Bach Ensemble at St. Thomas

10/22/2026

Our organ recitalist before the November 15 Vespers is Dr. Sarah Simko.

She is a concert and collaborative organist and scholar and serves as Liturgical Coordinator for the Diocese of Southern Ohio and organist at First Presbyterian Church of Lexington, Kentucky. She also performs regularly with Beyond Choir in Ypsilanti, Michigan.

Dr. Simko has appeared in recital at distinguished venues throughout the United States, Canada, and England, including Trinity Church in New York City, Hill Auditorium in Ann Arbor, Methuen Memorial Music Hall in Massachusetts, and St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, Ontario. Her recent collaborations include performances of Duruflé’s Requiem, Handel’s Messiah, and Diego Vega’s Sinfonía Profana, working with prominent choirs, orchestras, and conductors.

A recipient of a Presser Foundation Graduate Award, Dr. Simko created Living Voices, a three-CD recording project highlighting organ music by living American women composers. The project seeks to increase access to an important and often overlooked body of repertoire. She frequently presents lectures and recitals about this work for professional organizations, universities, and American Guild of Organists chapters.

Dr. Simko is a member of the Anglican Association of Musicians and serves on the editorial board of its journal. A longtime member of the American Guild of Organists, she has served multiple chapters as secretary. Her honors include recognition in The Diapason magazine’s “Top 20 Under 30” (2017), Oakland County Executive’s “Elite 40 Under 40” (2018), and First Prize in the University of Michigan’s 2017 Schoenstein Competition in the Art of Organ Accompaniment.

While at the University of Michigan, she contributed to interdisciplinary research examining how the brain processes music through analysis of J.S. Bach’s Six Sonatas, BWV 525–530.

Dr. Simko holds degrees from the University of Michigan, where she studied with Dr. James Kibbie and Dr. Kola Owolabi, and the Eastman School of Music. She maintains an active organ and piano teaching studio in Michigan and Ohio.

10/01/2026

🎶 J.S. Bach – Schmücke dich, o liebe Seele, BWV 180

A beloved communion hymn becomes the foundation for one of Bach’s most intimate and devotional cantatas.

✨ Schmücke dich, o liebe Seele—“Adorn yourself, dear soul”—invites us into a moment of quiet preparation, reflection, and spiritual renewal. With beautiful chorales, expressive arias, and Bach’s unmistakable warmth, this cantata portrays the deeply personal side of his sacred music.

Join the Bach Ensemble at St. Thomas for an evening of music that speaks softly, but resonates deeply.

📅 Sunday, October 11, 5:00 pm
Lecture at 4:00 p.m.
Organ Recital at 4:40 p.m. (Andrew Hackett)
📍 St. Thomas Church, Terrace Park



Experience Bach’s music in the intimate setting of St. Thomas.

09/24/2026

The Bach Ensemble's next Vespers is Sunday, October 11. The pre-Vespers organ recital will be performed by Andrew Hackett.

Hackett serves as organist at Covenant-First Presbyterian Church in Cincinnati. Prior appointments include Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church in Minneapolis, MN; First Congregational Church in Spencerport, NY; and the Chapel of St. Thomas Aquinas on the campus of the University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, MN. He received his BA in organ performance from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, MN, and his MM in organ performance and literature from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY. He has performed as choral accompanist and recitalist throughout the US and Europe. Also a prize-winning composer, his pieces have been premiered by members of the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, the faculties of the University of St. Thomas, MN, St. Olaf College, MN, and the College-Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati, OH, and the choir of Christ Church Cathedral in Cincinnati, OH. The weekly syndicated radio program Pipedreams, hosted by Michael Barone, has featured his compositions for organ.

09/21/2026

The Bach Ensemble's 26-27 season kicked off yesterday with a beautiful service centered around Bach's Die Himmel erzählen die Ehre Gottes, BWV 76. The Ensemble's organist, Jason Gunnel, gave the prelude recital.

The next Vespers is Sunday, October 11, 5 pm.

09/18/2026

Make Sunday afternoon a little more beautiful.

Join us this Sunday, September 20 at 5:00 p.m. for Bach Vespers at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Terrace Park.

Experience the timeless music of J.S. Bach in the beautiful, intimate setting of St. Thomas.

🎶 Bach Vespers
📅 Sunday, September 20
🕔 5:00 p.m.
📍 St. Thomas Episcopal Church, Terrace Park

Timeless Music Today.

Come reflect and experience Bach.

(Pictured - a statue of our namesake outside his church, the "other" St. Thomas in Leipzig.

09/17/2026

09/16/2026

Back by popular demand!

Our Pre-Vespers Lectures are returning for the 2026–2027 season.

Join us before each Vespers service for an engaging look at the music you’re about to hear. Adam Shoaff returns to share insights and context that can deepen your appreciation and listening experience.

📖 Pre-Vespers Talk
🕓 4:00–4:30 p.m.
📍 Parish Hall at St. Thomas

Come early, learn something new, and hear the music in a whole new way.

Bach Vespers at St. Thomas — music, context, and community.

09/15/2026

What happens when a genius arrives in a new city?

This Sunday, hear J.S. Bach’s answer.

J.S. Bach – Die Himmel erzählen die Ehre Gottes, BWV 76

One of the very first cantatas Bach composed after arriving in Leipzig in 1723, BWV 76 is the sound of a genius announcing himself.

It is ambitious, dramatic and full of the musical imagination that would define Bach’s years in Leipzig.

Join the Bach Ensemble at St. Thomas for this powerful opening to our 2026–2027 Vespers season.

Sunday, September 20
5:00 p.m. — Bach Vespers
4:00 p.m. — Pre-Vespers Talk with Adam Shoaff
4:40 p.m. — Organ Recital - Jason Gunnell

St. Thomas Episcopal Church | Terrace Park

09/14/2026

Before each Bach Vespers service, the magnificent Paul Fritts organ at Saint Thomas Episcopal Church comes to life.

Built specifically for the sanctuary and installed in 2023, this remarkable 35-stop instrument combines extraordinary craftsmanship with a rich, warm, and colorful sound inspired by some of the great European organs of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

As part of each Bach Vespers, join us for a Prelude Organ Recital at 4:40 p.m. and experience this extraordinary instrument in the beautiful acoustics of Saint Thomas.

Come early, listen closely, and let the sound of the organ prepare you for an inspiring evening. Bach Ensemble organist Jason Gunnell performs this Sunday.

Prelude Organ Recital | 4:40 p.m.
Bach Vespers | 5:00 p.m.
Saint Thomas Episcopal Church | Terrace Park