Just in: Oregon Bach Fest is gone

The extraordinarily unsettled Oregon Bach Festival has not only postponed this summer’s event to 2021 but deferred the appointment of a new artistic director.

Here’s what the Dean says:

I am writing to let you know that we have made the difficult decision to postpone both the 2020 Oregon Bach Festival and the selection of our new Artistic Director until the summer of 2021, with the health and safety of our patrons, musicians and community foremost in our minds…. We were all looking forward to coming together this summer to celebrate the 50^thanniversary of the Oregon Bach Festival. We were especially excited to experience the unique voice and vision from three talented finalists for our Artistic Director position – world-renowned maestros Miguel Harth-Bedoya (pictured), Eric Jacobsen and Julian Wachner – as they conducted Bach’s great choral-orchestral masterworks and performed hand-picked repertoires designed to showcase their distinctive and special musical gifts.

As a part of our decision making, we consulted with many stakeholders, including the finalists for our Artistic Director position. The conversations we’ve had with each of them have been yet another confirmation of the high-caliber of our candidates as musicians, leaders, and exemplary individuals. They all expressed empathy and understanding about our decision, as well as strong interest in continuing as candidates and returning as guest conductors for our rescheduled 50^thanniversary season in 2021.