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All of Bach

allofbach.com

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Re: All of Bach

#82
post #66

Worthless. Useless. A disaster. Flatly, on Windows XP SP3 with one of the latest versions of Firefox and Flash, the site essentially doesn't work. So, I clicked, and clicked, and clicked, and waited, and waited, and waited, and clicked, looked at the system monitor and saw no activity on either network data or CPU, waited, clicked, waited, clicked, had much of the screen content go off the screen, kept lowering the s…

I had problems playing the videos but, really? I'm trying to determine if your rant is serious or dry humor...

Re: All of Bach

#83

You can only scroll down with a scroll wheel or trackpad. You can't use your arrow keys or the native scroll bar. That's a huge accessibility problem.

It also does not work at all without a NoScript exception.

Re: All of Bach

#84
post #27
post #5

As a complete Bach nerd may I recommend this as the ultimate recording of one of his greatest works: http://www.amazon.com/Bach-Matthaus-Passion-Bostridge-Colleg... A search for Herreweghe+Matthaus on Youtube brings up a 'preview' for those interested to listen immediately.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_Ai171EQeU

I just checked the preview you mentioned on Youtube and it's absolutely incredible. I'm definitely adding that album to my collection, but I wonder if I could ask for some more help? I don't have much experience with Bach, or even classical music outside of the really famous pieces. It's a genre that, though I've always been interested in, I've never invested the time to gain a real understanding. Recently, I got int…

I find that going out to concerts is important to my understanding of this tradition. Seeing and hearing actual instruments helps to tease out the various lines of the music and make sense of it all. There isn't any recording system that can capture a performance of a Mahler symphony (or the Schoenberg Gurrelieder). And a small intimate chamber concert is a lot of fun too, a shared experience with strangers. Concerts are programmed with an eye for contrast and coherence, and you can discover interesting pieces through unusual pairings.

Suggestion: as a contrast to the Goldberg and Bach's world generally, try Schubert. A particular favourite of mine is the String Quintet (doubled cello) D. 956. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum provides a live concert recording[2].

Plea: To keep this music alive, can people please buy recordings by living artists now and again? Many here are mentioning Glen Gould's Goldberg. Try Simone Dinnerstein's recording (Telarc CD in Europe). Listen to Jeremy Denk's realisation in a small concert setting (Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum)[1] for nowt. All classical musicians working now are competing against 100 years of recordings!

[1] http://www.gardnermuseum.org/music/listen/music_library?filt...

[2] http://www.gardnermuseum.org/music/listen/music_library?filt...

Re: All of Bach

#87
post #44
post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I just checked the preview you mentioned on Youtube and it's absolutely incredible. I'm definitely adding that album to my collection, but I wonder if I could ask for some more help? I don't have much experience with Bach, or even classical music outside of the really famous pieces. It's a genre that, though I've always been interested in, I've never invested the time to gain a real understanding. Recently, I got int…

Glenn Gould is absolutely the definitive source in regards to Bach piano music. For me the beauty in Bach's music is the extreme technical expertise, which, like an extraordinary piece of architecture, unveils a perfect geometry and universal perfection that makes our hearts and minds meet in the same exquisite place. But you need an exacting performance to be able to appreciate it. It gets so personal. Check out thi…

> Glenn Gould is absolutely the definitive source in regards to Bach's piano music.

I love Gould's performances, but it's worth saying that plenty of good musicians don't, so "definitive" is probably not the best word. So, anyone reading this: If you listen to Gould playing (say) the Well-Tempered Clavier or the Goldberg Variations and find it too mannered or mechanical or can't get past his humming, try Schiff or Richter or Perahia or someone more "mainstream". (And try Gould again later when you're more familiar with the music, just in case your tastes change; what he does, he does very well indeed.)

Re: All of Bach

#88
post #15
post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Fun fact: Paul Simon lifted the basic harmony and melody for his song "American Tune" from that piece, which itself lifted them from an earlier piece. Remixing is not a new phenomenon! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Tune

Until the age of recorded commercial music it was considered completely normal to lift tunes, harmonies, anything recognisable, from other composers. In classical music it's generally considered a complement, more rarely a parody. Copyright has been around for much longer with printed music: as early as the 1500's we see Henry 8th issuing protections. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_music_publishing#Cop...

And composers recycled their own work. Bach had to knock out three hours of music each Sunday for four years or so when he was Kapellmeister. You'd reuse!

Re: All of Bach

#89
post #66

Worthless. Useless. A disaster. Flatly, on Windows XP SP3 with one of the latest versions of Firefox and Flash, the site essentially doesn't work. So, I clicked, and clicked, and clicked, and waited, and waited, and waited, and clicked, looked at the system monitor and saw no activity on either network data or CPU, waited, clicked, waited, clicked, had much of the screen content go off the screen, kept lowering the s…

Not even Microsoft supports Windows XP[1]... why do you expect this web developer to support an OS that the OS vendor, who repeatedly extended the sunset date, finally stopped supporting? Time for an upgrade, friend. Either that or stop expecting new websites to accommodate your abacus. :)

1: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/end-support-help

Re: All of Bach

#90
post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am not a musician the calibre, or even near it, to Gould but I completely, utterly disagree about live music. Maybe he preferred the recording studio, but why would you want to take away live music from the tradition! It's like watching a chef make food on TV instead of being where you should be when it comes to food: in the kitchen and dining room, smelling all the smells. Edit for those not agreeing: try sitting…

I have to disagree. When listening to a recording, you hear all the music. A more fitting analogy would be tasting and eating the food without seeing the chef prepare it.

No audio system comes close to sitting in front of a symphony orchestra with a hundred or more different sound sources.
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