Bach

[BFGUITAR]

I find that I never get bored of Bach's music. There so much to it. Ive listened to the EXACT same fugue for over a year straight and it stil suprises me every time I listen to it. Bach truely is the master!

For anyonme who isnt into his music, thats fine! No one generally liked bach the first time they listen to his music, hardly anyone during his time likes it so your not the first. Theres alot going on with the moving voices. I just cant get enough of him! Luckily he wrote thousands of pieces of music for us to enjoy!

[VikingWarlord]

Hell yes. I've been working (ok, not real hard the last few months) on a solo arrangement of Toccata and Fugue in Dm on my 6 string bass. It was a pantload of fun.

Metalheads dig Bach because a lot of his music just sounds evil.

[Talking_God]

A lot of songs are based off of inversions and sequences of Bach's music, particularly his minor Fugues and Toccatas because they generally have intricate lines that really appeal to us modern rockers

Personally I'm not a Bach fan, or a fan of any of the Renaissance musicians. I'm purely a Romance period fan, although i do have my fair share of heros in the classical and modern eras (Beethoven, Shubert, and Gershwin and Joplin in the modern era.)

[DeHartD]

i took a course in college titled "Bach to Rock," I definitely liked Bach over the majority of other classical artists we listened to.

[BFGUITAR]

Theres something unique about him!

I heard somewhere that bach had some sort of mental anomoly. They basically stated that no one can create so much (thousands upon thousands of pieces) intense (mentally) music in such a short amount of time. Aside from the fact that no one can think as countrpuntaly (if thats a word) as him. He must have heard music in such a unique way.

[Ymesse]

bach is sweetness, and you can arrange his stuff in so many ways and it still sounds awesome, i heard an arrangement of some 4 part fugue or something for steel drums and it was really cool, its hard stuff to play,i found bach was usually the hardest thing for me to play when i was learning his music on the piano. Fugues aint easy.

[Organichu]

I remember getting started with the piano, and techniques I would employ to sharpen my skill. One of the things would be to try to recite sheet music- that is , write it myself from memory on blank manuscript.

I have countless, countless books of 10 stave, 90 sheet manuscript filled with Bach and inspired variants. I was looking through all of my "memorabilia" yesterday, and these books of Bach music are pretty much the only thing I kept from my childhood.

So he definitely made a big impact on me, yeah. A lot of kids had the TV as a babysitter... I had people like Bach, and they'll always have a profound soft spot with me.

[Shane]

I was lucky enough to start liking Back back in junior high because there was a guitar magazine with his Bouree in E minor in it and I learned it after I learned all the other songs in the magazine. I still remember the issue. Phill Collen and Steve Clark were on teh cover in robes and bear claw slippers. lol

[fixationdarknes]

Bach owns. He's one of the reasons metal/neoclassical sounds the way it does today. Plenty of metal bands are influenced off of him.

What a pimp:

[BFGUITAR]

This is what im going to learn after school.
Such a powerful piece!

Bach wrote for guitar his whole life and didnt know it! Its amazing how it fits so well!
The part at 1:22 is breathtaking

http://youtube.com/watch?v=ljnjCbOfQdE

[Talking_God]

I'd much rather listen to classical music on the piano...with the exception of Bach. I can't stand his music on the piano or harpsichord, but put it on a massive pipe organ (when applicable) or the guitar, and i love it.

And he wasn't a mental anamoly, i don't know where you heard that phrase applied to him. He was just a prodigy, just like Mozart was. They both would sit down and just write a song in a matter of minutes, sometimes composing them on the way to the concert they were to play for. Nothing crazy going on in his brain, he was just a music genius.

[BFGUITAR]

I'd much rather listen to classical music on the piano...with the exception of Bach. I can't stand his music on the piano or harpsichord, but put it on a massive pipe organ (when applicable) or the guitar, and i love it.

And he wasn't a mental anamoly, i don't know where you heard that phrase applied to him. He was just a prodigy, just like Mozart was. They both would sit down and just write a song in a matter of minutes, sometimes composing them on the way to the concert they were to play for. Nothing crazy going on in his brain, he was just a music genius.

What do you think these people are? Theyre more than just "really good" at music. They thought like no man has thought before.

And go into the timeframe of bach... the things he did and wrote were incredibly different and unique from the mainstream.

Its like those people who are rediculiusly smart, but are awkward. There is something different happening in their mind.

[Nicoman]

I love Bach. If you guys love listening to classical then here is a station from San Francisco that plays classical all day everyday.

Enjoy!!

http://new.kdfc.com/2006/stream.cfm

Edit: And yes brilliant people do think differently. Classical music influences those traits in us.

[ArchAngel777]

What do you think these people are? Theyre more than just "really good" at music. They thought like no man has thought before.

And go into the timeframe of bach... the things he did and wrote were incredibly different and unique from the mainstream.

Its like those people who are rediculiusly smart, but are awkward. There is something different happening in their mind.

Naw, I don't think that at all. I agree with the guy you quoted. These guys are like anyone in their field when they are proficient. These guys became one with the music and therefore, what they thought came into existance

It isn't much difference than today, really... Some guitar players can rip out solos without thinking about it, without ever trying to make it sound cool because they know the music so well, they think it and before they play it, they already know what it will sound like. One with the music. That is a talent few have, even in the music industry. I'd mention Yngwie Malmsteen off the top of my head as a metal/neo classical guitarist who just knows the guitar so well... These guys are just like other people in their respective fields though. Some people are mathetmatics gifted, others communication gifted, etc... Just my opinion.

