Bach

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Cellists and Their Composers
The Bach Solo Suites: A Cellist’s Inspiration
The Bach Six Solo Cello Suites are considered a must for every cellist and when you look at lists of recordings of the Bach Suites they read like a who’s who of cellists. These pieces are an incredible inspiration and
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Mixing Styles: Bach’s Toccata in C minor, BWV 911
When we hear the toccatas of Bach, we’re hearing the written representation of something at which he was a master – free improvisation at the keyboard. When we have a paired piece, such as a toccata and fugue, we have
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Pianists and Their Composers: J.S. Bach
Why is it that some pianists have become so closely associated with specific composers? Is it due to personal preference, that they feel a particular affinity with certain composers, or simply like their music? Or is the association one which
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On This Day
28 July: Johann Sebastian Bach Died
At the age of 57, Johann Sebastian Bach started to experience a number of health problems. Most serious was an affliction to his eyes, a condition that seemingly had plagued him from a young age. “His eyes had naturally bad
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Eleonor Bindman Plays Bach’s Partitas
When I had sufficiently advanced in my piano studies, my teacher introduced me to the “French Suites” by Johann Sebastian Bach. I was told that “Suites” generally consisted of a series of stylized dance movements, with the name of the
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The Chromatic Master: Bach’s Fantasy and Fugue, BWV 903
Schoenberg, the master of the Second Viennese School, called him the first 12-tone composer. It was his treatment of chromatic themes that prompted that statement. It’s J.S. Bach, of course, and one of the works that prompted that label was
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On This Day
21 March: Johann Sebastian Bach Was Born
On 21 March, I always celebrate the birthday of Johann Sebastian Bach by listening to as many of his compositions as possible. Basically, it’s Seb overdose for an entire day, and I simply can’t get enough. As you might have
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The Art of the Trio: Bach’s Sonata No. 1 for Violin and Harpsichord
Bach seems so firmly tied to the keyboard that we forget that he was also a master of violin. His initial employment in Weimar was a violinist, eventually rising to the position of concertmaster. His composer sons spoke about their
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