The Bach Virtuosi Festival returns to Portland from Tuesday-June 23 with four performances at three venues showcasing the music of German composer Johann Sebastian Bach performed by world-renowned musicians.

The festival was founded by conductor/violinist Lewis Kaplan in 2016. For the past three years, performances have happened in New York City along with Maine.

Now 92, Kaplan served as director and co-founder of the Bowdoin International Music Festival for five decades and remains on the faculty of Juilliard music school in Manhattan, where he lives. He began playing violin at age 5, and his last public performance was three years ago in Rome.

Kaplan’s connection to Bach runs deep.

“I can be very troubled, and I’ll open a score or just put on YouTube and listen to Bach and all of the anguish and the pain just subsides and goes away,” he said.

He compares Bach’s importance to music with Shakespeare’s impact on literature and Michelangelo’s on art.

Kaplan also believes Bach’s music can resonate with listeners who primarily listen to more modern genres.

“In today’s ears with rock ‘n’ roll and its many variations, there is an underlying strong bass beat and that is also a major factor in Baroque music,” said Kaplan.

Another misconception Kaplan is quick to challenge is the notion that classical music is only for the high brow. “I can tell you, whether it be Beethoven, Mozart and indeed Bach, a huge percentage of their music was written as entertainment and was not meant to be highly intellectual,” he said. “There is so much that is strictly meant to make you feel good.”

Kaplan will be conducting the opening night performance of the cantata “Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott” (“A Mighty Fortress is Our God”). Most people will recognize the music as among Bach’s most famous. The audience, reading off a printed copy they’ll receive, will be invited to sing the German chorus at the end of the piece. “It’s a lot of fun,” said Kaplan.

The festival closes with Bach’s “Coffee Cantata,” a lighthearted tale about a father who warns his coffee-loving daughter that her habit will prevent her from finding a husband. The performance features three vocalists, including soprano Emily Donato.

Kaplan’s enthusiasm for Bach spills over into an invitation to audiences that is especially timely.

“In this world, I think all of us are very disturbed and maybe even frightened,” he said. “I think that listening to this music, even though you may not have been introduced to it before, it may be the most beautiful and wonderful way to be removed from the everyday anxiety that we all suffer.”

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IF YOU GO

Celebrate Summer with Bach, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. Crewe Center for the Arts, University of Southern Maine, 11 Bedford St., Portland, $29-$91. porttix.com.

The Goldberg Variations, 7:30 p.m. June 18. Etz Chaim Synagogue, 267 Congress St., Portland, $69. porttix.com.

Bach By Candlelight, 6 & 8 p.m. June 22. Emmanuel Chapel at St. Luke’s Cathedral, 143 State St., Portland, $103. porttix.com.

Bach’s Coffee Cantata: Good to the Last Note, 7:30 p.m. June 23. Crewe Center for the Arts, University of Southern Maine, 11 Bedford St., Portland, $29-$91. porttix.com.