WTF Bach – Détails, épisodes et analyse

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The 3rd Keyboard Partita (A Crucial Revision)

lundi 12 août 2024 • Durée 22:01

A brief(er) episode for you today: Bach’s first published opus was his six partitas for keyboard. In some of the sources within Bach’s circle, copies retained as a ‘Handexemplar’ include revisions by a scribe we can almost say with certainty is Bach himself. The most consequential of these revisions appears at the end of the third partita, where the second half of the Gigue is re-written with what one might call ‘updated’ or ‘refined’ counterpoint.

Here we see the main source (G 25) in question:

Hard to see here, but if we zoom in, we see that this:

Is a correction of the original printings, which read:

This link here should allow you to download the original print of all six partitas.

N.B. As that link is the download of the original print, it will not contain any of the corrections mentioned in this episode. For a full list of the scholarship on these changes, see:

Wolff, C. (1999). Text-critical comments on the original print of the Partitas. In Bach: Essays on his life and music (pp. 214-222). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

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Concepts Covered:

The 3rd Keyboard Partita, BWV 827, stands as a defining work in Bach’s Partitas for keyboard, marking his and showcasing his mastery of . This episode examines the , where reveal that refined the . These provide insight into , highlighting his meticulous approach to . As we explore , we engage with the broader landscape of , tracing his and the evolution of . Through this , we uncover how his continue to shape our understanding of his genius.

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BWV 104, Du Hirte Israel, höre.

mercredi 10 avril 2024 • Durée 32:01

Thanks for all your support during The Bach Store! If you’re in NYC on Friday, come to Le Poisson Rouge at 158 Bleecker Street at 7pm.

Be sure to mark your calendars: April 24th, 2024, my new albums will be on PRE-sale. It marks the beginning of my most ambitious project to date: a very thorough, if possible, ‘complete’ set of the keyboard works of Bach. I will certainly send another reminder as the date approaches.

And now for a brief journey into Bach around this date in 1724: today’s episode covers the cantata for the second Sunday after Easter, BWV 104, Du Hirte Israel, höre. Unlike the other cantatas I have recently discussed, this cantata is not based on a chorale melody.

And don’t miss out on your WTF Bach merchandise! Here are seven magnets for your fridge. Send me a note to arrange a sale (T-Shirts, Pins, Bags, 3D Printed Heads, Lighters, also available).

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Here is the latest video I mentioned in the podcast.

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The Neumeister Chorales (Bach at 15 yrs. old)

mercredi 6 mars 2024 • Durée 25:46

You read correctly: The Bach Store is back. In Erfurt, Thuringia, the state from where the Bachs hail. I will play for five hours, March 14-28, 12.00-18.00 GMT +1 (7AM-1PM EST.)

You can (hopefully) stream the whole run on my youtube. Subscribe HERE.

Or go to: www.youtube.com/@wtfbach

Bach Store Merchandise is available on request. Send an email to bach (at) wtfbach (dot com)

—

Meanwhile, the music in today’s episode comes from the “Neumeister Collection,” a collection of over 80 chorale preludes from multiple composers, published for the first time in 1985. More than 30 of the pieces come from J.S. Bach ca. 1700, when the composer was only 15 year old. Hence one of the newest Bach discoveries showed us the youngest portraits of the composer. I played three of them, one on a ‘real’ organ (Saint Anne’s, London) and two on Organteq (by Modartt.)

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Introducing: The Flute!

samedi 24 février 2024 • Durée 51:10

This week I’ll be performing some flute chamber music in Santa Barbara, California. I realize I’ve never specifically mentioned Bach’s wonderful flute repertoire on this podcast.

We tackle here what I find is the most complex composition in the repertoire: the first movement of the b minor sonata, BWV 1030.

Pieces heard:

BWV 1030.1 Source P. 1008, early version, harpsichord part.

BWV 1030.2 The later version, arranged as a flute sonata.

Articles:

Contentious writing on flute vs. recorder

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The book I mentioned on the use of ‘Tonus Peregrinus”

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Concepts Covered:

Bach’s flute sonatas stand as essential works in the Baroque flute repertoire, with the B minor sonata, BWV 1030, being one of the most important. This masterpiece of showcases intricate , making it a highlight of . Through an exploration of , such as , we uncover Bach’s approach to . The discussion of further enriches our understanding of and performance practice. Whether analyzing or appreciating the beauty of , this sonata remains a testament to Bach’s genius.

