Music &Poetry Entropy | 22 May 2008
The Silence of the World before Bach
J.S. Bach is being regarded as a genius of Western music. In fact Brahms described Bach’s Chaconne (BWV.1004) as containing ‘a whole world of the deepest thoughts and the most powerful feelings. This poem by Lars Gustafson wonderfully expresses Bach’s influence on classical music
The Silence of the World before Bach
There must have been a world before
the Trio Sonata in D, a world before the A minor Partita,
but what kind of a world?
A Europe of vast empty spaces, unresounding,
everywhere unawakened instruments
where the Musical Offering, the Well-tempered Clavier
never passed across the keys.
Isolated churches
where the soprano-line of the Passion
never in helpless love twined round
the gentler movements of the flute,
broad soft landscapes
where nothing breaks the stillness
but old woodcutters’ axes,
the healthy barking of strong dogs in winter
and, like a bell, skates biting into fresh ice;
the swallows whirring through summer air,
the shell resounding at the child’s ear
and nowhere Bach nowhere Bach
the world in a skater’s silence before Bach.
-By Lars Gustafson
© BBC-Radio 3
on 23 May 2008 at 11:59 am 1.Nimesh Dadia said …
Dear Lao Aju
THats a very interesting Title, its so true that in the world of Western CLassical Music there are two seperate eras, Before Bach and After Bach
One never thinks of it, but how it must have been The Land of Europe which has had a profusion of Legends in the World of Music and all in the Last 500 years only.
on 26 May 2008 at 12:38 am 2.michele roohani said …
great comment by nimesh and great topic by you as always.
there is a reason they call him the “Almighty Bach”…
you start with the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brandenburg_concertos
and end it up with http://www2.nau.edu/~tas3/musoffcanons.html
here is your entire “canon”!