1983-2018
John Woolrich Five Bach Chorales and A Shadowed Lesson (1999)
For violin, viola, cello, double bass and piano
18 minutes (6 minutes + 12 minutes NB Chorales and A Shadowed Lesson are
usually performed together)
J S Bach Five Chorales (arranged John Woolrich)
1. Night has Come
2. Come, Sweet Death!
3. Christ lay in the bonds of death
4. From deep need I cry to thee
5. O gloomy night
John Woolrich A Shadowed Lesson
I drew the material for my quintet A Shadowed Lesson from these chorales. The piece is about twelve minutes long and is made up of a number of short fragments: slow melodies, capriccios and chorales.
Sir Thomas Brown gave me the title, “…an hieroglyphical and shadowed lesson of the whole world…”
© John Woolrich
A Shadowed Lesson and Woolrich’s arrangement of Bach’s Five Chorales were commissioned by The Schubert Ensemble of London with funds provided by The Schubert Ensemble Trust and first performed at Wigmore Hall on 3rd February 2000