Bach motets provide big jolts of polyphony
The bulk of Bach’s choral writing lies in his 200-plus oratorios, the very works that the American Bach Soloists were founded to champion decades ago. But some of the master’s most concentrated doses of pure polyphony can be found in his motets, short sacred choral works often composed for use on specific occasions.
The Soloists’ weekend program, led by Music Director Jeffrey Thomas, ups the ante by focusing on Bach’s motets for double chorus, which allows extra opportunity for intricate counterpoint and textural byplay. Among them are the psalm setting “Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied” and the emotionally potent “Komm, Jesu, komm.”