The Bachfest Leipzig (Leipzig Bach Festival) is a
music festival which takes place annually, in the month of June,[1] in the city of
Leipzig, where
J. S. Bach worked as the
Thomaskantor from 1723 until his death in 1750. The current artistic director is Professor
Michael Maul.
The city first hosted a festival in 1904, for the
Neue Bachgesellschaft, and then formally, since 1908.[2] The festival was sometimes referred to as the Bachwochen (Bach Weeks) or Bachtage (Bach Days). Since 1999, the festival has been organized by the
Bach Archive on behalf of the city of Leipzig, each year under a different theme.
Each year there are approximately 100 individual events during the Bach Festival, beginning with an opening concert conducted by the serving Thomaskantor. The final concert is traditionally a performance of Bach's Mass in B minor in the
St. Thomas Church.