The WTF Bach Podcast How To Detect Bach B.S. (Bad Scholarship)
Ein Musikalisches Opfer BWV 1079— such an enigmatic, endlessly fascinating work. Was Bach warning King Frederick about being gay? Was Frederick jealous of Bach’s talent and looking to embarrass him? No. This is a modern interoperation with our cinematic visions placed upon an 18th century event. Let’s examine these faux theories.
‘Evening in the Palace of Reason’ is a piece of Bach fan fiction, not the work of a Bach scholar. When I began to formally dismiss it, I found myself overcome with the sense of being a bully: Each sentence about Bach’s life and music is so full of holes, so shrouded in pseudo-scholarship, I felt like I was 'taking shots at a toothless tiger.' Still, this book is published by none other than Harper Collins and probably more read than any book by a musicologist. It may amuse and inform as a general history, which seems innocent, but this is followed by careless conclusions, hasty sweeping statements as to Bach’s general character, his morality, and the reasons for writing a major piece of music— this is not harmless. The truth about Bach’s life and work is more beautiful than any provocative reinterpretation. We should know how to identify such a piece of B.S.
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