Did you miss Bach's Birthday Bash on Saturday with Pipedreams host Michael Barone? This year's celebration included five free, hourlong concerts at venues in St. Paul. Listen to the first concert now!

Bach's birthday comes around every year on March 21. The occasion calls for a celebration of this most remarkable of musical talents, and Minnesota Public Radio's Michael Barone (host of Pipedreams) decided that Johann Sebastian Bach deserved something special. A number of years ago, he and colleagues from the Twin Cities chapter of the American Guild of Organists arranged a Bach's Birthday Bash, and the idea blossomed.

The event has become something of a local tradition, with enthusiasts from all parts of the state participating or just listening.

This year's activities featured five free, hourlong public concerts of Bach's music, presented at five venues and churches in St. Paul during the morning and afternoon of Saturday, March 21.

Co-sponsors include the Twin Cities Chapter of the American Guild of Organists and YourClassical MPR.

9 a.m. at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church (700 S. Snelling Ave., St. Paul): The first concert was aired live at 9 a.m. Central by YourClassical MPR. You can hear listen to it through the player above. Performers included organists Brenda Sevcik, Dean Billmeyer and Celina Kobetitsch; pianists Gideon Scheeler; and guitarist Lukas Murdych.

Other concerts will follow in St. Paul:

10:30 – 11:30 a.m. at Nativity of Our Lord Catholic Church (1900 Stanford Ave., St. Paul): Performers included organists Joel Anderson and Bruce Jacobs; flutist Jeeyoun Kang; pianists Sujin Cho and Jeana Ogren; the Elm Ensemble; conductor Sally Messner; and saxophonist David Milne.

1 – 2 p.m. at St. Thomas More Catholic Parish (Summit Avenue at Lexington Avenue, St. Paul): Performers included organists Samuel Libra, Emily Roth, Noah Strom and Daniel Schwandt; and violist Samantha Lee.

2:30 – 3:30 p.m. at St. Clement Episcopal Church (901 Portland Avenue, St. Paul): Performers included organists Catherine Rodland, Amy Maakestad, Graeme Schields and Nicholas Kees.

4 – 5 p.m. at House of Hope Presbyterian Church (797 Summit Ave., St. Paul): Performers included organists Wolfgang Rübsam, David Jenkins and Nils Halker; and pianist Jacob Marvets.

Enjoy pictures from Bach’s Birthday Bash!

Pictures from Bach's Birthday Bash

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On Wednesday, YourClassical MPR hosted a free event at Surdyk’s Liquor & Cheese Shop in Minneapolis featuring classical music and complimentary tastings of wine and other beverages at multiple tasting stations.

YourClassical MPR host Vernon Neal set the mood with a curated soundtrack before duo The OK Factor gave a live performance consisting of original compositions and classic arrangements. Those in attendance appreciated the music provided by Neal and by cellist Olivia Diercks and violinist Karla Peters of The OK Factor; many guests spoke to Neal and to The OK Factor throughout the evening.

Browse a gallery of photos from the event:

YourClassical MPR Happy Hour with The OK Factor

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Jess Gillam is a phenomenal young saxophonist who, at 27, has already made her mark in the world of classical music. At 17, she became the first saxophonist in history to make the finals of the BBC Young Musician of the Year competition. Listen to Gillam’s performance of her own arrangement of Rune Tonsgaard Sørensen’s Shine You No More, recording during her recent visit to Minnesota Public Radio’s headquarters.

Find out more about Gillam’s latest project, Prism, on New Classical Tracks with host Julie Amacher.

Nicole Keller performs Toccata in F Major, BuxWV 156 by Dietrich Buxtehude. This video was filmed in the beautiful sanctuary at Hamline Church United Methodist in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Thank you to Dr. David Kozisek and the administration at HCUM for the facilitation of this video.

Check out our website to listen and engage with more performers like Nicole and follow us at Pipedreams for more organ content.

Credits:
Nicole Keller: Organist
John Kuntz: Video Producer
Evan Clark: Technical Director
D’Vir Rudin: Camera Operations

Nicole Keller performs “Almande” from Klavierbuch der Susanne van Soldt (1590). This video was filmed in the beautiful sanctuary at Hamline Church United Methodist in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Thank you to Dr. David Kozisek and the administration at HCUM for the facilitation of this video.

Check out our website to listen and engage with more performers like Nicole and follow us at Pipedreams for more organ content.

