Description
Book SynopsisTrade ReviewThere is a widespread feeling among music lovers today that 'Bach is a good friend of mine,' and that if he were alive in this era, he would surely be an 'ultra-modern' person who was good at Facebook and Twitter—after all, his music appeals so much to us! I find Michael Marissen's new book discussing Bach, rather, in opposition to modernity to be a wonderful model of historically-informed analytic criticism, not only against 'modernism,' but also against the current easy-going commercialism and triumphalistic secularism that prevent us from truly deepening our understanding and enjoyment of Bach. Wholeheartedly welcome! * Masaaki Suzuki, music director of Bach Collegium Japan *
This is a thought-provoking, incisive, and hugely enlightening collection of essays from one of the most respected and original thinkers in Bach studies today. Marissen's razor-sharp wit and crystal-clear prose cut through some of the enduring myths of modern Bach reception to reveal different, unexpected, and sometimes uncomfortable facets of the man and his music. * Bettina Varwig, University of Cambridge *
Table of ContentsPreface Credits Part I - Constraints of History on Interpretation 1. Bach Against Modernity 2. Bach's Handwritten Entries in his Bible Part II - Brief Commentaries 3. Fractal Gavottes and the Ephemeral World in Bach's Cantata 64 4. Time and Eternities in Bach's Cantata 23 5. Bach's Christmas Oratorio and a Blessed End 6. Bach and Art and Mammon Part III - Texts 7. Historically Informed Renderings of the Librettos from Bach's Cantatas (co-author, Daniel R. Melamed) Part IV - Jews and Judaism 8. On the Jews and their So-Called Lies in the Fourth Gospel and Bach's St. John Passion 9. Bach and Sons in the Jewish Salon Culture of 19th-Century Berlin Part V - Theological Character of Secular Instrumental Music 10. Bach's Sacred Brandenburg Concertos 11. The Serious Nature of the Quodlibet in Bach's Goldberg Variations Works Cited Index of Bach's Works Index of Names and Subjects
