Exploring the World of J. S. Bach: A Traveler’s Guide

281 Pages·2016·11.92 MB·English

by  Robert L. Marshall

ROBERT L. MARSHALL TRAUTE M. MARSHALL
AND
Exploring the World of
J. S. Bach
A TRAVELER’S GUIDE
Exploring thE World of
J. S. Bach
Germany, ca. 1720. Johann Baptist Homann, Postarum seu Veredariorum
Germaniam et Provincias Adiacentes. Neu vermehrte PostCharte durch gantz
Teutschland . . . revised edition (Nuremberg). Detail.
Exploring thE World of
J. S. Bach
A Traveler’s Guide
Robert L. Marshall
and
Traute M. Marshall
Published in cooperation with the American Bach Society
University of Illinois Press
Urbana, Chicago, and Springfield
This publication is sponsored by the American Bach Society and produced under the guidance
of its Editorial Board. For information about the American Bach Society, please see its website at
www.americanbachsociety.org.
© 2016 by the Board of Trustees
of the University of Illinois
All rights reserved
Manufactured in the United States of America
1 2 3 4 5 c p 5 4 3 2 1
∞ This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Marshall, Robert Lewis, author. | Marshall, Traute M., 1942– author.
Title: Exploring the world of J.S. Bach: a traveler’s guide / Robert L. Marshall and Traute M.
Marshall.
Description: Urbana, Chicago, and Springfield : University of Illinois Press, 2016. | “Published in
cooperation with the American Bach Society.” |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: lccn 2015047399 (print) | lccn 2015048837 (ebook) | isbn 9780252040313 (cloth : alk.
paper) | isbn 9780252081767 (pbk. : alk. paper) | isbn 9780252098574 (ebook)
Subjects: lcsh: Bach, Johann Sebastian, 1685–1750—Homes and haunts—Germany. | Germany—
Description and travel. | lcgft: Guidebooks
Classification: lcc ml410.b13 m272 2016 (print) | lcc ml410.b13 (ebook) | ddc 780.92—dc23
lc record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2015047399
contEntS
vii Foreword by George B. Stauffer
x Preface
xvi Introduction
xxvii Notes on Usage
xxix Maps
Part One: J . S. Bach’s Principal Residences
(Chronological)
3 Chapter 1. Eisenach 1685–95
15 Chapter 2. Ohrdruf 1695–1700
21 Chapter 3. Lüneburg 1700–1702
29 Chapter 4. Arnstadt 1703–7
41 Chapter 5. Mühlhausen 1707–8
49 Chapter 6. Weimar 1703, 1708–17
63 Chapter 7. Köthen 1717–23
73 Chapter 8. Leipzig 1723–50
•
Part Two: T owns Certainly or Presumably( )
Visited by J. S. Bach (Alphabetical)
• • •
99 Altenburg and Rötha 110 Celle and Ebstorf
•
102 Ammern 114 Collmen
•
103 Bad Berka 115 Dornheim
104 Berlin 117 Dresden
v
•
130 Erfurt 174 Nienburg
• •
135 Freiberg 175 Pomßen
•
137 Gehren 177 Potsdam
138 Gera 181 Sangerhausen
140 Görlitz 183 Schleiz
142 Gotha 185 Stöntzsch
145 Halle 185 Störmthal
150 Hamburg 188 Taubach
• •
154 Heiligengrabe 188 Waltershausen
•
156 Karlsbad 190 Wechmar
158 Kassel 192 Weißenfels
161 Kleinzschocher 199 Weißensee
163 Langewiesen 200 Wiederau
• •
164 Langula 202 Zeitz
•
165 Lübeck 204 Zerbst
•
170 Merseburg 206 Zschortau
171 Naumburg
209 Appendix: Bach’s Travels: An Overview
215 Bibliography
227 Illustration Credits
231 Index
forEWord
It is with great pleasure that the American Bach Society, in collaboration with the
University of Illinois Press, publishes Exploring the World of J. S. Bach: A Traveler’s
Guide. The Society’s first venture into special publications, The Organs of J. S. Bach:
A Handbook, issued in 2012, proved to be such a happy undertaking that the Soci-
ety’s Editorial Board quickly settled upon the idea of creating a companion volume,
a guide to the Bach sites in Germany.
That a new sites guide, in English, was needed was apparent for many of the
same reasons that spurred the publication of the organ handbook. The opening
of Thuringia and Saxony after the fall of the Socialist government in 1989 and the
reunification of Germany the following year have suddenly made the region where
Bach lived and worked easily accessible to tourists for the first time in almost half a
century. The rapid restoration and reconstruction of towns, churches, and palaces
known to Bach and the establishment of new, visitor- friendly museums also call
out for an up- to- date guide. While a number of books discussing the Bach sites are
available in German and ostensibly could be translated into English, none capture the
full range of recent developments such as the rebuilding of the Church of our Lady in
Dresden (the site of Bach’s triumphant organ concert before the Elector’s musicians
in 1736), the reimagining of the facade of the University Church in Leipzig (where
Bach performed the Trauer- Ode, Laß Fürstin, laß noch einen Strahl in 1727), or the
re- creation of the Royal Palace in Potsdam (where Bach improvised on Silbermann
fortepianos before Frederick the Great in 1747). In addition, no existing guides incor-
porate the most recent findings of Bach research, a field that has flourished in the