Credits:
Nicole Keller: Organist
John Kuntz: Video Producer
Evan Clark: Technical Director
D’Vir Rudin: Camera Operations

Nicole Keller performs “De Frans Galliard” from Klavierbuch der Susanne van Soldt (1590). This video was filmed in the beautiful sanctuary at Hamline Church United Methodist in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Thank you to Dr. David Kozisek and the administration at HCUM for the facilitation of this video.

Check out our website to listen and engage with more performers like Nicole and follow us at Pipedreams for more organ content.

Credits:
Nicole Keller: Organist
John Kuntz: Video Producer
Evan Clark: Technical Director
D’Vir Rudin: Camera Operations

Nicole Keller performs “Myn God Voet mi Gals myn Herder Ghepressen, 23 Sallem” from Klavierbuch der Susanne van Soldt, 1590. This video was filmed in the beautiful sanctuary at Hamline Church United Methodist in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

Thank you to Dr. David Kozisek and the administration at HCUM for the facilitation of this video.

Check out our website to listen and engage with more performers like Nicole and follow us at Pipedreams for more organ content.

Credits:
Nicole Keller: Organist
John Kuntz: Video Producer
Evan Clark: Technical Director
D’Vir Rudin: Camera Operations

When Jean-Yves Thibaudet visited NPR to play a Tiny Desk, everything about him was stylish. His shoes were custom made for him by the late Vivienne Westwood, his jacket was by Simon Porte Jacquemus, his necklace, Cartier.

When he sat down to play, arguably only one thing seemed to be missing: a shiny, 9-foot grand piano. But Thibaudet, like many great pianists who have graced our office space, understands the vibe of our beloved little concert series. He knows that the point is not to be playing on the largest piano possible. Instead, he delighted in bringing music by Villa-Lobos, Brahms and Ravel to our diminutive — but meticulously groomed — upright. And the colors and textures he conjured from that trusty box of wood and wire was unforgettable.

Thibaudet begins with a firecracker of a piece from the early 20th century — two-minutes of effervescence by the Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos. Watch the pianist's fingers in a blur, stabbing hundreds of notes like a sewing machine. It was an encore favorite of the great pianist Arthur Rubinstein, Thibaudet explains.

What follows could not be more different. The Intermezzo Op. 118, No. 2, is classic late Brahms, filled with muted, fall afternoon light and whispered inner voices. Thibaudet ends with a tribute to one of his idols, Maurice Ravel, whose 150th birth anniversary is being celebrated far and wide. Turns out that one of the composer's biggest hits, the Pavane for a Dead Princess, was not among his own favorites. And the evocative title was merely tacked on as a poetic afterthought. Still, the wide palette of coloring and shading Thibaudet offers is a masterclass in how to make an upright piano sound like a symphony orchestra.

SET LIST

• Heitor Villa-Lobos: "O polichinelo" (from A prole do bebê No. 1)

• Johannes Brahms: Intermezzo in A major, Op. 118, No. 2

• Maurice Ravel: Pavane pour une infante défunte

MUSICIANS

• Jean-Yves Thibaudet: piano

TINY DESK TEAM

• Producer: Tom Huizenga

• Director/Editor: Kara Frame

• Audio Technical Director: Josh Newell

• Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter

• Videographers: Kara Frame, Joshua Bryant

• Audio Engineer: Andie Heuther

• Production Assistants: Ashley Pointer, Dora Levite

• Photographer: Alanté Serene

• Tiny Desk Team: Maia Stern, Lars Gotrich

• Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed

• Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson

• VP, Visuals and Music: Keith Jenkins

Copyright 2025, NPR

Greg Zelek performs the ending of Symphony for Organ No. 6, I. Allegro by Charles-Marie Widor. Thank you to Northrop at the University of Minnesota for facilitating the creation of this performance video. Check out the Pipedreams website to listen and engage with more performers like Greg.

Greg Zelek performs Je te Veux by Erik Satie. Thank you to Northrop at the University of Minnesota for facilitating the creation of this performance video. Check out the Pipedreams website to listen and engage with more performers like Greg.

Performance Today Young Artist in Residence Jiajun David Lai plays the Prelude in D Minor, Op. 28, No. 24, by Frédéric Chopin in the Maud Mood Weyerhaeuser Music Studio in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Find more music and interviews at http://performancetoday.org.

Videography by: Whiskey Kilo

Inon Barnatan gave an exclusive performance at the La Jolla Music Society's SummerFest 2024. Here, he plays Sheep May Safely Graze, by J.S. Bach, at the JAI, a cabaret-style space at the Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center in La Jolla, California.

