Why is it so? We are at Thomaskirche for a Motette as we were just yesterday. Strictly, there is some Bach but there's no cantata and it's not that the music is not interesting, it's just not Bach and Bach is sort of expected at Thomaskirche. This was more monophony: Renaissance, limited harmony, limited movement of lines, still beautiful but I imagine the composers, mostly 40 years or so BB (Before Bach) might have slit their wrists on hearing the new boy in town. Otherwise, I might have luxuriated in the simple lines, the authenticity, the glorious high sopranos (to F#5 if I got it right), the largely unaccompanied purity of the voice. And this was a session to listen rather than partake of with just one Gemendelied, our congregational singalong that I so love. I shouldn't question a decision that promotes variation, even if not of complex interleaving parts. The Ensemble Amadeus was performing and they were really very beautiful with those simpler musical lines of hardly similar times, with singers and just a few instrumentalists (violin, viola, viola da gamba, basso [continuo]) and a visiting organist on the night. I have yet to learn of the ways of Thomaskirche. But then walking back to our stay, another demo in Marktplaz. Germany does have them and good on a culture that does have some outspoken politics. This was a Palestinian outing to match the Israeli outing of the other night in the same square. This was noisy chanting and flags rather than the quiet names lists. Still plenty of cops around and we saw them readying for action when one argument was threatening. I'd read something today about the Germans and their support through guilt (if I read correctly) after the Holocaust. Yes, something to answer for there, and I respect their preparedness to honesty respond. Let's see a similar preparedness on both sides of this current war to recognise the pain of each of their actions.
The Ensemble Amadeus performed for a service at Thomaskirche, Leipzig, under Norman Kastner (musical director) with Ivo Mrvelj (organ).
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