A Christmas Journey Through the Music of J. S. Bach

As Advent reaches its midpoint and one of the year’s most beautiful holidays approaches, we invite you to spend an afternoon with pianist Hélène Papadopoulos and the extraordinary music of J. S. Bach.

The program, exploring the composer’s most acclaimed works, will invite listeners to journey in their minds to a contemplative spiritual space. Each piece, from toccatas full of dynamic energy to the profoundly deep “Chaconne” transcribed for piano and the introspective “Duetti,” touches upon themes of reflection, renewal, and the transcendence of the human soul.

Hélène Papadopoulos is a pianist renowned for her intricate and sensitive interpretations, particularly of J. S. Bach’s music, and distinguished by a multifaceted vision of musical creation and performance. The pianist completed her studies in piano, harpsichord, cello, and chamber music at the Strasbourg Conservatory and the École Normale de Musique de Paris, and earned a doctorate in computational musicology at IRCAM / Sorbonne University in Paris. She performs as both a soloist and a chamber musician across Europe and North America.

Hélène’s concert series, featuring the complete works of Bach, has garnered widespread acclaim, captivating audiences with its deep exploration of Bach’s spiritual and emotional dimensions. Her unique ability to unite tradition with modernity—whether through profound interpretations of iconic works such as the Goldberg Variations, or by commissioning living composers to create a dialogue between Bach’s music and the contemporary world—crafts an experience that is both timeless and deeply relevant to today’s world. This season, she presents the complete “Clavier-Übung” (Partitas for keyboard, the Italian Concerto, the French Overture, the Four Duets, and the Goldberg Variations) as well as the complete Sonatas for Keyboard and Violin BWV 1014–1019. Among her recent awards for musical excellence are the Culture Moves Europe grant and the American Bach Society’s Scheide grant.

In pursuing her academic research and refining her artistic practice, the musician has published Leonhard Euler’s (1707–1783) treatise on music theory with her own commentary. She is the artistic director of the “Festival aux Chandelles” in Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines, France, where she redefines classical music programming and shares the artistic research that shapes each performance. Supported by the Bach Archive in Leipzig, she is currently participating in an artist residency at CNMAT, University of California, Berkeley, delving into the legacy of American keyboardist Rosalyn Tureck for 21st-century Bach performance.

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