For a one-night-only performance on Wednesday, April 9, 2025, I had the opportunity to enjoy the presentation of The Countertenor—Bach’s Holy Spirit in the sacred surroundings of the Cathedral of St Stephen.
By going along to witness this performance of The Countertenor, I also discovered that a Countertenor is the male equivalent of a female alto singer. The Cathedral of St Stephen in Elizabeth Street is a very beautiful place to set a show featuring mainly Johann Sebastian Bach’s Baroque music. The venue’s reverent atmosphere and remarkable acoustics made it the perfect setting for a program steeped in spiritual and musical traditions.
Madeleine Easton is the Artistic Director of Bach Akadamie Australia and an extremely talented violinist. She has brought Reginald Mobley, an American Counter Tenor, on a tour of Australia, along with several other talented musicians: Simone Slattery (violin), Heather Lloyd (viola), Anthea Cottee (Cello), and Neal Peres Da Costa.
Together, they breathed life into J.S. Bach’s most religious works, some of which are universally considered to be among the greatest works the world has ever heard. Along with Bach’s existential works, Indigenous Australian composer Troy Russell was commissioned to write a piece inspired by Bach, which was also performed on the night.
The program title references the Lutheran theological belief that the alto voice represents the Holy Ghost—a voice that Bach reserved for some of his most heartfelt and moving compositions. The evening’s performance featured a selection of these sacred pieces, showcasing the purity and emotional resonance of Reginald Mobley’s voice, whose background also includes gospel and jazz.
The lyrics were all in German, but if you wanted to know what the words meant, they were written in English alongside the German in the programme. Madeleine Easton has done a wonderful job of arranging the music to suit the ensemble she presented. Classical music lovers filled the space, enraptured by the performance, and gave them a well-deserved standing ovation at the end of the evening.
The evening’s repertoire included:
- Cantata BWV 170, aria 1: ‘Vergnügte ruh’
- Obbligato Sonata No. 2 in A Major, BWV 1015
- Cantata BWV 82, aria 3: ‘Schlummert ein’
- Largo and Allegro Assai from Sonata no. 3 in C major, BWV 1005
- Agnus Dei from Mass in B minor, BWV 232
- Aria from BWV 201: ‘Aufgeblasne Hitze’
- ‘Clans’ by Troy Russell, arranged for solo violin by Madelaine Easton
- Cantata BWV 54: ‘Widerstehe doch der Sünde’
Photographer: Stephen Blake, Blake Photographic