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Two More Cantatas (1724, Part 3)

mercredi 14 février 2024 • Durée 42:40

This is the final episode introducing Bach’s cantata cycle of 1724. In the first four cantatas of the cycle, we heard how Bach used Lutheran hymnal melodies as cantus firmi in different voice parts in each opening movement (sopranos, followed by altos, followed by tenors, followed by basses.)

Here, the next two cantatas see less predictable treatments of the old melodies. Bach evidently valued these two cantatas, as later in life he arranged single movements from both BWV 10 and BWV 93 into his publication of organ music known as the “Schübler Chorales.”

Pieces heard:

BWV 10, Meine Seel erhebt den Herren (Full Performance of the cantata)

BWV 648, Meine Seel erhebt den Herren (Organ version)

BWV 93, Wer nur den lieben Gott lässt walten

I mentioned this playlist in the episode: all the cantatas in the 1724 cycle. Love to my fans!

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2024. An Important Bach Year (Part Two)

samedi 20 janvier 2024 • Durée 45:37

Last episode we introduced Bach’s second cantata cycle from 1724. We saw in the first cantatas of the cycle, Bach used a church melody as the cantus firmus first in the sopranos, then the altos.

This episode we will explore the next two cantatas where Bach sets the cantus firmus in the tenors in BWV 7, and the basses in BWV 135.

About the melody you may know as “O Sacred Head Surrounded”

Pieces heard:

BWV 7, Christ unser Herr zum Jordan kam (Full Performance)

BWV 135, Ach Herr, mich armen Sünder (Full Performance)

Oh, you don’t follow WTFBach on Instagram? For shame!

Posting almost daily music from the keyboard repertoire.

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Peter Schickele’s Obituary, NY Times

Check this playlist:

A fan of the show made this great Spotify playlist with in the second cycle! Thank you! Love to my fans-

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2 minutes: P.D.Q. R.I.P.

jeudi 18 janvier 2024 • Durée 03:19

Peter Schickele was one of my idols. He died on Tuesday, January 16. His creation, P.D.Q. Bach, helped bring much needed self-effacing humor to the world of classical music. Links below to help you get into his (and Victor Borge’s— another giant of classical music parody—) life and work:

Beethoven’s 5th announced as a baseball game (a classic!)

The Short-Tempered Clavier

Report from Hoople (full album- the Beethoven sketch is included)

The Definitive Autobiography of P.D.Q. Bach (1807-1742?)

and we should also mention,

Victor Borge (anything you can find will amuse you!)

Good Ol’ Piano Slapstick

Mozart Opera

Inflationary Language

Television Special (75+ Min)

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Why Is 2024 An Important Bach Year?

samedi 6 janvier 2024 • Durée 39:50

In this episode we delve into Bach’s second cantata cycle begun in 1724. The first two cantatas are briefly covered, (with two further cantatas to follow next episode) as well as the connection between the Lutheran church melodies and the significance of the year Bach began this ambitious project.

Pieces heard:

BWV 20, O Ewigkeit, du Donnerwort (Click here to see the live video)

BWV 2, Ach Gott, vom Himmel sieh darein

BWV 684, Chirst unser Herr zum Jordan Kamm

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My Mini Concert for You

dimanche 24 décembre 2023 • Durée 21:46

I rarely just play on this podcast, but that’s how I’d like to package this little present for my listeners. Rather than spending days researching and writing, today I will play four fugues and introduce them only briefly. It’s some twenty minutes of music I hope you can enjoy during your holidays.

The quote I read to introduce this short concert is by Mortimer J. Adler.

Bach wrote this music before 1717 (at the latest.) These are fugues whose themes originated in the work of other composers. Bach borrows these themes and creates his own work. These fugues are not commonly played which make them all the more fun to listen to and study.

As always, thanks for listening, thanks for spreading the word and supporting this podcast. I’m looking forward to 2025 with you Bach enthusiasts.

Fugues I performed:

Fugue in C major, BWV 966 (on a theme by Adam Reinken)

Fugue in C major, BWV 946 (on a theme by Tomaso Albinoni)

Fugue in a minor, BWV 965 (on a theme by Adam Reinken)

Fugue in A major, BWV 949 (probably on a theme by Tomaso Albinoni)

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