J.S. Bach: St. John Passion (The Köln Recording)

On 6 of March 2020, Bach Collegium Japan began their long-awaited 30th anniversary tour of Europe in Katowice, Poland. The same week Europe was becoming aware of the very stark reality of the new Corona virus, Covid-19. Consequently, concert halls across Europe were closing down and the remaining tour dates were cancelled. Before leaving, the BCJ agreed with the Kölner Philharmonie to go ahead with a concert that had been planned, in the form of a livestream without an audience. That concert is available here as a testimony not only to the drama of Bach's score, but also to the urgency of a week when the world changed.