Stephen Heersink wrote:

>And I want to suggest that listening to the Mass as a liturgical
>artifact makes for a much more interesting piece than simply as a
>performance of ordinary interest.

I'm sure it does for Stephen, but it would ruin my enjoyment.  I find
Bach's Mass of extraordinary interest in that the music is masterful and it
creates within me images and more in a fashion similar to those I described
concerning the WTC, Book 1.  Some of those images do have a religious aura,
but are far different than what would be found in the liturgical text.  I
think that what I get from the Mass is roughly equal in intensity and
spirituality to what a religous person would get from the work (assuming
that he/she went below the surface of the music).

I get most of my sense of spirituality from music, nature, and the stages
of life.  I'm well satisfied.  I assume Stephen is as well. Life's great,
and I'm buying a new suit tomorrow.  But tonight, I'm listening to Robert
King's new recording of Handel's L'Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato and
the Vanska recording of the Lemminkainen Suite by Sibelius.  By the time
you read this, I'll be walking downtown in my new clothes catching all
those enticing glances from the fine ladies in the vicinity and whistling
some irresistible tunes that stop them in their tracks.  Don and his music
are hard to resist.  Bye - I think I'll see what my wife is doing.  No hard
feelings, Stephen.  The main thing is that we are deeply moved by the music
we listen to, regardless of how we get there.

Don Satz
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