Find more music and interviews at https://www.performancetoday.org.

For more on SummerFest: https://theconrad.org/summerfest.

For more about Inon Barnatan: https://www.inonbarnatan.com.

Pianist Inon Barnatan chats with Performance Today host Fred Child at the La Jolla Music Society's SummerFest 2024. Watch now!

Find more music and interviews at https://www.performancetoday.org.

For more on SummerFest: https://theconrad.org/summerfest.

For more about Inon Barnatan: https://www.inonbarnatan.com.

Rachel Storlie, a professor at Luther College Music Department, plays the Hesper-Mabel Steam Calliope at Nordic Fest in Decorah, Iowa. Harry Shell built this circus wagon in the early 1900s and installed the whistles and valves with a boiler inside the wagon. 32 whistles are chromatically tuned (loosely speaking), starting with C below middle C, and operate at 50 psi of steam pressure. Learn more about this Calliope and find more organ music on Pipedreams.

As we observe July Fourth, enjoy this soaring performance of "From Sea to Shining Sea" by the Aeolians of Oakwood University and about 750 Minnesota choir students performing as the STMA Festival Chorus, all directed by Jason Max Ferdinand.

Recorded by YourClassical MPR at a 2022 concert at St. Michael-Albertville High School in St. Michael, Minnesota, the work is subtitled "A Fantasy Based on ‘America the Beautiful’" — a celebratory, majestic piece for massed choir.

Did you miss Before Bach's Birthday Bash on Saturday with ‘Pipedreams’ host Michael Barone? This year's celebration included five free hourlong concerts at venues in St. Paul. Watch the first concert now!

Bach's birthday comes around every year on March 21. The occasion calls for a celebration of this most remarkable of musical talents, and Minnesota Public Radio's Michael Barone (host of Pipedreams) decided that Johann Sebastian Bach deserved something special. A number of years ago, he and colleagues from the Twin Cities chapter of the American Guild of Organists arranged a Bach's Birthday Bash, and the idea blossomed.

When Bach's birthday doesn't fall on a Saturday, such as this year, the celebration is held early and becomes Before Bach's Birthday Bash. The event has become something of a local tradition, with enthusiasts from all parts of the state participating or just listening.

This year's activities featured five free hourlong public concerts of Bach's music, presented at five venues and churches in St. Paul during the morning and afternoon of Saturday, March 16.

Co-sponsors included the Twin Cities Chapter of the American Guild of Organists and YourClassical MPR.

9 a.m. at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church (700 S. Snelling Ave., St. Paul): The first concert was aired live by YourClassical MPR. You can watch it now using the player above. Performers include organists Nils Halker, Timothy Strand and Samuel Backman; pianists Koki Sato, Ines Guanchez and Osip Nikiforov; violinists Brenda and David Mickens; and cellist Charles Asch.

Other concerts followed in St. Paul:

10:30-11:30 a.m. at Nativity of Our Lord Catholic Church (1900 Stanford Ave., St. Paul): Performers included organists Catherine Rodland, Stacie Lightner and Wolfgang Rübsam; violinist Charlotte Yan Ming Lee; and flutist Donna Hryniewicki.

1-2 p.m. at St. John the Evangelist Episcopal Church (60 Kent St., St. Paul): Performers included organists Richard Gray, Emily Roth and Bill Wilson; pianist Sehee Jeong; soprano Katie Boardman; and trombonist Zachariah Mandell.

2:30-3:30 p.m. at Unity Unitarian Church (733 Portland Ave. St. Paul): Performers included organists Mark Overman, David Jenkins and Thomas Ferry; and pianists Rouchen Xi and Ruizhi Gabrielle Wang.

4-5 p.m. at House Hope Presbyterian Church (797 Summit Ave., St. Paul): Performers included organists Michael Barone, Kathrine Handford and Ju Young Lee; and pianist Hyein Choi.

An enthusiastic crowd sings “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” at YourClassical MPR's Bring the Sing event on Aug. 15, 2023, in Fargo, North Dakota — led by the Fargo-Moorhead Choral Artists and director Michael Culloton.

This activity is made possible in part by the Minnesota Legacy Amendment‘s Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund.

YourClassical MPR presents a pipe organ concert to celebrate the birthday of composer Johann Sebastian Bach, with Pipedreams host Michael Barone. The concert was broadcast live from the Cathedral of St. Mark in Minneapolis on March 18, 2023. Performers include organists Samuel Holmberg, Emily Roth and Sarah Palmer; pianist Yura Jung and cellist Charles Asch.

