A new attraction is creating buzz as the Oregon Bach Festival kicks off its 44th edition this week. Performances begin Thursday night and last through July 12, drawing audiences from around the country and featuring several international musicians
The new attraction this year is the Berwick Academy for Historical Performance. Musicians from all over the country have come to Eugene for this three-day intensive program.
The practice is called “historically-informed” performance. The goal is to make the pieces sound as close to their debut performance as possible, said Dave Goudy, interim education director for the festival.
“It will give the audience a new view of a piece than how it was recorded for the last 100 years,” Goudy said.
The Berwick Academy will perform an all-Beethoven concert on Saturday, May 27, and an all-Bach concert the following Friday, July 3.
Phyllis and Andrew Berwick recently donated $6.5 million to the festival. The Berwicks are University of Oregon alumni; they’re $7.25 million donation last year helped start the academy.
Their most recent donation is funding a new building for OBF headquarters. The new two-story building will be located south of the music school facing 18th Ave. It is expected to open before the 2017 festival.
The educational aspect of the Berwick Academy is nothing new.
When the festival began, it was part of the music school on the UO campus. The festival “got started as an education program,” Goudy said.
Other educational programs will go on to perform at the festival as well, such as the Stangeland Family Youth Choral Academy for high school vocal performers and the Conducting Master Class, taught by Matthew Halls, OBF artistic director. The conducting class alone has had over 1,000 graduates since the festival began.
OBF’s position in the university is similar to the museums on campus. They are university-run programs that mostly operate independently.
“As a program of the University of Oregon,” OBF’s mission statement says, “the festival provides the highest level of performances and innovative educational opportunities.”
Interim Executive Director Michael Anderson started as a clarinetist in the festival 35 years ago, and has worked there ever since.
“We couldn’t run the organization without about half the staff knowing classical,” Anderson said.
The festival continues Eugene’s reputation for international events, carrying on from the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships held at Hayward Field two weeks ago.
“Eugene is a small town. It’s not easy to get to,” said Goudy. “But we achieve things that you wouldn’t expect.”