MR. BACH COMES TO CALL

Piano practice has been uninspired for the narrator until J.S.Bach himself pays her a visit. In hearing about his life and sampling selections of his music, her tune changes. This was a man who thrived in the court of Prince Leopold, who walked over two hundred miles (and back) for organ lessons, who fathered and taught an impressive number of children (20 plus), and who was passionate about his work. The recording provides dynamic vignettes of Bach's life from its more serious moments, such as his mother's death, to the more boisterous ones with a full complement of children playing their instruments, setting out music on music stands, and demanding to be fed. The young listener will be amused by the story and also hear a rich array of Brandenburg concertos, cantatas, orchestral suites, and the hallmark, JESU, JOY OF MAN'S DESIRING. A.R. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine [Published: OCT/ NOV 02]