New Perspectives on J. S. Bach's St. Matthew Passion : The Choreographic Vision of John Neumeier

Abstract

Abstract: In 1980–1981, the American choreographer John Neumeier, director of the Hamburg Ballet since 1973, created a ballet to Bach's St. Matthew Passion . Aware that choreographing a revered icon of sacred music might be viewed as a violation of its sacrosanct status, he expressed his belief that "A choreographic realization of the Matthew Passion only appeared justified to me if it gives a new, unique dimension to the work … [and that like music] dance offers a means of escape from the grip of time and history to achieve inner reflection and a psychic state." In this essay, we discuss representative sections of the ballet and explore Neumeier's realization of these goals. Sometimes he focuses on visualizing a movement's structure and enhancing its affective and dramatic impact with contemporary ballet choreography. In other movements, he employs eclectic modern dance styles that, while contrasting in striking ways with the music, also enhance it. Both approaches inspire new dimensions and inner reflection. Ultimately, the choreography represents a visual corporeal transcription of the score and its timbres, which, without altering them, contributes new aesthetic perspectives. Our choreo/musical analysis will also address relationships between the ballet and issues in subsequent musicological scholarship, including aspects of Bach's performance practice, his cyclical versus linear approach to time, his occasional composition of works that threaten to stretch performers beyond their limits, and concerns about antisemitism in the turbae. The Hamburg Ballet has performed Matthäus-Passion , which has become one of Neumeier's most important and signature creations, throughout Europe, as well as in Japan, China, Canada, and the United States. The ballet reveals new and unexpected dimensions and affective experiences to audiences already familiar with the St. Matthew Passion and introduces it in a compelling manner to those who have never experienced one of Bach's most esteemed works.