About Bach. Reading and Talk

One expression of our fascination for Johann Sebastian Bach is the numerous attempts by other world spirits to put the effect and peculiarities of his music into words. And not only awed musicians have tried, far from it. Writers too, starting with Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Friedrich Nietzsche, have frequently taken up their pens on the subject. They express their amazement, questions or hypotheses, and not infrequently simply their own sense of helplessness at the almost comprehension-defying perfection of Bach’s music and the strange »distance« (Hildesheimer) that Bach, the man, creates. No wonder that Albert Einstein, the explorer of the universe, when asked about his musical idol, could only recommend: »This is what I have to say about Bach’s life’s work: listen, play, love, revere – and keep your trap shut!«
But we cannot resign ourselves to that. Reason enough to reserve a space at this Bachfest for various virtuosos of the written word.
 

Challenging them with Albert Einstein’s aphorism, we succeeded in convincing world-famous writers to turn their hands to Bach. With Herta Müller (Germany), a Nobel Prize winners has agreed to take part; and in addition to her, the great dramatist Christoph Hein (Germany), as well as a virtuoso thinker who will approach his revered Bach from the perspective of universalism – the philosopher Omri Boehm (Israel). The celebrated British writer and Bach nerd Ian McEwan has announced that he will be coming as will, in the shape of Robert Schneider (Austria), a globally acclaimed author who in his novels »Brother of Sleep« and »Die Offenbarung« (The Revelation) has gone further than almost any other writer in exploring the profound effect of Bach’s music. Add to this the prize winning Angela Steidele, whose book »Aufklärung« (Enlightenment) reveals Bach’s era from a feminine view point.
 

In short: this series, in which all participants have carte blanche, promises to deliver some very special perspectives on the master of the circle of fifths – especially as it will be accompanied by a musical feast for the ears, served up by the laureates of the 2024 and 2025 Bach Competitions (Organ and Piano sections respectively).
 

A cooperation between Literaturhaus Leipzig e. V., Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, Universität Leipzig and Bachfest
 

Sat, 14 June / 2.00 pm / Paulinum / Christoph Hein / Tickets No 34
Sat, 14 June / 4.00 pm / Paulinum / Herta Müller / Tickets No 37
Sat, 14 June / 6.00 pm / Paulinum / Omri Boehm / Tickets No 40
Sun, 15 June / 2.00 pm / Paulinum / Ian McEwan / Tickets No 57
Sun, 15 June / 4.00 pm / Paulinum / Angela Steidele / Tickets No 60
Sun, 15 June / 6.00 pm / Paulinum / Robert Schneider / Tickets No 67