J. S. Bach's masterpiece Matthäus Passion (St. Matthew Passion) was composed in Leipzig in either 1727 or 1729. "Gesichert ist nur, dass die Matthäus-Passion am 15. April 1729 (Karfreitag) in der Leipziger Thomaskirche unter Bachs Leitung aufgeführt wurde." (The only thing that is certain is that the St. Matthew Passion was performed in the St. Thomas Church, Leipzig on April 15th, 1729 (Good Friday) under Bach's direction.) - German quotation taken from wikipedia.
The St. Matthew Passion was not greatly appreciated during Bach's lifetime because of its "operatic" and pietistic character. The first performance after Bach's death took place in Berlin on March 11th, 1829 under the direction of Felix Mendelssohn.
The St. Matthew Passion is now recognised as the greatest musical composition ever written by a Lutheran church musician. For many, including myself, it is the greatest piece of music ever written. It expresses Bach's heartfelt faith in Jesus Christ and communicates it to performer and audience alike. For this reason Bach has been dubbed "the Fifth Evangelist".
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