FIU Symphony Orchestra and Choirs: Bach’s Magnificat

Bach’s festive choral writing brings FIU’s orchestra and choirs together for a major School of Music performance. The concert takes place Friday, December 4 at the Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Performing Arts Center as part of the FIU Wertheim School of Music & Performing Arts 2026-2027 season. Conducted by Javier José Mendoza, the program features the FIU Symphony Orchestra and Choirs in J.S. Bach’s Magnificat.

Written during Bach’s early years in Leipzig and later revised into the D-major version widely performed today, the Magnificat opens with trumpets, timpani, orchestra and five-part chorus. Across 12 concise movements, the work moves between celebratory choral sections and more intimate solo arias, setting Mary’s song of praise with rhythmic vitality and expressive contrast.

Presented by the FIU Wertheim School of Music & Performing Arts, the concert brings together chorus, vocal soloists and orchestra for an evening centered on one of Bach’s most vivid sacred works.