Coming up in Philly music: Wednesday night with Bach, Jonah, and the whale

A friend of mine once said he liked to schedule recreational events for Wednesday evening because it “broke the back” of the work week. The Bach Festival’s Wednesday night “Bach@7” concerts have become a favorite item with music fanciers who share that philosophy. The concerts combine a Bach cantata with related pieces; they start early, last one hour, and include one of the city’s classier postconcert receptions. The format even allows some budgetary flexibility. The concerts are always “pay as you wish”: $25 suggested but not required.

This year the overall theme will be works with some narrative content. The first concert will include one of the first oratorios, Jonas, the story of Jonah and the whale, by the Italian Baroque master Giacomo Carrisimi. The oratorio will be paired with Bach’s cantata, What My God Wants, May It Always Happen.

Bach@7 is organized and conducted by Matthew Glandorf, a specialist in Baroque music and Western church music who directs the Bach Festival and Choral Arts Philadelphia. The chorus and soloists are provided by Choral Arts, a 40-voice group with a core of professional vocalists supplemented by volunteers who have to get through an audition. The instrumentalists, the Bach Collegium, are a good sample of our region’s period-instrument musicians.

Bach@7 will present Bach’s What My God Wants, May It Always Happen and Giacomo Carrisimi’s Jonas as part of its Narratives in Music season, October 10, at 7pm at St. Clement’s Church (2013 Appletree Street, Philadelphia). Admission is pay what you wish ($25 suggested). For more information, visit online or call 267-240-2586.