Performing Bach - Now and Then
Welcome to our new Discussion of the Week!
This week, I wanted to take a closer look at Bach Performance Practice on the Classical Guitar, now and then!
As all of us are painfully aware, Bach did never write a piece for classical guitar, because the guitar wasn’t even invented back then! In recent years we’ve also discovered that the so called lute suites weren’t composed with the technical possibilities of the lute in mind, they were composed for the Lautenwerck, a harpsichord-like instrument (which explains the extreme complex and difficult polyphony of the so called Lute Suites BWV 997).
But that has never stopped us guitarists from tackling pieces that were birthed for different instruments! Nowadays, there probably hasn’t been one work by Bach that hasn’t been transcribed for a multitude of instruments (also due to the fact Bach himself sometimes didn’t specify the instrumentation).
Today, historical informed practice is an art form that includes thorough research into the primary and secondary source materials, such as the vast library of Bach Archiv in Leipzig and historical method books (I’ll add some of my most important inspirations to this post).
But now let me present two different interpretations of the same piece, the eternal Fuge BWV1000, first played by Julian Bream.
And now by Ricardo Gallen:
Performance practice, especially for Bach's music has changed so much over the years, but we should never forget that nothing is forbidden as long as you play the music with joy!
What is you most memorable moment with Bach's music?
Let me share you mine: It was the time when I applied for university to study with Prof. Joaquin Clerch in Düsseldorf. I was told to perform at 9am in the morning, so I woke up at 5am to get ready, warm up, stretch a bit and be in perfect shape to perform the Prelude of BWV 1006. I was ready when I arrived!
But then, when I was there, I realized I was not alone: EVERYBODY else was there as well (including Mircea ) I was like "damn, I hope I'll be first). But I wasn't we sorted out the order because everybody got the same time and I ended up needing to wait until 3pm.
So I went back to my hotel and slept a few more hours, coming back at noon, because I wanted to warm up again. That was when Joaquin actually saw me walking up the stairs and we was like: "Ah, good, you're here, come, play!". BUT I WASN'T READY OR WARMED UP! But sometimes life doesn't ask you whether your ready or not, you just gotta face what's ahead of you.
And I did. And I played well, because I was too tired to be nervous. And a few years later I ended up here with you at tonebase, because I am sure that every moment in life leads to the point where you're at at the moment :)
And I am very happy about that 
-
Ohh, I remember that day! I was actually sleeping in a hostel, with 5 other people in my room, because I couldn't afford a hotel, so I didn't even have a proper practice space
My most memorable moment with Bach's music has got to be our first lesson with Anthony Spiri, also in Düsseldorf. I'm pretty sure you were actually there too, Martin ! Watching all these players before me completely transform their understanding of Bach AND make it come alive after only 5 minutes of teaching from him was positively life-changing.
-
Mircea Man, whose were really great classes, among the most valuable over my entire studies! I remember you were waring quite a funky blue shirt on that day!
-
Martin wow, you have a much better memory than I do! I have no idea what any of us was wearing in any of these classes back in 2009
I am very impressed!
-
-
Well, this one is memorable, but in a somewhat negative way. I teach high school students (not music), and I always play for my students on the last day of school. One year, I decided to play the Prelude to Cello Suite No 1. Before playing, I asked the class what classical composers they had heard of. Pretty quickly, the names Beethoven and Mozart came out, but not anyone else. I asked, "Has anyone ever heard of Johann Sebastian Bach?" Only one student in the whole class said she had heard of him!
I then proceeded to botch the Prelude pretty badly. But who cares? For all they knew, I played it perfectly!
-
Eric Phillips not even the name !!!!! that was very sad.... but you did something great Eric! to introduce Bach to young people! never is too late for Bach!!! congratulations!
-
Nora Torres-Nagel Yes, music education in the United States is so poor. We assume young people simply will not like classical music, and so they are never exposed to it. I hope I do my little part to show them something beyond just popular music.
-
-
I have heard Bach for the first time in my life at the age of 13...in the conservatory Thibaud-Piazzini in Buenos Aires (my parents were hearing more "tangos" and "boleros"...), it were the "Branderburg concertos" and I falled in love with that continuos of notes and voices....I had never heard something like that....
Many many years later in Rochester Minnesota , I have met a german guy...who once invited me at his place...we were hearing all kind of music but suddenly he took an elegant box that contained a beautiful silver traverse flute ! I was very impressed! he put a record (a Schallplatte) , an orchestra was playing the Suite N. 2 of the Branderburg concerts, (but without flute!!!) and that guy began to play only for me...the Badinerie...at the right tempo and with brillant energy ! once more I falled in love .......and as Martin said.... now I am here in Germany with that german guy... and I am very happy about that!!!
-
Nora Torres-Nagel That's amazing, Nora!
What brought the two of you to Rochester, Minnesota? -
Eric Phillips Tha Mayo Clinic. I was doing research there in Neurology as a Biochemist and he as a medical doctor...
from so far ! Buenos Aires and Ulm...we met in Rochester !! you betcha ! -
Nora Torres-Nagel So science and music brought you together in love!
-
Eric Phillips exactly! and with -30°C !!!! it was december.....brrrrrrrr
-
Nora Torres-Nagel que romántico!!!! No me extraña que acabaras en Alemania!!!!
-
-
Great music and histories Martin Mircea . Thanks! I like this discussion...
-
I had a duetpartner of NL, we were performing Flute duets over a decade, mostly in NL. I was member of a group of painters and other genres of art and we had the opportunuty to perform during a open nightevent in Mönchengladbach in the Theatre. So I decided, that Lei, my duetpartner and I would play the Badinerie in the elevator and we worked very hard to adjust our performance to the time, the elevator used to go up or down. Just when we entered the elevator, Lei told me, she is afraid in elevators...but she would try. And it was such a success, we timed exactly with the elevator because we felt when the door would open. We drove so many times, more and more people came to ride with us, groups of dancers, visitors, it was unbelievable- I thought, we would do that one or two times, but we drove again and again. And people were so enthusiast when we exactly endet, the door opened and the ride was over. People shouting and clapping, people waiting to do the ride.... Lei told me some years later, that for her, this was the greatest thing we have experienced with our duo, and I think it was a magic night.
-
Stefanie Mosburger-Dalz It sounds very magical!
-
Eric Phillips so nice Stefanie your story......and also the Badinerie.....in the elevator....magic!!!
-
Nora Torres-Nagel yes, but I cant really tell it, it was so wow, I did a lot of concerts with a duo, trio, synphonic orchestra and some were so amazing but this was really so special, so as if we had dreamed it and nobody thought, this would work....it did;-)
-
Stefanie Mosburger-Dalz such an amazing story! An elevator... Who would have thought it?!
-
-
End of the Year Challenge: Finish Strong!
