“What about Jazz, Mr. Bach?” – Capriccio in C minor, BWV 826 – arrangement for 2 pianos

Christian Klinkenberg – Yamaha B2 Silentpiano Stephan Müller – Yamaha GC 1 Silentflügel
Die deutschsprachigen Erläuterungen finden sich im Video zu den Zeiten …
3:35 - Capriccio is a term of art theory already coined in the 16th century by Giorgio Vasari (1511 -1574). It describes a genre of painting that cultivates the deliberate, idiosyncratic breaking of rules, the imaginative, playful transgression of academic norms, without ultimately completely overriding them. Bernardo Bellotto, called Canaletto (1722 - 1780), created several Capricci in addition to his famous vedute, which are more committed to the realistic depiction.
4:06 - Johann Sebastian Bach, certainly one of the most profound connoisseurs of the compositional rules of his epoch, was also extraordinarily open to innovations and experiments throughout his life. He also composed capricci, among others as the final movement of the Partita in C minor BWV 826, replacing the gigue that would actually be expected at this point.
4:32 - If a Capriccio is intended to be rather anticlassical, it is obvious to approach its interpretation in a forced anti-classical, anti-musical way as well. In Bach’s case, what could be better suited to this than to combine elements of jazz music with his distinctly rhythmic music? Our interpretation is thus, somewhat exaggeratedly, a work that goes against the norm twice, a double capriccio.
5:00 - In contrast to the Play Bach interpretations of Jaques Loussier, however, our arrangement does without its own continuations and improvisations. This is primarily due to the respect for Bach's indisputably exemplary formal and creative will, which he did not deny even in his Capricci. Moreover, it was also an indispensable prerequisite for the realization in the split-screen recording process. Our arrangement also exists in a very detailed notation, which ultimately contradicts the essence of jazz music.

5:33 - The two pianos are framed by a playback of bass and drum set. Thus, our recording resembles the trio instrumentation typical for Play Bach music. Is Bach now really the beginning and the end of music (quote from Max Reger)? Committed to tradition, his works point far into the future. Not only anticipating Wagner's Tristan harmonies, it has always inspired countless adaptations, surviving many appropriations without damage ... even the jazz-influenced one? Thanks to its substance we are optimistic that it did and hope to have added a small original contribution to the reception of Bach.
Quellenangaben zum Bildmaterial:
Bild 1: Bach-Porträt von Elias Gottlob Haußmann aus dem Jahr 1748: Digitale Sammlungen des Bach-Archiv Leipzig
Bild 2: Bernardo Bellotto, Venezianisches Capriccio mit Ansicht von Santa Maria dei Miracoli, Landesmuseum Hannover Bild 3: Titelblatt zu Bachs Opus 1 https://www.bach-digital.de/receive/B... Leipziger Städtische Bibliotheken - Musikbibliothek Peters.
Bild 4: Seite 21 aus der 2. Auflage des Originaldrucks aller 6 Partiten (1. Auflage: 1731) Leipziger Städtische Bibliotheken - Musikbibliothek Peters.