Life in Leipzig - Alyson

        On January 13th, we traveled to Leipzig. After checking in at our hostel, I almost immediately went down the street to Tomaskirche. I took my obligatory photo in front of the Bach statue, and then went in. Even though the church wasn't that big of a place, I spent around 40 minutes wandering around; looking at the stained glass, the organs, and, of course, paying my respects to Bach at his grave. Then, I wandered around town a bit, mostly in search of food. I also happened upon the Goethe statue, which was a pleasant surprise. That evening, we saw the Gewandhaus Orchestra with a program of Sofia Gubaidulina's Concordanza for chamber orchestra, Mozart's K. 365 Concerto for two pianos, and Brahm's first symphony. We had seats behind the orchestra, looking at the conductor (Eschenbach), which was particularly enjoyable for me, as that is the perspective I most often have at concerts and I enjoyed watching such a spectacular ensemble that way. Not to mention that the performance of Brahm's first was probably the best I've ever heard.

    On the morning of January 14th, we went on a tour of Leipzig. We started at the square surrounded by Oper Leipzig, the Gewandhaus, and the reconstructed facade of Universitatskirche St. Paul, which had been blown up in 1968. We also went to see the Goethe statue, were recommended a Kaffehaus, stopped in the Museum of Fine Arts to see the Beethoven statue by Max Klinger, and then made our way to the Bach Archiv. The Bach Archiv was incredible. I can't quite explain what it meant to look at the scores and parts in Bach's (or his family members') own handwriting. Standing in the same room as the organ console of St. John's (and a handful of pipes), knowing that Bach sat and played on that instrument was truly incredible. I could have spent all day there, looking at instruments and scores, reading the historical insights on various aspects of Bach's life, but I was hungry, so I went with a handful of people to the Kaffeehaus Riquet for a bite to eat. Not long after that, I attended a service in Thomaskirche, mostly to hear the organ (honestly, entirely to hear the organ). After the service, there was a little bit of time to grab a hot chocolate down the street before we went back to the church for a demonstration of the organs. We got to hear both played, not only by the resident organist, Johannes Lang, but by our very own Parker Zieschang! It was such a special experience and I'm so happy to have shared it with the class. That evening, we went to Oper Leipzig to see the Rachmaninov Ballet. I didn't expect to be as moved by the performance as I was. Something about the lush, full romantic piano concerti with the angular, precise staging and choreography was uniquely impactful. It was truly a night I won't forget.

    I took a slow day on January 15th, recuperating after traveling and wanting to have plenty of energy for the evening's concert. I did make a quick trip to Thomaskirche, not wanting to break my 2-day streak of visiting Bach. That night, we saw the Armonia Ensemble. Chamber music is my absolute favorite type of performance, not only to play, but to watch, so I was very excited about the concert. They did not disappoint. I just loved watching the ensemble move and breathe together. I caught one moment between the oboes where they had to echo each other, and they completely nailed it; phrasing, articulation, everything, and they smiled so wide at each other that it felt like a high-five. Those moments always feel great when playing, and witnessing it between two incredible players was quite special. After the concert, I went to dinner with a handful of people down the street from the hostel and had a good time sharing stories with my peers.

    On the 16th, I took another slow day. After a group picture by the Bach and Mendelssohn statues, the day was ours until dinner. I had some errands to run, so I took care of those and got some lunch whilst I was out. About an hour before we were meeting for dinner, I decided to head back to Thomaskirche to get the Bach Playmobil from the store. I'd been thinking about it since I first saw it on the 13th, so I figured it was worth the 7 euros. I also, once again, took a moment to pay my respects to Bach and, since it was our last day. I also put a flower on his grave, something I'd seen another group do a day earlier. That night, we had dinner at Bayericher Bahnhoff. There were excellent pretzels, and, of course, kaiserschmarrn for dessert. I paired my meal with Gose beer, which I was surprised to find I really enjoyed. After dinner, we headed back to the hostel to prepare for our travel to Prague.

Alyson