Kaleidoscope Vocal Ensemble & Cantata Collective: St John Passion (1725)—PALO ALTO

Join us for an unforgettable musical experience as Nicholas McGegan leads the Kaleidoscope Vocal Ensemble and Cantata Collective in a captivating rendition of Bach’s St John Passion (1725). 🌟 This rare version—with altered opening and closing movements, as well as substituted arias—breathtakingly unveils the work’s dramatic essence, making it feel urgent, expressive, and profoundly human.

This concert proudly forms part of the 19th biennial Berkeley Festival and Exhibition, affectionately known as BFX! 🎉 Since its inception in 1990 by the San Francisco Early Music Society (SFEMS), this festival has emerged as one of the globe's largest and most esteemed early music events, hailed by The New York Times as “a remarkable institution on the American musical scene.”

This summer, revel in 21 main stage concerts—including two exceptional presentations in Palo Alto and San Francisco—alongside special events, a thrilling three-day exhibition, community workshops, and a multitude of Fringe presentations. There is truly something for everyone, with performances ranging from Boethius and Bach to gamelan and Gershwin! 🎼

Continuing the success of BFX 2024, our mainstage concerts will maintain a pay-what-you-can model, inviting record-breaking audiences to SFEMS. As always, we encourage patrons to “pay it forward” by considering a subscription for premium seating, reinforcing our commitment to financial accessibility in early music. Pay-What-You-Can tickets are available now!

📍 Location: 625 Hamilton Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94301-2016, United States
🔗 Purchase Tickets Here!