Intimations of Immortality

Bach takes his music critics to task and considers how he might be remembered.

In 1773, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach sat down to record his life story. He’d been asked to write it down for a new book on German music and it made him one of the first composers to produce an autobiography. This week, Donald Macleod follows the composer’s story, using Bach’s own account as his guide. Bach’s words provide fascinating insights into the things he considered most important but it’s possible that what he chose to leave out is even more revealing.

Today, we find CPE Bach in reflective mode, sharing some thoughts on his own music and those who would criticise it! Donald looks at how Bach’s autobiography might have set the composer thinking about his legacy and his enduring place in music history.

Sonata in D Minor, Wq 57 No 4: II. Cantabile e mesto
Pierre Goy, clavichord

Quartet in G Major, Wq 95: III. Presto
Nevermind

Heilig, Wq 217
Jess Dandy, contralto
The Dunedin Consort, directed by John Butt

Keyboard Sonatina in D Major, Wq 109
Miklós Spányi, harpsichord
Cristiano Holtz, harpsichord
Concerto Armonico, directed by Péter Szüts

Freye Fantasie in F sharp minor, Wq 80
Tamsin Waley-Cohen, violin
James Baillieu, piano