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Reinventing Bach by [Elie, Paul]

Reinventing Bach Kindle Edition

by Paul Elie (Author)

36 customer reviews

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The story of a revolution in music and technology, told through a century of recordings of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach

In Reinventing Bach, his remarkable second book, Paul Elie tells the electrifying story of how musicians of genius have made Bach's music new in our time, at once restoring Bach as a universally revered composer and revolutionizing the ways that music figures into our lives.

As a musician in eighteenth-century Germany, Bach was on the technological frontier—restoring organs, inventing instruments, and perfecting the tuning system still in use today. Two centuries later, pioneering musicians began to take advantage of breakthroughs in audio recording to make Bach's music the sound of modern transcendence. The sainted organist Albert Schweitzer played to a mobile recording unit set up at London's Church of All Hallows in order to spread Bach's organ works to the world beyond the churches. Pablo Casals, recording at Abbey Road Studios, made Bach's cello suites existentialism for the living room; Leopold Stokowski and Walt Disney, with Fantasia, made Bach the sound of children's playtime and Hollywood grandeur alike. Glenn Gould's Goldberg Variations opened and closed the LP era and made Bach the byword for postwar cool; and Yo-Yo Ma has brought Bach into the digital present, where computers and smartphones put the sound of Bach all around us. In this book we see these musicians and dozens of others searching, experimenting, and collaborating with one another in the service of Bach, who emerges as the very image of the spiritualized, technically savvy artist.
Reinventing Bach is a gorgeously written story of music, invention, and human passion—and a story with special relevance in our time, for it shows that great things can happen when high art meets new technology.

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Product details

File Size: 1242 KB
Print Length: 509 pages
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux; 1 edition (September 18, 2012)
Publication Date: September 18, 2012
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services LLC
Language: English
ASIN: B0080K3DQU
Text-to-Speech: Enabled

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Not Enabled

Word Wise: Enabled
Lending: Not Enabled
Screen Reader: Supported

Enhanced Typesetting: Enabled

Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #197,636 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
- #42 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Arts & Photography > Music > Musical Genres > Classical
- #74 in Books > Humor & Entertainment > Sheet Music & Scores > Composers > Bach
- #129 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Arts & Photography > Music > History & Criticism

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36 customer reviews

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philadelphia1906

December 6, 2014

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

This is the best, most engaging Bach biography I have read yet. The style weaves his story through the stories of some of the most well known Bach performers of the past century (or two). The back and forth nature of the book flows well and I did not find it distracting. It was like several biographies in one. The only gripe--if you can call it that--is that the author seemed to spend quite a bit of time on Casals; however, it in no way detracted from my enjoyment of the book. Elie does not get bogged down with overly technical jargon like other biographers but he includes plenty of detail so the reader is not left wanting. I'd say that even if you are not a Bach addict, this biography is thoroughly enjoyable simply for the information and how interestingly it is presented.

2 people found this helpful

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Reinventing my relationship to Bach

February 2, 2013

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

Anything but dry, this is the story of recorded music and how it has changed the way music is perceived as well as an entertaining bio of Bach. Warning, it can be an expensive read. I found myself adding many CDs to my collection.

I was delighted when Elise mentioned Pink Floyd early on. This is not a book locked into the past. He gives us an idea of the environment when a Bach piece was created, and contrasts that with the recorded history of the work.
Chapters about Bach are interspersed with portraits of Albert Schweitzer, Pablo Casals, Glen Gould and other influential Bach interpreters; their lives, their approach to Bach, and how their recordings influence our relationship to Bach.

Elise does tend to make the same point over and over. Recordings make an ephemeral performance permanent. That has changed the way we hear a composition. Some strict editing would make the book tighter but I forgave the repetition for his infectious enthusiasm. I had many little epiphanies as I read, for example, Daniel Barenboim's conception of music as the shaped air of a certain room on a certain night. I found myself repeatedly reconsidering my relationship to music as I read Reinventing Bach.

3 people found this helpful

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May 27, 2017

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

What an outstanding book for musicians and all those who find Bach fascinating. I learned so much that I didn't know and came away with a much deeper appreciation for Bach's genius. The author is a bit of a genius himself in writing about a subject that could be dry and boring but has turned it into a wonderfully researched and imagined book.

One person found this helpful

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Torbjorn Messner

New angles on Bach

May 7, 2014

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

First, I like Johann Sebastian. When I proceed to my next existence I hope to handle the bellows of the organ when Bach plays. Yes, this is a good bok. As the name states, it is not so much about Bach as about how the author, several musicians, and others have looked upon and valued him. It gives many different points of view and it opens up new perspectives on Bach. When read, certain parts seemes out of context but then suddenly the view cleared. I liked this book very much and it has deepened my understanding of Bach, his time, and of his music.

2 people found this helpful

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January 26, 2013

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

A different approach to writing about Bach. Elie is not a musicologist but a serious listener - a viewpoint I strongly sympathise with. He examines Bach's music through recordings: Casals, Gould and such.
I finished the book with a deeper understanding of the music and a greater appreciation for the abilities of the performers.

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If you love bach....

March 2, 2014

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

This is a really broad study of Bach, his music, times, etc., and would be of help to performers and composers of all music in increasing musical depth of perception.

2 people found this helpful

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Michael L. Segers

Bring Your Own Bach

December 8, 2012

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

As others have pointed out, there are some mistakes in a few details, but I was not reading this book for technical details. The further I got into it, the more I realized that Elie was not teaching me, except to teach me one writer's joyous response to perhaps the greatest music ever.
Reinventing Bach could just as well be called Celebrating Bach, in different countries, different times, different media. The music of Bach runs through the book (not really; I spent a lot of time on Youtube chasing down performances), holding together a history of the twentieth century.
Just about every day that I read this book, I posted a sentence or two on Facebook, hoping to get someone else to join the party.

9 people found this helpful

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Always sends me back to the music

November 30, 2012

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

This book is taking me much longer to read than I expected becuase I find myself continually visiting my CD collection, or Naxos Music Library or, if all else fails, You Tube to listen to the music Elie is discussing.
Then, of course, there are the pauses for sharing fascinating nuggets of information with whoever happens to be around.
I first saw the book when we were on holiday in the US. Too heavy said husband. No problem. Thank goodness for kindle. The only quibble I would have is that I would like an index.
One of the best books on music I have ever read.

2 people found this helpful

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