Bach’s birthday is March 21. The occasion calls out for a celebration of this most remarkable of musical talents, so Barone and colleagues from the Twin Cities chapter of the American Guild of Organists arranged Bach’s Birthday Bash years ago, and the idea blossomed. When Bach’s birthday doesn't fall on a Saturday, such as this year, the celebration is held early and becomes Before Bach's Birthday Bash.

Listen as Known MPLS Choir performs "Up Above My Head," made famous by Kirk Franklin and written by Myron Butler, at the 2022 Minnesota State Fair. Enjoy!

Copyright © 2009 Bondie La Music (BMI) (adm. at CapitolCMGPublishing.com). All rights reserved. Used with permission.

“Free at last!” — the perfect words to celebrate Juneteenth, a holiday when we commemorate the emancipation of enslaved Black Americans. Listen as the incomparable The Aeolians, under the direction of Jason Max Ferdinand, perform Joel Thompson's “Hold Fast to Dreams,” a captivating work whose words combine two Langston Hughes poems, “Harlem” and “Dreams.” “Dramatic and moving, with convincing choral writing and a virtuosic piano accompaniment, this piece is an experience not soon forgotten,” the publisher says.

“Hold Fast to Dreams”
Composed by Joel Thompson; words by Langston Hughes (used with permission)
Copyright © 2018 by Highgate Press, Inc. (BMI), a division of ECS Publishing Group. www.ecspublishing.com
All rights reserved. Used with permission.

Recorded at St. Michael-Albertville High School, Minnesota, on March 2, 2022
Thanks to Joe Osowski and Jason Max Ferdinand

The St. Michael-Albertville High School Concert Choir had the honor of giving the Midwest premiere of Eric Whitacre's “The Sacred Veil,” a collaboration with Charles Silvestri. Inspired by the death of Silvestri’s wife, Julie, of ovarian cancer at 36, “the intimate, compelling score tells a story of courtship, love, loss and the search for solace,” Whitacre says. These talented Minnesota singers present the first three movements of the 12-part work in this March 2022 performance.

“The Sacred Veil”
Written by Eric E. Whitacre and Charles Anthony Silvestri
Boosey & Hawkes, Music Publishers Ltd./Boosey & Hawkes, Inc.
By arrangement with Concord
Used with permission
Score
More info

Performed by the STMA Concert Choir
Directed by Joe Osowski
Piano: Aaron Kohrs
Cello: STMA student Ryan Dornfeld
Recorded at St. Michael-Albertville High School, Minnesota, by YourClassical MPR

“From Sea to Shining Sea” soars in a one-of-a-kind performance by the Aeolians of Oakwood University and about 750 Minnesota choir students performing as the STMA Festival Chorus, recorded by YourClassical MPR in St. Michael, Minnesota. The work is subtitled “A Fantasy Based on ‘America the Beautiful,’” and it really is a celebratory, majestic work for massed choir.

“From Sea To Shining Sea: A Fantasy Based on ‘America the Beautiful’”
Composed by Samuel Ward. English. Paraphrased by Maurice C. Whitney. Text by Katharine Lee Bates
© 1963 Warner Bros. Choral Library. Used with permission.

Performed by the Aeolians and STMA Festival Choir
Directed by Jason Max Ferdinand
Recorded at St. Michael-Albertville High School, Minnesota
Thanks to Joe Osowski

The incomparable Aeolians of Alabama's Oakwood University, under the direction of Jason Max Ferdinand, perform William Dawson's “Zion's Walls.”

Recorded by the Choral Stream and YourClassical MPR at St. Michael-Albertville High School, St. Michael, Minnesota, on March 2, 2022.

“Zion's Walls,” by William L. Dawson.
Copyright ©1961 William L. Dawson. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
Distributed by Neil A. Kjos Music Co.
Score
Jason Max Ferdinand

Thanks to Joe Osowski and STMA Choirs.

The St. Michael-Albertville Vivace Treble Choir performs Elaine Hagenberg's achingly beautiful “Song of Miriam.”

“Inspired by the empowering poem by Rabbi Ruth Sohn, this piece describes the journey of a young woman who finds bravery amid uncertainty and fear,” the composer says. The young women of STMA, under the direction of Joe Osowski, capture that perfectly.

Read more about:
STMA’s incredible choral program
Elaine Hagenberg
The music

“Song of Miriam,” by Elaine Hagenberg. Copyright © 2019 Elaine Hagenberg Music. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

Recorded at St. Michael-Albertville High School, Minnesota.

