2023 PLU World Music Centers: Leipzig

Leipzig, where my faith meets my vocation.

Before departure, I knew Leipzig would be a remarkable city for me. Gosh was I right. On our arrival to Leipzig from Berlin I was filled with joy and excitement. The moment I unpacked my bags I headed straight to Thomaskirche, or as many know it, Bach's church. I had goosebumps from the moment I walked in. Directly to the right of the main entrance, you're met with a beautiful section of the church that houses the altar, the font, and Johann Sebastian Bach's tomb. I was flooded with emotion and welled up with tears. It was such a beautiful sight to see. I spent a moment in front of the space and took it all in. It was wonderful. The church is magnificent. the organs, the art, the stained glass, all so well done. Once I had taken it all in and felt content I headed out for the day. We found a bite to eat and prepared to see the Gewandhaus Orchestra. This group was incredible!! Such a skilled musicians and such a fascinating conductor to observe. We sat directly behind the stage so we had a direct view of Christoph Eschenbach. A perfect way to end such a special day.

Day two in Leipzig consisted of another walking tour with our guide, Silvio, the Bach Archive, a private organ demonstration at Thomaskirche, and the Rachmaninov Ballet. The tour was such fun! Silvio was such a knowledgeable man with great humor. We learned so much about the various sights, landmarks, and buildings. We wrapped up the tour at the Bach Archive, and WOW was it awesome. The highlight of the tour was the archive room with original copies, books, and the original Bach portrait. The portrait was under private ownership for years until 2015 when it was brought back to Leipzig and donated to the archive. Staring into the eyes of Bach was chilling. I never thought in a million years I'd have a chance to see that portrait in person and I'm so happy I got to. Before the organ demonstration back at Thomaskirche, we had a few hours to explore. Anika and I had a chance to go and visit the Stadtgeschichtliches Museum in the old town hall. I had a few bucket list items in this museum, most of the pertaining to Martin Luther. In this museum, they had the wedding ring of Katharina von Bora, Luther's wife, a portrait of Luther, and the Luther chalice. I was geeking out. Having the chance to see two incredibly famous portraits in one day???? Then it was time for the organ demonstration. This was such a cool experience, not only did we get to hear one of the world's best organists play, but one of our OWN students, Parker, got to play both organs!! I cried out of pure joy for the music and for Parker. Such a wonderful time. We then ended our day at the Rachmaninov Ballet. We had the pleasure of seeing his 3rd and 2nd piano concertos and it was flawless. The music was perfect and the visuals were breathtaking. The use of light and depth was nothing short of beautiful.

Our third day in Leipzig was a free day to explore with a great concert by the Armonia Ensemble in the evening. I started my day off at Thomaskirche's Sunday morning service. While the service was entirely in Deutsch, I was able to pick up on quite a bit of it and I was able to sing and recite all of the prayers in Deutch. (Thank you diction 2 and Dr. Cho!) Fun fact, I got to stand RIGHT NEXT TO BACH'S TOMB AFTER THE SERVICE. It's usually roped off to the public but I had permission so I leaped at the opportunity. After the service, a group of us headed to the Mendelssohn Haus. It was such a fun and interactive museum! I loved being in Mendelssohn's space and seeing all of the various rooms and exhibits. My favorite, however, was the dress-up room. I may be a 22-year-old woman but I still love to play dress up. We decided to dress up in costumes and have a mini photoshoot. It was very silly but so much fun. I'll have those memories forever. We ended our day at the Armonia Ensemble which was another brilliant demonstration of excellent musicianship. Such a great day.

I am currently writing this post on our last full day in Leipzig. I've spent a bit of time reflecting on how great this experience has been and how grateful I am to have visited this city. What a wonderful trip this has been already, and we still have three cities to see! (please excuse the onslaught of pictures I couldn't decide which to post)