Bach: Music in the Castle of Heaven

John Eliot Gardiner       (Get the Book)
As conductor of his Monteverdi Choir and English Baroque Soloists in more than 50 recordings of Bach's vocal works, Gardiner is the perfect performer to approach this repertory. This book should convince those who know only Bach's instrumental music to explore the heart of Bach's works, the cantatas, passions, and the B Minor Mass. The first half of the book explores the milieu of the irascible and stubborn Bach, who sought perfection in his music in the midst of difficult work conditions and the demands of church and family. Gardiner asks of himself interesting questions: What was life like in the Latin School in Thuringia where Bach studied and in the provincial towns where he worked? What was the theological environment in Bach's Leipzig? Interspersed are Gardiner's own comments on the Bach Cantata Pilgrimage that he made with his choir in 2000. Side studies into the scores themselves, the best being a description of the St. Matthew Passion autograph, are fascinating. For a study of Bach's life and works, Christoph Wolff's Johann Sebastian Bach: The Learned Musician (CH, Sep'00, 38-0223) is best, but Gardiner's beautifully written and focused book is also a must for all lovers of Bach. -- Choice