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More than 100 people flocked to the Bach Festival at St. Peter’s By The Sea Episcopal Church in Bay Shore this weekend to hear the Island Symphony Orchestra and guest players perform works of Bach, Mozart and other revered composers.
Eric Stewart conducted the 35-piece symphony orchestra through multimovement works, including Bach’s “St. John Passion” and “St. Matthew Passion.”
“This was a good turnout considering everything that’s happening,” said Stewart. “Our first concert when we did it [three] years ago, we did have more people, but obviously there was nothing happening at the time.
“I’m happy to see people are starting to come out and I feel like people are going to start coming out more and more,” he added. “There’s a pent-up demand to see live music because there’s nothing like live music.”
Equally as exciting as the complete symphony orchestra’s program was Lun Li and Tianyou Ma‘s performance of “Concerto For Two Violins in D Minor,” accompanied by Robert Warner on the harpsichord.
Li said the appeal of the three-movement concerto stems from its emotional depth and beautiful counterpoint writing.
Li, 25, and Ma, 21, won the 2021 Lillian and Maurice Barbash J.S. Bach Competition. Li said they became friends during the COVID-19 pandemic. They also encouraged each other and practiced together when they learned they would compete against one another.
Li is completing his masters at the Julliard School, while Ma is studying at the Curtis Institute of Music. They are among the Island Symphony Orchestra’s younger members who have long careers ahead of them.
“I don’t think there is ever a point where I’ll be able to say I made it,” Lin said of his ambitions. “It’s a profession where there’s no end, you’re always learning.”
GreaterBayShore.com was at the festival to capture it in photos. Please scroll through and be sure to the numbered boxes to view them all.