past twenty- five years with the opening of long- inaccessible archives in the former
East Germany and Russia and the renewed efforts of the Bach Expedition team of
the Leipzig Bach Archive. For all of these reasons, the Editorial Board concluded that
an entirely new handbook was required, rather than the translation of an existing
German guide. But who would write it?
vii
By happy coincidence, distinguished Bach scholar and past president of the
American Bach Society Robert L. Marshall and his wife Traute expressed interest
in the project at an early stage of development. One cannot imagine a better set of
tour guides. Robert, winner of the Kinkeldey Prize from the American Musicologi-
cal Society and the Deems Taylor Award from ASCAP, is well known for his exact-
ing scholarship and game- changing essays. The Compositional Process of J. S. Bach
opened the world of source studies to American musicologists when it appeared in
1972, and articles such as “Bach the Progressive” and “Organ or Klavier? Instrumental
Prescriptions in the Sources of Bach’s Keyboard Works” altered the way we think
about Bach and the performance of his works. Traute, a native German, is an equally
seasoned writer, editor, and translator. Her German translations of Charles Rosen’s
The Classical Style and James Lyon’s Brecht in America have become standards in the
German- speaking world, and her Art Museums PLUS: Cultural Excursions in New
England takes the precise guidebook approach desired for the present undertaking.
It was clear from the start that the Marshalls, blessed with broad experience, impres-
sive Bach credentials, and a rich sense of humor were the perfect team to produce a
handbook on the German Bach sites.
Also auspicious for the present project was the American Bach Society’s long-
standing ties with the University of Illinois Press. For almost two decades now the
Society and the Press have collaborated on publications such as Bach Perspectives,
About Bach, and The Organs of J. S. Bach. With the strong support of then-Director
William Regier, the savvy guidance of then-Senior Acquisitions Editor Laurie Mathe-
son, and the elegant design work of Jim Proefrock (so evident in the organ handbook),
the project was able to move forward in a smooth, efficient, and effective way. It has
been a delight to join forces once again with the UIP team.
What the Marshalls have provided is far more than a straightforward guide to
the Bach sites. In the course of discussing the activities of Bach in 51 German towns,
they present an up- to- date overview of Bach biography, one that incorporates the
very latest discoveries of Bach research. With substantial discussions of the architec-
ture and art of the individual buildings and museums, the Marshalls also provide a
concise study of Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque art history. And by drawing
on early guides to the postal and travel routes, they give us a sense of just how much
time Bach spent in transit, and just how arduous many of his journeys actually
were. Who would have thought that the trip from Leipzig to Kassel, a quick ride of
less than three hours on the Intercity train today, took Bach at least a week in 1732,
with overnight stops that probably included stays in Weißenfels, Erfurt, and Gotha?
Although Bach did not venture abroad, it is obvious from the present guide that he
viii
spent much more time on the road than previously thought, traveling from town to
town within Germany.
But most importantly, by drawing on critical details, the Marshalls convey a
vivid picture of Bach’s daily life. In 1730, disgruntled by deteriorating conditions for
music- making in Leipzig, Bach reminisced to his school chum Georg Erdmann that
he had been supremely happy in Köthen and had planned to spend the rest of his
days there. The present volume shows that his employer in Köthen, Prince Leopold,
spent the equivalent of almost $422,000 on a single stay at the Spa in Karlsbad. Why
wouldn’t Bach have been happy in such an environment of luxury, as a prized and
graciously supported keyboard virtuoso in the Prince’s retinue?!
Exploring the World of J. S. Bach: A Traveler’s Guide, then, serves as a worthy
companion to The Organs of J. S. Bach. It paints a broad portrait of Bach’s life and
career and the political and cultural milieu that he was compelled to navigate. It
surveys the cities, towns, and villages in which he made music, telling us what these
sites were like in his time and what they are like today. In short, it presents a vibrant
description of Bach’s world, in his day and ours. In their quest to track down the
places where the great St. Thomas Kantor walked and worked, the Marshalls leave
no Bach memorial tablet unturned. And in the process, they make a convincing case
for some new ones.
George B. Stauffer
General Editor, American Bach Society
ix