the annual Leipzig Service June 19 in Lehman Auditorium. The program recreates an 18th century worship service at St. Thomas Lutheran Church in Leipzig, Germany, where Bach was cantor and composed a cantata for each week’s service.

"Many people cite the Leipzig service as the highlight of the week, a significant worship experience that speaks loudly to participants," said one observer.

“The Bach Festival reflects the cooperation of around 200 people directly involved as musicians, host families, ushers for concerts, board members, Asbury church staff and others,” said Beth K. Aracema, assistant professor of music at EMU and festival coordinator. “It is a comprehensive team effort, with far-reaching rewards. Add the participation of the audiences, whose numbers exceeded expectations this year, and the results are a music festival recognized for its excellence that enriches this community in so many ways,” she added.

The Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival is sponsored in part by the Virginia Commission for the Arts and the Arts Council of the Valley.

Next year’s festival, to be held June 11-18 at EMU, will employ the theme, "Mostly Bach." Jeremy Wall, pianist and arranger, will return as guest artist.