Thanks to Joe Osowski

The Voces8 Scholars (U.S.) perform “Almighty and Everlasting God,” arranged by Paul Smith, at Central Presbyterian Church in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Recorded by Minnesota Public Radio.

Find out more about the Voces8 Scholars

CREDITS:
Voces8 Scholars: Maxwell Ary, Aaron Cates, Logan Combs, Jenna Hernandez, Jess Huetteman, Grace Kiver, Lauren Lestage, Adrien Redford, Christopher Short, Michael Skarke, Ross Tamaccio and Emily Wood.
Directors: Paul Smith and Erik Jacobson
Recording: Cameron Wiley, Evan Clark and Peter Ecklund
Video post-production: Evan Clark
Executive producer: Randy Salas

Recording dates: Nov. 15-17, 2021

The Voces8 Scholars (U.S.) perform “Mother's Song,” by Jocelyn Hagen, at Central Presbyterian Church in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Recorded by Minnesota Public Radio.

Find out more about the Voces8 Scholars

CREDITS:
Voces8 Scholars: Maxwell Ary, Aaron Cates, Logan Combs, Jenna Hernandez, Jess Huetteman, Grace Kiver, Lauren Lestage, Adrien Redford, Christopher Short, Michael Skarke, Ross Tamaccio and Emily Wood.
Directors: Paul Smith and Erik Jacobson
Recording: Cameron Wiley, Evan Clark and Peter Ecklund
Video post-production: Evan Clark
Executive producer: Randy Salas
Recording dates: Nov. 15-17, 2021

“Mother's Song,“ by Jocelyn Hagen. Copyright © 2020 by Henmar Press Inc. Translation © 1980 by Willis Barnstone. All rights Reserved: Edition Peters Group. Used with permission.

Border CrosSing performs the rare early-American hymn “Kensington,” a beautiful 1849 church song based on a Mendelssohn tune. Enjoy!

“Kensington”
Performed by Border CrosSing, under the direction of Ahmed Fernando Anzaldúa El Samkary
Hymn: Artemas Nixon Johnson, Josiah Osgood and Sumner Hill
Music: Felix Mendelssohn

Music from the American Classical Hymns project
Free sheet music for this hymn

Filmed May 10, 2021, at Central Presbyterian Church, St. Paul, Minnesota

Executive producer: Randy Salas

Thanks to Professor Peter Mercer-Taylor, University of Minnesota; Jennifer Anderson and Anna Sanchez, Central Presbyterian

Cantus performs the rare early-American hymn “Beulah,” a beautiful 1850 church song based on a Schubert tune. Enjoy!

“Beulah”
Performed by Cantus
Hymn: Benjamin Franklin Baker and Lucien H. Southard
Music: Franz Schubert

Music from the American Classical Hymns project
Free sheet music for this hymn

Filmed May 11, 2021, at Central Presbyterian Church, St. Paul, Minnesota.

Executive producer: Randy Salas

Thanks to Professor Peter Mercer-Taylor, University of Minnesota; Jennifer Anderson and Anna Sanchez, Central Presbyterian

Border CrosSing performs the rare early-American hymn “Oberon,” a beautiful 1853 church song based on a Weber tune. Enjoy!

“Oberon”
Performed by Border CrosSing, under the direction of Ahmed Fernando Anzaldúa El Samkary
Hymn: George Kingsley
Music: Carl Maria von Weber

Music from the American Classical Hymns project
Free sheet music for this hymn

Filmed May 10, 2021, at Central Presbyterian Church, St. Paul, Minnesota

Executive producer: Randy Salas

Thanks to Professor Peter Mercer-Taylor, University of Minnesota; Jennifer Anderson and Anna Sanchez, Central Presbyterian

Cantus performs the rare early-American hymn “Sweetzer,” a beautiful 1849 church song based on a Mendelssohn tune. Enjoy!

Find more choir music at YourClassical Choral Stream

“Sweetzer”
Performed by Cantus
Hymn: Thomas Hastings and William Bradbury
Music: Felix Mendelssohn

Music from the American Classical Hymns project
Free sheet music for this hymn

Filmed May 11, 2021, at Central Presbyterian Church, St. Paul, Minnesota

Executive producer: Randy Salas

Thanks to Professor Peter Mercer-Taylor, University of Minnesota; Jennifer Anderson and Anna Sanchez, Central Presbyterian