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"And if we look at the works of J.S. Bach — a benevolent god to which all musicians should offer a prayer to defend themselves against mediocrity... -Debussy
"It's ok if you disagree with me. I can't force you to be right."
Yeah, I noticed that! (I don't hang around in the other forums.)
But of course the great man's b-day has not been lost on me and I have been listening this evening to the very charismatic Joan Lippincott play Bach on the Flentrop at Duke University.
Wow. She is one of the great interpreters of Bach on the organ. Her BWV 564 (TA&C) is as thrilling as BWV 538 ('Dorian') is as alert to its quirkiness.
The famous pedal salvos in the the Toccata in F (BWV 540) are dispatched with a quicksilver ease and grandeur, and one of my favourites, the P&C in C (BWV 547 '9/8') starts slower than I played it, but Ms. Lippincott is fully convincing and she probably could have taught me so much.
I'm not big on the whole 'happy birthday, dead composer' thing.
Nothing morbid, for me at least, just an opportunity to renew my appreciation of a master. That is why I put on recordings of Bach's organ works when I got home from work.
In my experience, Bach's organ works communicate more profoundly than his other works.
I was planning on celebrating his birthday on the 31st, because of the whole Julian to Gregorian calendar switch after his birth. I guess it's irrelevant whether we're celebrating on the calendar date that his birth certificate shows (Julian), or when the earth is in the same position on its track around the sun as the day he was born (Gregorian), as long as we're remembering him and enjoying his music.
But I'd suggest that as the reason there weren't already threads celebrating him.
Thank you Bach for creating everything you did. In particular, your keyboard suites have been a constant source of joy in my life, ever since I discovered them.
