ANNUAL LECTURE

2026 Toronto Bach Festival - A Lecture Presented by Michael Marrisen

“The Most Ambitious Project of Bach's Life, his Cycle of Chorale Cantatas”

PRESENTED BY MICHAEL MARRISEN

Sunday, May 24 | 1 PM

Eastminster United Church (310 Danforth Ave)

Join us at Eastminster United Church for a special lecture exploring J.S. Bach’s life and music presented by internationally-acclaimed Bach scholar, Michael Marissen. In his lecture, Marissen will delve into questions of what exactly a 'chorale cantata' is, why Bach wrote so many of them (almost all in one year!), and why they collectively may be considered Bach's greatest achievement.

Michael Marissen is Daniel Underhill Professor Emeritus of Music at Swarthmore College, where he taught from 1989 to 2014. He has also been a visiting professor on the graduate faculties at Princeton University and the University of Pennsylvania. Among his publications are An Introduction to Bach Studies (co-author Daniel Melamed; Oxford, 1998), Bach’s Oratorios (Oxford, 2008), Bach & God (Oxford, 2016), and essays in Harvard Theological Review, The Huffington Post, and The New York Times.

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VENUE INFORMATION

EASTMINSTER UNITED CHURCH | 310 Danforth Ave, Toronto, ON
Located on the north side of Danforth Ave, one block west of Chester Station (TTC).
The main entrance is on Danforth Avenue. The accessible entrance is off Jackman Avenue, on the east side of the church.

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