J.S. Bach 18-22 February

[doversoul1]

Donald Macleod draws alongside JS Bach as he travels from place to place throughout his life. In today’s programme we trace Bach’s life until the age of 15, the period in which he was living in the town of Eisenach and, after the death of his father, in Ohrdruf with his older brother. These are the years of his education, such as it was, when his excellence as an organist and a singer was first recognised.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0002l9t

Repeat?

[BBMmk2]

Doesn’t it say?

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Doesn’t it say?

It doesn't (or, at least, not that I can find) - and that usually (or "used to") mean that it isn't.

[doversoul1]

The last one was in December 2017 but as the description of the first programme is different (...up to his marriage), this must be a new series.

Whilst there has been nothing very new information-wise, it’s always good to hear a programme on Bach (although I could have done without the piano versions on Monday). I hope the listeners who are relatively new to Bach’s music (like once we all were) are enjoying this Composer of the Week.

I very much enjoyed Cantata BWV 54 by Iestyn Davies and Arcangelo (Monday).

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I missed yesterday's programme, but was a bit disappointed by so many non-HIPP recordings in today's.

[Bryn]

I missed yesterday's programme, but was a bit disappointed by so many non-HIPP recordings in today's.

I just caught a few seconds of the 1st Partita, played on a piano, and knew this week's series was unlikely to be for me.

[gurnemanz]

More non HIPP piano tomorrow - Keith Jarrett, Angela Hewitt. I've been enjoying this CotW, so won't be deterred. Nice to hear about Ohrdruf, where JS lived as a teenager . A very pleasant small town but rather run down under the DDR regime when I visited it 45 years ago. I should probably go there again.

[Quarky]

I found it interesting that "As a boy, Bach was said to have a lovely soprano voice". We weren't told how his voice developed in later years -

https://www.wqxr.org/story/279211-bach-360-what-kinds-singers-did-bach-prefer/

[doversoul1]

Thursday

Orchestral Suite No 4 in D major
Munich Bach Orchestra. Conductor: Karl Richter.
Musical Offering BWV 1079
Academy of St Martin in the Fields. Conductor: Neville Marriner

Richter’s Orchestral Suite was interesting in its own way but I wasn’t very keen at all on ASMF’s Musical Offering. This series looks as if it is determined to be fair to non-HIPP recordings. I wonder what’s the rationale behind it.