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| American Bach Soloists | |
|---|---|
| Name | American Bach Soloists |
| Origin | San Francisco, California |
| Genre | Baroque, Classical |
| Years active | 1989–present |
American Bach Soloists are a professional chamber orchestra and chorus based in San Francisco specializing in Baroque and early Classical repertoire performed on modern instruments with historically informed practice. Founded in 1989, the ensemble presents subscription seasons, festival residencies, touring projects, recordings, and education initiatives across California and nationally. The organization collaborates with prominent soloists, conductors, conservatories, and cultural institutions to promote the music of Johann Sebastian Bach and his contemporaries.
The ensemble was founded in 1989 in San Francisco during a period of renewed interest in historically informed performance and early music led by ensembles such as The English Concert, Academy of Ancient Music, Boston Baroque, and Les Arts Florissants. Early seasons featured works by Johann Sebastian Bach, George Frideric Handel, Antonio Vivaldi, Domenico Scarlatti, and Arcangelo Corelli, and collaborations with local institutions including San Francisco Symphony, San Francisco Conservatory of Music, San Francisco Opera, and Californians for the Arts. Tours and residencies expanded to venues like Yoshida Hall, Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center, and festivals such as the Oregon Bach Festival, Tanglewood Music Festival, and Aix-en-Provence Festival. Throughout its development the ensemble engaged with broader early music movements exemplified by figures like Gustav Leonhardt, Trevor Pinnock, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, and Christopher Hogwood.
Artistic directors, guest conductors, and soloists who have worked with the group include leaders from the early music and mainstream worlds such as Joshua Rifkin, Nicholas McGegan, Paul O'Dette, John Eliot Gardiner, Ton Koopman, William Christie, Rachel Podger, Christoph Wolff, and John Butt. Resident musicians and section leaders have trained at conservatories and universities including Juilliard School, Royal College of Music, Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Conservatoire de Paris, University of California, Berkeley, and Curtis Institute of Music. Guest soloists and collaborators have included baroque specialists and contemporary interpreters like Julian Bliss, Alfred Deller (historical influence), Jordi Savall, James Bowman, Emma Kirkby, Andreas Scholl, Midori Seiler, and Anne-Sofie von Otter. Administrative and artistic staff have maintained partnerships with presenters such as SFJAZZ, Cal Performances, Lindemann Young Artists Development Program, and philanthropic supporters like National Endowment for the Arts, The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and Gerbode Foundation.
The ensemble’s repertoire emphasizes cantatas, passions, masses, oratorios, concerti, and chamber works by Johann Sebastian Bach, Georg Philipp Telemann, Heinrich Schütz, Christoph Willibald Gluck, Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, Johann Christian Bach, Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, Alessandro Scarlatti, and Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber. Programming balances canonical works such as the St Matthew Passion, Brandenburg Concertos, Mass in B minor, and The Creation (Haydn) with lesser-known repertoire by composers like Johann Gottlieb Goldberg, Johann Stamitz, Marin Marais, and Gaspard Le Roux. Performance practice draws on research from scholars and institutions including Bach Gesellschaft, Society for Seventeenth-Century Music, American Musicological Society, Harvard University, Oxford University, and Royal Holloway. The ensemble integrates period-informed techniques influenced by historical figures and editions linked to Johann Nikolaus Forkel, Philipp Spitta, Robert Donington, and modern editorial projects such as the Neue Bach-Ausgabe.
Recorded projects have been released on labels and platforms associated with early music dissemination, reflecting a discography of Bach cantatas, instrumental works, and thematic programs. Releases have been promoted through national and international broadcasters including Public Broadcasting Service, BBC Radio 3, National Public Radio, Cal Performances VoiceBox, KQED, and Deutsche Welle. The ensemble’s recordings appear alongside catalogs from labels like Harmonia Mundi, Decca Classics, Sony Classical, Erato Records, and independent early music presses. Broadcasts and streaming partnerships include curated programs for Apple Music Classical, Spotify, and festival webcasts for Glyndebourne and the Aix-en-Provence Festival.
Educational initiatives include workshops, masterclasses, youth concerts, and community outreach in collaboration with conservatories, universities, and community organizations such as San Francisco Conservatory of Music, University of California, Berkeley, San Francisco Unified School District, Young Audiences Arts for Learning, and Menlo-Atherton High School. Programs bring historically informed performance practice to students through partnerships with teachers trained in curricula from institutions like Royal Academy of Music, Eastman School of Music, Mannes School of Music, and New England Conservatory. Community-oriented events incorporate collaborations with choirs, period-instrument ensembles, and cultural partners including San Francisco Early Music Society, Chorus of the San Francisco Bach, and regional arts councils supported by funders such as National Endowment for the Arts and California Arts Council.
The ensemble has received critical acclaim and recognition in reviews and awards from organizations and media such as Gramophone (magazine), The New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco Classical Voice, American Record Guide, and honors from foundations like The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, and regional arts awards. Touring invitations, residencies, and recording contracts reflect endorsement by presenters and institutions including Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center, and major European festivals, situating the group among notable early music ensembles such as The English Concert, Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, and Il Giardino Armonico.