The lyrics from Bach’s Mer hahn en neue Oberkeet could have been lifted straight from Shakespeare.

An overflow crowd gathered in the performance room in Grant Hall on Friday, January 25, to hear an ensemble from the Conservatory of Music and Dance perform the work, also known as the Peasant Cantata – a series of arias and recitatives about tax collectors, dizzy lovers and villagers with a thirst for beer.

The presentation is part of the free Bach’s Lunch musical series, offered over the noon hour at Grant Hall. Next up is Nun komm der Heiden Heilend (Now come, Savior of the heathens) a church cantata scheduled for February 15 at noon.

Photo Credit: Janet Rogers, Division of Strategic Marketing and Communications