I was fortunate as a teenager to have classical music around me: where others in my position would have looked to get high on pills as a way out of their angst, I had Bach.
It is difficult to describe the range of emotions that a stodgy-looking gent who died all of 261 years ago can still evoke. We can read of the formal perfection, the mathematical logic of his works, but what of the passion, the fire? What nails it for me, at a time of turmoil, is the comforting repetitive cadence of a Baroque tune, it seems to tell you that a time, place and person are just specks of sand on a beach, yet curiously asserts that you and I and all that we love will endure.
So, when you’re down and out and reaching for support, transcendental Baroque will sort you out: the Brandenburg Concerti, the Goldberg Variations, the Cello Suites: not the biggest sounds/ tunes but remarkably strong and resilient...
Bach Brandenburg Concerto no 6, 3rd movement, Bach Cello Suite no 1, 1st movement, Bach Goldberg Variations-Aria
My favourite is Bach's Toccata Fugue in C Minor played at full volume. Remember Norman Jewison's 1971 movie Rollerball ?
ReplyDeleteAs a kid my father gave me Pierre la Mure's book "Beyond Desire" -- the heart rending story of Felix Mendelsohn's giving up his family wealth(2nd richest after the Rothschilds) to look for the works of Bach. If not for him we would not be aware of JSB as the music was lost to mankind. You must read the book -- managed to get a copy from amazon.com