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The purely spiritual interpretation of Bach's works has been challenged through the desire to see them detached from his religious ideology. I stand for the view, currently out of favour no doubt, that J.S. Bach's works cannot be separated from the inspiration he derived from his Christian faith. I regard many readings as little short of blasphemous; in order to circumnavigate the Christian monolith, players resort to all kinds of intellectual contortions. Somewhat embarrassed, intellectuals are now also starting to reject the view that naïve devoutness, artistically sublimated of course, can be replaced by technical fireworks.
The Christian aspect need not come across as stridently orthodox in Bach's music, but it should be fully incorporated in the planning of the interpretation to ensure that the symbolic character remains, translated into a different cultural language if necessary.
Das Orchester August 1983
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