Augustinersquo;s Oak; the first play to be commissioned for Shakespearersquo;s new Globe Theatre; is the story of St Augustinersquo;s mission in 597 AD to reconcile the Christians of the Celtic Church with the authority of Rome.
#2479211 in eBooks 2010-07-14 2010-07-14File Name: B00AO4F4JO
Review
244 of 255 people found the following review helpful. A Report from the FieldBy Bach LoverThis is; and I am sure it will continue to be; one of the most interesting; well researched and valuable of books written on J.S. Bach and his times to date. I began it the day it arrived and have barely put it down. That is saying a lot as I have been buying and listening to and reading about Bach for the past 50+ years.Just a quarter of the way into its more than 600 pages; I can report that this book should prove to be invaluable to anyone interested in Bach; the Baroque; and the musicians of that era and before. It is Gardiners clear and compelling writing; the depth of his research; and his emphasis on Bachs life that is so very compelling. Who was Bach? Why was he that way? And how did his life shape his music? Answering these questions are the objectives of the book. He does it better than anyone I have read. There is much new information discovered only in the last decade or more.I will revise this review when Ive finished reading; but I wanted to send a dispatch that in the first four chapters; this is proving to be a wonderful and instructive read. And a last note: the footnotes are terrific.53 of 56 people found the following review helpful. John Eliot in the Castle of HeavenBy Johannes ClimacusI do not mean to derogate from Sir John Eliot Gardiners status as one of the great luminaries of the podium in our age--to say nothing of his status as a pioneer and perfecter of period performance practice--but in the end the capstone of his career might well turn out to have been in the medium of prose rather than musical performance! This is; quite simply; the most fascinating; engrossing; erudite and stunningly written work on the Leipzig Cantor available. Too bad it focuses primarily on his sacred music (I would love to have Gardiners obiter dicta on many of the keyboard; chamber and orchestral works treated only tangentially here); but within that limited scope; Gardiner has achieved something quite remarkable: a work of musical historiography that manages to combine rigorous scholarship with philosophical acumen and literary flair. As a philosopher with a keen interest in the interface between aesthetics and religion; I particularly appreciated Gardiners thorough understanding of the exigencies of church music within the Lutheran tradition; and his situating of tht tradition within the larger framework of Church history; scriptural exegesis and Christian spirituality. His effort to discern Bachs character and aspirations from his church music rather than principally from the documentary evidence (which is relaitvely meager) fixes the readers (and listeners) attention where it must always begin and end--namely; with the scores themselves; as performed and heard. His charting of Bachs creative development; through the seasons and struggles of his career calls our attention anew to the status of the sacred music--particularly the Cantatas--as a kind of spiritual journal recounting the consolations and desolations of a fragile; fallible genius who also happened to be something of a mystic. For Gardiner; in the end; Bachs sacred-musical testament amounts to the bravest and most brilliant of stands against the depredations of our human condition at its most terrifying--and *for* the transcendence to the rapture of creativity fitfully but effectually points.I cannot recommend this work highly enough. Its pages will afford a fresh encounter with the composer; even if you have been studying his works and his commentators (as I have) for nearly a lifetime. But even more tellingly perhaps; you will encounter John Eliot Gardiner in a new way--as an accomplished writer and winsomely humane scholar.6 of 6 people found the following review helpful. An Amazing Scholarly Book; but Perhaps not a Good Choice for a Non-MusicianBy Trout26John Eliot Gardiner is arguably the best interpreter of Bach currently performing/recording. His complete Bach Cantata "Pilgrimage" and the ensuing recordings are the best that I have ever listened to. The booklets that ship with the CDs (or are available; free; on line from his web site) give a hint at the scholarly research that Gardiner did in the preparation of the Pilgrimage. This book is the icing on the cake. Although perhaps a bit "dense" for the reader with a just passing interest in Bach; this book delves; in great detail; into the geographic; cultural; political; religious; and anthropological world of Bach and shows he fit (and often did not fit) into this world. Historically; there is actually very little surviving biographical information on Bach; but weaving what is known; with contemporary writings and accounts; and making logical suppositions; Gardiner has created the most complete tapestry of Bach to date. The heart of the book is when Gardiner begins discussing individual choral works; how they relate to the scriptures on which they are based; how they relate to each other; and how they relate to the theological and political environment of the time. As I have the complete recorded cycle (which I cannot recommend highly enough); it is truly illuminating to listen to each cantata while you are reading Gardiners descriptive prose. Certainly not every one of Bachs 194 cantatas are described in detail; but enough are to get a really solid grasp of Bachs genius. Were this being presentes as an advanced course at a University; it would easily be two semesters worth of material.NOTE: Buy the print version of this book. I started reading it on a Kindle; but the copious footnotes and references to plates not necessarily in close proximity to the text made reading this a tedious task; at best. Reading the print version was infinately more enjoyable.