The baroque ensemble BachPlus was founded in 2010.

 

The past ten years have been remarkable: BachPlus performed in concert series in Bruges, Aalst and Aardenburg (NL) and performed dozens of concerts in larger Flemish cities and occasionally abroad. These concerts focused on works by Johann Sebastian Bach. Bach's cantatas formed the backbone of the programming, but Bach's larger works, such as the Magnificat, the St. John and St. Matthew Passions and the Hohe Messe, were also performed.

 

BachPlus likes to flank Bach's cantatas and confront them with works by Bach's contemporaries or predecessors. This often leads to illuminating artistic insights and performances. This programmatic approach is also reflected in the three CDs that BachPlus has now recorded. The CDs, on the Et'cetera and Evil Penguin labels, were praised in Flanders but also internationally for their artistic quality and broadening program choice.

 

The larger concert stages in Flanders (Concertgebouw Brugge, Amuz Antwerp, Festival Van Vlaanderen Ghent, etc.) also noticed BachPlus. In 2019, BachPlus impressed with Klara's “Iedereen Klassiek” in the Concertgebouw in Bruges with two enthusiastically received concerts. In the corridors, the ensemble was referred to and praised by the public and organisers as “Flanders' best-kept musical secret”.

 

The musicians of BachPlus, all seasoned through their activities in the renowned baroque world, share their enthusiasm for Bach's brilliant, transcendent and continually surprising oeuvre.

 

Under the inspiring leadership of Klara Musician of the Year Bart Naessens, people rehearse and perform extremely professionally but in a warm, friendly atmosphere in which everyone is open to artistic input and experiences from fellow musicians. Perhaps it is this artistic openness that distinguishes BachPlus from other ensembles and makes attending their concerts an intense experience.