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5.0 out of 5 stars
An Excellent Biography of Bach for the Non-Specialist Reader, April 3, 2004
Every six months or so I find myself in a 'Bach period'; that is to say, I become immersed in the music of Johann Sebastian Bach and don't seem to want any other kind of music for a while. I'm in the midst of one of these periods as I write this review. I came across this 1995 book at my local library and have been utterly delighted by it. Otto Bettmann, the author, is a non-musician who is best known for having founded the Bettmann Archive - you've seen its cutline hundreds of times alongside pictures in books and magazines - a comprehensive collection of historic pictures. He was born in Leipzig and in his childhood lived in a house across the street from the Thomaskirche where Bach spent twenty-seven years as Cantor. He even sang in the Thomaskirche boys' choir as a youth.
The lavishly illustrated 235-page book is organized like an encyclopedia with one- or two-page articles arranged alphabetically by subject. They cover the range of Bach's life and activities from 'Abendmusik' (the regular musical soirée held by Buxtehude in Lübeck where Bach visited and stayed four months) to 'Zeitgeist' (an article about the spirit of the times in which Bach lived and worked). Other representative articles include such topics as 'Anhalt-Cöthen,' 'Cantor or Capellmeister?,' 'Fugal Wizardry,' 'Goldberg Variations,' 'Kaffee Kantate,' 'Money Matters,' 'Organist Supreme,' 'Quaffing,' 'Summation Works,' 'Wanderlust,' among many others. One may read the book straight through or dip into it here and there; each method has its rewards. Bettmann's prose style is relaxed, entertaining, often wry, and yet factually solid and coherent. He repeatedly makes the point that Bach was a much livelier person than the usual picture we have of him as the stern Cantor of Leipzig.
Also included are a pleasant foreword by Martin Bookspan who, among other things, sings the praises of Otto Bettmann (who, by the way, wrote this book when he was in his 90s!; he died in 1998 at 95), a glossary of musical terms, a chronology of Bach's life, an index and an extensive bibliography.
This book is perfect for the general reader who doesn't have the background or the patience to read the more scholarly books on Bach by such illustrious biographers as Philipp Spitta, Albert Schweitzer, Karl Geiringer, or Christoph Wolff.
Scott Morrison
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