Fall Concert

November 1, 2026, at 7:30 pm

Join the Bach Chorale of Grand Rapids, under the direction of Artistic Director Martin Werner, and guest virtuoso pianist Alan Chiang, for a concert spanning five centuries of sacred choral polyphony and instrumental virtuosity.

The concert features Alan Chiang performing Ferruccio Busoni’s dramatic adaptation of J.S. Bach’s Chaconne in D Minor alongside Bach’s vibrant Concerto in F Major, BWV 1057, an almost identical replica of the serene and lively Brandenburg Concerto No. 4. The chamber orchestra also is performing Mozart’s Salzburg Symphony No. 1.

Complementing these, the ensemble will deliver choral masterworks from the Renaissance, early Baroque, and Classical eras, by Adrian Willaert (Veni, Sancte Spiritus), Heinrich Schütz (Meine Seele erhebt den Herren), and W. A. Mozart (Laudate pueri Dominum). The program expands into the Romantic and modern eras with Johannes Brahms’s reflective motet Ach arme Welt, du trügest mich (Op. 110) and Samuel Barber’s Agnus Dei, in a powerful vocal/orchestral version of his legendary Adagio for Strings.

A portion of all ticket proceeds will directly support the Community Assistance Fund at Fountain Street Church to aid in addressing the ongoing homelessness crisis near the church in Veterans Park. Managed by Rev. Nathan Dannison, this fund provides compassionate relief through direct community assistance, such as rent relief and emergency financial aid for our unsheltered neighbors.