The Bachfest Leipzig is marking a special anniversary in 2023: In the year 1723, so exactly 300 years ago, Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 – 1750) took up his post as cantor of St. Thomas Church in the Saxon city. His job involved planning the music for worship in several churches on around 60 days of the year, as well as teaching pupils at the St. Thomas School. To accomplish this mammoth task, Bach composed cantatas at a rate of almost one a week during his first year in office alone. The compositions, which later became known as Bach’s “first cantata cycle in Leipzig,” not only astonished his contemporaries but continue to delight people to this day.