Membra Jesu Nostri: Cantatas by Dietrich Buxtehude (1637-1707)

The German-Danish composer Dietrich Buxtehude, one of the founding figures of the German Baroque organ school, was a key reference for later musicians—including Johann Sebastian Bach, who famously traveled over Protected content on foot to hear him play. Outstanding among his prolific vocal output is Membra Jesu Nostri Protected content , a cycle of seven cantatas dedicated, in an ascending sequence, to different parts of the body of the crucified Jesus Christ. Featuring poems attributed to the Cistercian monk Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, the texts combine poetry and liturgy in a balance that sways between the mystical and the erotic, driven by a desire to achieve union through the body while simultaneously transcending it. Gazes, words, and listening intertwine extraordinarily in this work.

This musical performance, directed by Rodrigo Guerrero, incorporates the poetic voice of Antonia Castaño, whose text weaves together with the cantatas to offer a present-day reading of the piece's very spirit and body.

Cantatas included in the program:

Ad pedes (To the feet)

Ad genua (To the knees)

Ad manus (To the hands)

Ad latus (To the side)

Ad faciem (To the face