Tom Allen tells the story of a young Johann Sebastian Bach at Kay Meek Arts Centre, March 16
J.S. Bach’s Long Walk in the Snow features guest musicians Suzie LeBlanc, Leslie Dala, David Harding, and Lori Gemmell
Tom Allen.
Kay Meek Arts Centre presents J.S. Bach’s Long Walk in the Snow on March 16 at 3 pm
CBC BROADCASTER AND master storyteller Tom Allen is going to be sharing the tale of a young Johann Sebastian Bach in J.S. Bach’s Long Walk in the Snow at the Kay Meek Arts Centre on March 16.
When Bach was 18, he hadn’t yet dived deeply into composing and instead was getting into all sorts of trouble. One of the world’s leading conductors and foremost interpreters of Bach, John Eliot Gardiner, has said that biographers have been so “overawed” by the genius that they have painted a misleading picture of the man. They have depicted him as a “paragon of rectitude, studious and dull, with the false assumption that music of such extraordinary and sublime quality must have come from somebody who was beyond criticism.” In fact, according to Gardiner, Bach’s education was marred by gang warfare, bullying, and truancy.
J.S. Bach’s Long Walk in the Snow takes audiences on a 400-kilometre journey to a glittering port city with street fights, big business, and more.
The presentation features performances by four guest artists: soprano Suzie LeBlanc, pianist Leslie Dala, violist David Harding, and harpist Lori Gemmell. ![]()
Gail Johnson is cofounder of Stir. She is a Vancouver-based journalist who has earned local and national nominations and awards for her work. She is a certified Gladue Report writer via Indigenous Perspectives Society in partnership with Royal Roads University and is a member of a judging panel for top Vancouver restaurants.
Related Articles
The project’s success should allow the double bassist and composer—who kicks off Music on Main’s 2026–27 season—to turn down more gigs as a hired sideman
The 1980s-themed party includes a free-play arcade, a pop-up tattoo parlour, and live performances by Trauma Novelle, Reveal Yourself, and Devours
Annual Christmas concert features compositions by Shireen Abu-Khader, Srul Irving Glick, Marie-Claire Saindon, and Stephen Smith
Led by director Greg Caisley, concert features 60-voice choir, orchestra, and four outstanding soloists
Season opener, coproduced with Pacific Opera Victoria, features a strong central trio of singers and striking lighting and sets
Vocals, movement, and lighting meet in a bold reimagining of David Lang’s Pulitzer Prize–winning choral composition
Offerings spans queer cinema, live electronic music, and dance throughout this multidisciplinary collaboration between six emerging curators
Award-winning performer, composer, and producer leads a project that blends blues, gospel, hip hop, and griot traditions
The Cree-Dene composer’s new work joins a program aimed at instilling calm, bliss, and joy
As part of the Downtown Eastside Heart of the City Festival, the new show nods to Mexico’s Día de los Muertos and similar traditions from other countries
Baroque masters William Christie and Paul Agnew lead the vocal ensemble in a revelatory program devoted to the lauded Italian composer
Featuring contemporary and canonical pieces, the acclaimed ensemble’s program at the Kay Meek Arts Centre reflects dedication to creating space for emerging and marginalized voices
The American pianist’s project is part of her ongoing engagement with the work of post-abstract expressionist painter Cy Twombly
Director Brenna Corner dove deep into history to flesh out the corruption that surrounds a tragic character who lives life on her own terms
Isabel Leong and her 18-piece band play scores by Ghibli composer Joe Hisaishi—but they don’t simply re-create the music of the films
Grammy-nominated composition draws on poetry to honour species that have vanished from the natural world
As part of Vancouver New Music’s festival, the acclaimed percussionist relies on a traditional Japanese spirit of harmony that allows Reich’s precise patterns to breathe
F.W. Murnau’s 1920 German Expressionist film—an unauthorized adaptation of Dracula—was nearly lost thanks to a lawsuit launched by Bram Stoker’s widow
