IF YOU WERE not one of the 5.9 million people drinking 5.7 million liters of beer at the famous Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany, last month, or even if you missed the Old Stein Inn's first Oktoberfest in Mayo, there is still hope.
This month, at Historic London Town and Gardens in Edgewater, you can attend Bachtoberfest -- a new twist on a centuries-old tradition.
Bachtoberfest is the brainchild of forte!, a group of 20-, 30- and 40-somethings that supports the Annapolis Symphony Orchestra by holding social and musical events. Members share interests in music, meeting people and supporting the arts in Annapolis.
They invite others with similar interests to join them in tasting Oktoberfest beers from Germany and the United States, savoring German delicacies and meeting other young symphony enthusiasts from the Baltimore-Washington-Annapolis region.
Elizabeth Hughes, an Annapolis resident and forte! president, explained the genesis of Bachtoberfest as a merging of interests in beer among members and a stroke of inspired wit.
"We'd done a series of wine tastings that was successful and began thinking about a beer tasting but wanted more of a theme to make the symphony connection. We came up with 'Bach, Beer and Bratwurst.'"
One member, Leslie Keating, blurted out, "Bachtoberfest! If you missed Oktoberfest, come to Bachtoberfest." And so the event was named. The Annapolis resident is one of the organizers of the event.
Other committee members, Natalie Green of Arnold and Vernon Sheen, Amy Schwartz, Anne Marie Maloney and Wendy Thomas, all of Annapolis, are doing their part to bring the German-themed event to fruition and introduce more people to the Annapolis Symphony and those who enjoy it. They've planned door prizes, activities, delicious food and inspiring music.
It is not clear whether the musical genius Johann Sebastian Bach would have enjoyed Oktoberfest, since the first one was held 60 years after his death. But the first Oktoberfest may have been the type of event he would have attended, simply because it was the place to be.
On Oct. 12, 1810, Maximilian Joseph, king of Bavaria, gave a huge wedding celebration for Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen. Held on a meadow in Munich, the party culminated with a series of horse races and gave rise to the tradition of the annual festival.
Oktoberfests have been held in Munich since that time, and as German immigrants came to North America, smaller community events sprouted up, some becoming quite large.
Oktoberfest is also a style of beer, which is brewed very much like the reddish-amber Maerzen beer that was served at the crown prince's wedding. A commercial Oktoberfest beer was introduced in 1872.
As much as Oktoberfest is a doorway to learning about Bavarian culture, forte!'s Bachtoberfest is a way to meet new people with similar interests and learn about symphonic music. Committee members have learned that in a well-known image of Bach painted in 1748 by Gottlieb Elias Haussman, the composer is holding a piece of music. The piece is known as a "puzzle canon."
A canon is a difficult musical composition in which one "voice" is accompanied by another "voice" that has the same notes in the same sequence but starts later than the first, while the first is already going. It is similar in concept to a song sung in rounds. Bach was a master of the canon and began leaving out marks indicating when a new voice should start. Bach left these puzzles, one with the words "Quaerendo invenietis -- in seeking, thou shalt find [it]."
Bachtoberfest will be held from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Nov. 23 at Historic London Town and Gardens. Tickets are $30 and available by advance purchase only. Mail checks, payable to forte!, by Nov. 18 to forte! c/o Amy Schwartz, 41 Gentry Court, Annapolis 21403. Information: 410- 268-8998.
Anyone who buys a ticket to Bachtoberfest can receive a 50 percent discount to the ASO concert Friday, Nov. 22, in which Brian Ganz will performs Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 1. Information about the offer: 410- 268-8998. ASO information: www.annapolissymphony.org.