Whirlwind Project 2007: Compassionate Listening
Panel & Community Dialogue
Passion about the Passion: Luther, “the Jews,” and Bach’s St. John Passion
Monday, March 12, 2007, 8 PM
Grace Lutheran Church, Champaign, IL
Moderator: Steve Shoemaker
Panelists: Chester Alwes, Roger Digges, Richard Layton, Michael Shapiro


SUGGESTED LISTENING AND READING LINKS

Listening

WILL-AM580
Listening: A series of three 60-minute Whirlwind Project interviews on WILL AM 580, Keepin’ the Faith, with host Steve Shoemaker

  • February 18, 2007
    “Is Bach’s St. John Passion Anti-Semitic,” Professor Michael Shapiro, Director of the University of Illinois Program in Jewish Culture and Society.
  • February 25, 2007
    “The Passion Story in the Gospel of John,” Professor Rick Layton, Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Illinois.
  • March 4, 2007
    “The Music of Bach’s St. John Passion,” Professor Chester Alwes, Music Director, Baroque Artists of Champaign-Urbana.

WBUR-FM 90.9 Boston
Bach’s "Passion", a sixty-minute interview on the NPR affiliate WBUR Boston’s program, The Connection, from April 2000. Christopher Leiden interviews conductor Julian Wachner, then director of The Providence Singers, The Back Bay Chorale, The Boston Bach Ensemble, and Marsh Chapel at Boston University. Also featured in this interview is scholar Michael Marissen, Professor of Music at Swarthmore College.

 

Reading

When the Words Hurt: The Gospel of John, Bach's Music, and Religious Intolerance. Four lectures from a symposium offered by The Institute for Christian & Jewish Studies in conjunction with a performance of Bach's St. John Passion presented by the Baltimore Choral Arts Society in November 2000.

Profound Beauty and Troubling Anti-Jewish Message in Bach Passion by David J. Craig. A brief preview of a pre-concert panel presented in April 2000 at Boston University, featuring Bach scholars Michael Marissen and Craig Smith, director of Emmanuel Music.

On the Jews and Their Lies by Martin Luther (1543).

The Gospel of John: text and commentary.

St. John Passion - Text and Translation. Translation by Chester L. Alwes.