Bach Virtuosi Festival

About BVF

BVF

The Bach Virtuosi Festival, founded by violinist Lewis Kaplan, offers residents and visitors of New York City (May) and Portland, Maine (June) a world-class concert series for lovers of the baroque repertoire since 2016. The Bach Virtuosi are some of the world’s most renowned interpreters of the baroque repertoire, having been awarded The Early Music America’s Howard Mayer Brown Award for Lifetime Achievement. They perform internationally as soloists and ensembles, and are also celebrated musicologists and professors who play Bach and his contemporaries with brilliance, love and integrity. BVF holds concerts in churches, synagogues, and intimate venues with spectacular acoustics, so attendees can be close to the musicians and further their appreciation for this exalted music.

St. Luke's Cathedral Portland Maine
Locations

BVF holds concerts in churches, synagogues, and intimate venues with spectacular acoustics, including Church of St. Ignatius of Antioch and Church of the Heavenly Rest (NYC), and Saint Alban’s Church and Etz Chaim Synagogue (Maine), so attendees can be close to the musicians and further their appreciation for this exalted music regardless of religious affiliations.

Why we love Portland

Portland, Maine has been the home of Bach Virtuosi Festival since 2016. In 2025, BVF Maine celebrated its 10th anniversary. It was founded in this picturesque city because Lewis Kaplan had guided the Bowdoin International Music Festival from 1964-2014. When he decided to start a Bach festival, the location was an easy decision. We love Portland because of its beautiful architecture, the homeowners who house our musicians, the places to explore, and the fact that Portland is a food & wine city. Come enjoy this festival while savoring the delectable and fun activities this city offers.

Portland Maine downtown

Aeolian Chamber Players

The Bach Virtuosi Festival is presented by Aeolian Chamber Players, Inc., a non-profit corporation. The mission of Aeolian Chamber Players, Inc. is to advance the knowledge of music by presenting and supporting public performances of music and other programs, by commissioning new musical works, and by assisting talented students in their musical studies and early careers. The corporation sponsored music performances and other musical

endeavors by the Aeolian Chamber Players, a chamber music group performing throughout the United States and Europe, including residencies at various colleges and at the Bowdoin International Music Festival. It makes significant grants for each year the Bach Virtuosi Festival is held. The musicians who perform at BVF are the nucleus of the Bach Virtuosi Festival, which will be held for its tenth year in 2025 in Portland, and its second year in NYC.