Thursday 17 December 2009

Bach

Bach's Mass in B Minor is a dark, brooding work of enormous depth and myriad layers. It is a work you sing maybe once in a lifetime, if you are a lucky amateur. It lasts a whopping two hours (topping even the highest of the high Anglicans for stamina in church) and builds from a quite literally spine-tingling opening Kyrie, trips joyfully over the Gloria, through a complex, emotional Credo and sweepingly majestic Sanctus to finish with a quiet, simple heavenward plea - Dona nobis pace.
Bach well understood the human condition: the despair of the Crucifixus is all too human and the closing Dona Nobis is a humble expression of hope.
The Mass soars and swoops from ecstatic to destitute to elated, as do we all.

I recommend finding somewhere to listen to it, maybe this weekend.


6 comments:

peixote said...

I don`t like where this blog is going...

:-)

Korie said...

Pfeh! No brooding. I want to see your snowman!

pinolona said...

it's not brooding!! I really like Bach!

Anonymous said...

Sounds fabulous, we are looking forward to enjoying it in Brussels tomorrow evening, weather permitting!
Pinolona's Dad

Darth Sida said...

Wallgrammit, my problem with Bach here is that instead of listening, I curse my poor memory: what's "dona"? Why not "da"? It it "pacem" or "pace"? (Verily, verily, blessed are the sick for they can go to the doctor and the doctor speaks Latin.)

Anonymous said...

dona means to give. Or rather to grant. I imagine it's a different register to 'da'. I don't know why it's pace and not pacem, must be something to do with case endings: you're Polish, that's supposed to be your speciality...
Pino