Menu
Maybe someday
30
/100
I Index Overall Rating
Readers
50/100Critics
10/100Scholars
Author:
Christoph Wolff
Publisher:
W.W. Norton Company
Date:
March 24, 2020
A concentrated study of Johann Sebastian Bachâs creative output and greatest pieces.
What The Reviewers Say
Bach’s colossal output makes it difficult for anyone to characterize his music. Wolff knows the master’s work both broadly and deeply, so he sets out to find the larger themes and organizing principles to help modern listeners understand what Bach accomplished during his career.
For readers wishing to explore the universe that is the music of Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750), there’s no better guide than scholar Wolff.
A close investigation of Bach’s works reveals remarkable transformations.
The book is quite technical and often bone dry as it delves into the details of compositional dating; issues of tuning, counterpoint, and instrumentation; the selection of texts for choral writing; and the revisions Bach made in pieces over the years. It’s full of music theory, tabularized data on the structures of compositions, and photos of Bach’s manuscript scores that convey little impression beyond how bewilderingly complicated they are. Readers with a serious musicological background will appreciate Wolff’s deep dive into Bach’s craft, but casual Bach-lovers will find it a heavy and not very tuneful slog..
