Podcast on Bach, Episode 103. Repeat broadcast from 2011.
This episode is an appendix to our series Travelling with Bach.
Johann Sebastian Bach was in good health when he began experiencing problems with his eyesight. Afraid he might go blind, he underwent surgery by the Englih travelling eye surgeon John Taylor. At the time, such procedures were still highly experimental, and little was known about the need for hygiene. Complications followed.
After a second operation, Bach was blind. He died almost four months later. In the period leading up to his death, he composed Die Kunst der Fuge, with its intricate counterpoint. He also revised earlier compositions and worked on a second part of the Hohe Messe.
In his final hours, lying on his deathbed, Bach dictated further revisions to a chorale, Vor deinen Thron tret’ ich hiermit, BWV 668. In a sense, he composed his way into heaven.
Excerpts from:
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750)
- Tune Bach & Co
From Sonata for Violin and Harpsichord No. 4 in C minor, BWV 1017: Siciliano (Largo)
Janine Jansen & Friends - From Die Kunst der Fuge, BWV 1080:
– Contrapunctus 1
Calefax Reed Quintet - From Liebster Jesu, mein Verlangen, BWV 32:
– No. 5. Duet for soprano and bass: “Nun verschwinden alle Plagen, nun verschwindet Ach und Schmerz”
Miriam Feuersinger, soprano; Markus Volpert, bass. J.S. Bach-Stiftung, conducted by Rudolf Lutz - From Die Kunst der Fuge, BWV 1080:
– Contrapunctus 18. Unvollendete Fuge über drei neue Themen, drittes Thema/B-A-C-H, a 4
Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin - From Mass in B minor, BWV 232:
– I. Kyrie: “Kyrie eleison” (choir)
J.S. Bach-Stiftung, conducted by Rudolf Lutz - Vor deinen Thron tret’ ich hiermit, BWV 668
Daniel Taylor, countertenor. Theatre of Early Music - From Mass in B minor, BWV 232:
– No. 15, XXVII. Agnus Dei (countertenor: Alex Potter)
– No. 16, XXVIII. Dona nobis pacem (choir)
J.S. Bach-Stiftung, conducted by Rudolf Lutz
Featured photo: Bachfest Leipzig 2019, under the motto “Hof-Compositeur Bach” (photo: Andreas Schmidt).
