The Dryden Ensemble will present a free concert, “Anna Magdalena Bach: Her Story,” on Sunday, February 5, at 3 p.m. at the Princeton Theological Seminary Chapel.
Named in honor of John Dryden, the 17th-century English poet laureate who extolled the powers of music and inspired composers, the Princeton-area group specializes in performing music of the 17th and 18th centuries on period instruments.
This particular concert features Dryden artistic director Jane McKinley reading from her series of poems based on the life of German organist and composer Johann Sebastian Bach’s second wife.
New York-based violoncellist Lisa Terry and nationally known harpsichordist Webb Wiggins will perform works by Bach, including selections from the Suites for Unaccompanied Violoncello and the French Suites for solo keyboard.
A musician and nationally published poet, McKinley shares the following about the presentation:
“This program results from my passion for creating programs that combine words and music in an attempt to give audience members a context for the music.
“I started writing about Anna Magdalena Bach in 2017 at a poetry workshop with Marie Howe in Provincetown, Massachusetts, in response to an assignment she gave us to write a persona poem, i.e. a poem in a voice other than your own.
“I’ve always been curious about Anna Magdalena, a gifted soprano who played a key role in her husband’s musical career. She was the prima donna at the court of Prince Leopold in Cöthen where Bach served as Kapellmeister, and later, after moving to Leipzig, she assisted Bach by copying out cantata parts and other music, in addition to bearing 13 children.
“Though very little is known about her daily life as Bach’s second wife, each poem is based on a surviving letter or document. In writing the poems, I did a considerable amount of research to ensure that the details are as historically accurate as possible, in order to give Anna Magdalena a voice.”
To provide a flavor of the writing, McKinley shares the inset poem using Anna Magdalena’s husband as its subject.
Anna Magdalena Bach: Her Story, Dryden Ensemble, Princeton Theological Seminary Chapel, 64 Mercer Street, Princeton. Sunday, February 5, 3 p.m. Free. www.drydenensemble.org.
