A Brief History

Picture

​
​Since its founding in 1999 by a group of Columbia University musicians, the Columbia Bach Society has become a major part of musical life at Columbia. Composed of Columbia University students as well as musicians from the greater New York City community, the Bach Society proudly presents several concerts throughout the academic year.
Picture

​
​
Founded under the direction of Columbia alumnus Ken-David Masur, the Bach Society has toured Germany, produced and performed numerous operas, given concerts at the 92nd Street Y, the University Club in Manhattan, and St. Paul's Chapel at Columbia University, and released its debut CD.

What We Do

In recent years, the Society has championed the revival of rarely performed works, initiated a Masterworks series dedicated to exploring canonic works within the classical literature, produced and performed 3 fully-staged early operas, collaborated with other on-campus arts organizations, performed world premieres of pieces commissioned for the ensemble, and launched a lecture series dedicated to intellectually exploring music within a liberal arts setting. Further, the Society has become a dynamic space for student leadership and a strong community of like-minded peers.​​
The Bach Society's past music directors include: Ken-David Masur, Ken Selden, David Rosenmeyer, Geoff McDonald, Harrison Hollingsworth, Kevin Lee, Andre Chan, Jeffrey Torborg, Isaac Parlin, and Sofia Ouyang.
​
​Currently, the Bach Society is co-directed by Nitya Nigam and Victor Jong, and governed by an Executive Board of current students.