Although now beloved and revered by millions as the greatest composer who ever lived, Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) was best known in his lifetime as an organist, and was eclipsed in fame as a composer by two of his 20 children. For the last 27 years of his life he was a schoolteacher and choir director whose duties extended to meal supervision and dormitory inspection. Yet throughout his career he composed a vast body of music, which is amongst the most joyful, dancing and enrapturing ever written. This portrait-in-sound includes many examples of the music that made him immortal.
With compelling narration by Jeremy Siepmann, character portrayals by acclaimed actors, and the interpolation of over 25 substantial musical extracts reflecting the development of one of music's most enduringly awe-inspiring composers, we are transported back three centuries straight into the life of Johann Sebastian Bach. This innovative sense of immediacy is at the heart of this comprehensive audio-biography, depicting the life of a composer whose music is universally admired.
Narrated and written by the erudite musical scholar Jeremy Siepmann, this four-CD set is full of the color, beauty, and the awesome genius of Bach's compositions while giving a fuller picture of him as a man. The richness of actor John Shrapnel's voice--best known for his role as Gaius in Gladiator --is perfect in conveying the many incarnations of a composer who was valued for the most part as an organist during his lifetime but who also managed to fit in schoolteaching, directing choirs, and fathering 20 children. As little of Bach's correspondence survives today, we inevitably hear more narrator than actor, but this is still the most rounded portrait yet of "the greatest composer ever" and a welcome addition to Siepmann's expanding Life and Works series. H.M.J. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine
Narrated and written by the erudite musical scholar Jeremy Siepmann, this audio set is full of the color, beauty, and the awesome genius of Bach's compositions while giving a fuller picture of him as a man. The richness of actor John Shrapnel's voice - best known for his role as Gaius in Gladiator - is perfect in conveying the many incarnations of a composer who was valued for the most part as an organist during his lifetime but who also managed to fit in school teaching, directing choirs, and fathering 20 children. As little of Bach's correspondence survives today, we inevitably hear more narrator than actor, but this is still the most rounded portrait yet of the greatest composer ever" and a welcome addition to Siepmann's expanding Life and Works series."
--Franklin Bishop, AD LIB Magazine, May 2002...
"Clearly told and warmly narrated, the four and a half hours on the audio set are generously interspersed with extracts from his work. The superb accompanying booklet is full of concise details about Bach's career and contemporaries along with a very useful graded listening programme that takes an intelligent approach to building up your own library of works. This boxed set will have you rushing to hear more Bach and your listening pleasure will be greatly enhanced. Highly recommended."
- Dave Robson, The Northern Echo 13 June 2002...
THERE have been very many learned treatises written on the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. But Siepmann's listen and learn technique is aimed at enthusing the layman...Perhaps not for learned pedants, but be enthused and informed. ****