Though I do agree there are some people who are autistic with these abilities, I just don't think it mandates that.

[BFGUITAR]

Theres a difference than "ripping a cool guitar solo" and writing contrapuntal masterpieces. Bach and Mozart are probably the two most unique composers who ever lived in a sense that they not only produced amazing music which is a feat in itself, but were able to give so much music in such a short amount of time.

Bach for example wrote from BWV 1-1200 with many other little random pieces. Each number corresponds not to one song, but a suite which consists or 5-7 pieces of music. Some contain two (prelude and fugue for example). Overall he could have written well over 7000 pieces of music, each amazing.

Its not the fact that hes just good, but the fact that his mind works like no other person, which is evident in his music if you listen to enough of it... Hense he is the absolute master of counterpoint.

[Talking_God]

That's not really true BF..a certain part of his brain operated more efficiently than other peoples, many of the well known classical composers were just as good at writing music at he was, Bach just wrote them much faster than others, does that make him better at it?

And how about some of these modern savantes (i'm not sure if i spelled that correctly) who can take music and sequence it, transpose it, play it in different styles etc. etc. but can't tie their own shoes. Just because someone wrote 7000 songs doesnt mean he's the best musician/composer.

[BFGUITAR]

That's not really true BF..a certain part of his brain operated more efficiently than other peoples, many of the well known classical composers were just as good at writing music at he was, Bach just wrote them much faster than others, does that make him better at it?

And how about some of these modern savantes (i'm not sure if i spelled that correctly) who can take music and sequence it, transpose it, play it in different styles etc. etc. but can't tie their own shoes. Just because someone wrote 7000 songs doesnt mean he's the best musician/composer.

How can someone not be one of the greatest composers of our time for creating 7000 masterpieces?
Just saying some people "write faster" than others doesnt mean anything is silly. Being able to produce amazing music in such a small amount of time proves that the person has endless ideas and has skills no one else had. They seperate the one hit wonders and true musicians.

You said specifically that other composers were able to compose just as good as him... Well the only other person with his skill was Mozart. Beethoven, Chopin, Brahms and many others did have the edge Mozart or Bach had. When Beethoven would compose, his original score was messy, full of scratched ideas (which is normal of any composer). He would work through the piece, cut out things he didnt like an such. Bach and Mozart were the complete opposite. They would have an idea and simply write it down like its nothing. They have it all planned in their heads waiting to be written. Its not like they sit and think for hours and than write it down, it just seems to flow out as they write. No other composer that I know of can do this on such a level. There is a difference between talent, genius and exceptionally perfect. They are that much more unique than any composer to date. Lets hope there are more people like them in the future (who goes into music).

[Talking_God]

7000 masterpieces is a ridiculous statement, absolutely ridiculous. Yes he has many very popular and great songs, i'm not arguing this point. He may have 7000 compositions, but no way in HELL does he have 7000 masterpieces, i think you're taking the argument a bit far. And being able to write it that fast and cleanly merely means that they have exceptional improvisational skills, that's basically all it is, improvising music onto a transcript rather than through the actual instrument.

And personally I have much more reverance for Beethoven than Bach; Beethoven composed his greatest pieces DEAF. In my eyes thats a much more talents musician than somebody who can churn out 7000 songs, 90% of which are no longer heard or played regularly by anybody other than someone whose specialty is in playing Bach.

[PhilsterT]

You guys are arguing over nothing...

[Fuzzy]

I love the Bach Cello Suites.

I play bass trombone, and those pieces are usually standard audition material for trombonists, trying to replicate a cello in Bach style phrasing.

[Talking_God]

You guys are arguing over nothing...

I've been a musician since i was in 2nd grade, it's my life, and if you know anything about music, this argument isn't over nothing.

[BFGUITAR]

Well the only reason why the bulk of Bach's music isnt played is because alot of it consists of chorales, organ pieces and such. People are more interested in his suites, preludes and fugues.
Your making the arguement that just because people dont listen to alot of Bach's music (whether it be because its a chorale and people dont typically listen to chorales or for some other reason) your saying its not masterfull? Than I guess Beethoven in general isnt much of a master considering most people dont listen to him (not many classical music fans in North America)

Take ANY bach chorale and analyze it. If you dont find unique genius in each of them than I dont know what your thinking (assuming your good enough to analyze music). There is a very common saying, if you can play Bach, you can play everything (Bach's music is the most demanding of all, mentaly that is). When we first learn music theory and harmony who do we look upon to learn? Bach! Not because its simple (its far from it) but because his music represents all music after his time. We dont analyze Handel the same way we analyze Bach, there is a clear reason why we look up to him so much.

And the fact that a person can "improvise" on paper without touching an instrument doesnt impress you at all!?! That an incredibly unique skill. Im sure you like other people can improvise with an instrument but I would like to see how you do writing on paper, nonstop with no "mistakes". Im not comparing yo to Bach or anything but puting things into perspective.

[phreak]

I've been a musician since i was in 2nd grade, it's my life, and if you know anything about music, this argument isn't over nothing.

this is the audio version of the raw vs. gear debate in PL. It is all personal taste, it will never end and no side will ever admit to being wrong anyway.

[BFGUITAR]

I would also like to say that any big name composer could compose deaf. They all had perfect pitch making it quite easy for them.

[Titanium_Jim]

Comparing Bach to Yngwie is ludicrous. Yngwie hammers out scales and scale exercises very fast. Great guitarist, yes, but no real innovator of anything.

I won't speculate on the mental or social state of Bach, but his composing was definitely on a different page than anything else at the time, and helped shape a lot of music even today.