bach

I think the closest I�ll ever come to Christian prayer is playing Bach.

If Shakespeare is the embodiment of enduring concerns in the literary world, works capable of withstanding the weathering elements of reinvention and reinterpretation on his wily rock of human condition, then Bach is the musical equivalent.

A deeply devout man, Bach nurtured a personal relationship with God and believed his works directly communicated with the voice of God.

A simple melodic line, clean harmonies, pure progression of logical thought, belies its extraordinary capacity for depth of emotion. I have played Bach a thousand times, and no two renditions are exactly the same. I have played Bach joyful, despairing, melancholic, peaceful� and like Shakespeare, it endures all the inconsistencies of man.

When I play Bach, my mind is finally at peace. It isn�t shattered into a thousand little distractions, divided between bow control, arms at certain angles, bow pressure, finger pressure, trying to control every little bone and muscle in my arms, hands, fingers, neck and shoulders (no one cares about the lower half of the body).

Bach comes so effortlessly, and that is its beauty. My mind is a blank slate of vast, black cosmos, and I can traverse the universe with my frail, fickle human heart. Playing Bach is like directing your consciousness and projecting a wish into the deep, mysterious void that is the intangible world.

Isn�t that a bit like praying?

(forgive me if I have been blasphemous)

--
The piece I�m referring to is the third movement of his Sonata in C major for Violn, but if you are curious, take the second movement of Bach�s Concerto in D minor for Two Violins. It�s sublime.

2011-07-07
8:06 p.m.

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