The statue of Bach at Thomaskirche.
He looks very stern,
I much prefer the one at Eisenach, although it is a bit more weatherbeaten.
My quest for Bach places finally led me to Leipzig. Bach moved there in 1730, appointed as Director Musices or Kantor at the St Thomaskirche; Bach saw this as a demotion from his previous post as Kapellmeister at Cöthen, nevertheless he worked there for the rest of his life. He was in charge of the Thomannerchor, the famous and long-established boys' choir at the Thomaskirche, and did duty at St Nikolaskirche, the other large church in the centre of Leipzig's old city. Nevertheless he produced a prodigious amount of music during this period. He composed the music for sung cantatas every week, and set the Mass to music. His motets for the Thomannerchor are gems of the genre, but his two Passions, the St John and the St Matthew Passions were works of great scope, and still recorded by choirs and orchestras. The St Matthew Passion fills nearly three CD's; my version is that by Philippe Herreweghe with the Collegium Vocale, and takes a good two-and-a-half hours of concentrated listening. "Old Bach", as he became known, composed a lot of keyboard music (which is the route by which I approached him), including the compendious The Well-tempered Klavier, preludes and fugues in all 48 major and minor keys. The title page is rather nice:The Welltuned Clavier
or
Preludes, and
Fugues on all the Tones and Semitones
In both major keys Ut Re Mi
As also in minor keys or Re Mi Fa
For the needs and use of
Musical youth, as well as those already
experienced in this study
for the passing of time, arranged
and finished by
Johann Sebastian Bach.
or
Preludes, and
Fugues on all the Tones and Semitones
In both major keys Ut Re Mi
As also in minor keys or Re Mi Fa
For the needs and use of
Musical youth, as well as those already
experienced in this study
for the passing of time, arranged
and finished by
Johann Sebastian Bach.
(taken from Arnold's book)
This, and inter alia the Partitas, Goldberg Variations, English and French Suites, are still performed and recorded by top artists. If one has the time, it is interesting to get the piano and harpsichord versions: Bach wrote mainly for the harpsichord , but I think the fortepiano was already in use by his time. The piano transcriptions of these works make good listening, anyway. On my visit in June 2008, I was lucky enough to attend two choral recitals in St Thomaskirche, the sound of the boys' choir in that great church was astouinding, and a big crowd of tourists and Leipzigers were spellbound. On the long midsummer evenings, the platz adjacent to the church is a popular place to relax, with good retausrants, cafès and fountains. The kids playing in the fountains gave me quite some amusement.
Badly damaged in WW2, Leipzig has been extensively restored, paritcularly since the reunification of Germany in 1989. The Alte Stadt is a delightful place to browse in, the startling modern architecture contrasting with the traditional gilt and copper domes of the old.
Leipzig is an important university city, and building was going on apace on campus buildings right in the city. A few blocks from the centre I found the Mendelssohnhaus museum, now part of the Leipzig University music department. One floor is given over to the museum, and an excellent display it is (I happen to like Mendelssohn's music as well!) It was Mendelssohn who was partly responsible for reving interest in J S Bach's music: many of the autograph manuscripots had been scattered or lost, and he was intrumental in getting alot of it together, although an unknown amount of compositions have disappeared. The recital chamber in the Mendelssohnhaus had in it a brand new Bösendorfer piano, veneered in a light coloured wood. The museum attendant told me that it had been specially made for them! Oh, to hear the composer's music on such a piano -- but it wasn't to be on that visit.
I must acknowledge that I've drawn heavily on the sources below for facts and figures, but I hope this has conveyed some of my impressions as well.
Sources:
The baroque music website: www.baroquemusic.org. The site contains a wealth of information, and many links to other sources.
Books:
Arnold, Denis: Bach; OUP Past Masters; 1984.
Gaines, James R: Evening in the Palace of Reason; Harper Perennial; 2005.
Some of my own Cd's and catalogues.
This, and inter alia the Partitas, Goldberg Variations, English and French Suites, are still performed and recorded by top artists. If one has the time, it is interesting to get the piano and harpsichord versions: Bach wrote mainly for the harpsichord , but I think the fortepiano was already in use by his time. The piano transcriptions of these works make good listening, anyway. On my visit in June 2008, I was lucky enough to attend two choral recitals in St Thomaskirche, the sound of the boys' choir in that great church was astouinding, and a big crowd of tourists and Leipzigers were spellbound. On the long midsummer evenings, the platz adjacent to the church is a popular place to relax, with good retausrants, cafès and fountains. The kids playing in the fountains gave me quite some amusement.
Badly damaged in WW2, Leipzig has been extensively restored, paritcularly since the reunification of Germany in 1989. The Alte Stadt is a delightful place to browse in, the startling modern architecture contrasting with the traditional gilt and copper domes of the old.
Leipzig is an important university city, and building was going on apace on campus buildings right in the city. A few blocks from the centre I found the Mendelssohnhaus museum, now part of the Leipzig University music department. One floor is given over to the museum, and an excellent display it is (I happen to like Mendelssohn's music as well!) It was Mendelssohn who was partly responsible for reving interest in J S Bach's music: many of the autograph manuscripots had been scattered or lost, and he was intrumental in getting alot of it together, although an unknown amount of compositions have disappeared. The recital chamber in the Mendelssohnhaus had in it a brand new Bösendorfer piano, veneered in a light coloured wood. The museum attendant told me that it had been specially made for them! Oh, to hear the composer's music on such a piano -- but it wasn't to be on that visit.
I must acknowledge that I've drawn heavily on the sources below for facts and figures, but I hope this has conveyed some of my impressions as well.
Sources:
The baroque music website: www.baroquemusic.org. The site contains a wealth of information, and many links to other sources.
Books:
Arnold, Denis: Bach; OUP Past Masters; 1984.
Gaines, James R: Evening in the Palace of Reason; Harper Perennial; 2005.
Some of my own Cd's and catalogues.
A pensive little boy, playing at the fountains.
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[Note: I have found this post very difficult to edit, it seems Blogger's editing tools are erratic, to say the least. Anyway, I apologise if it doesn't look good on the page -- I should really cut and paste from Word, I think]
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