Jeffrey Hall wrote:

>... As a relative newbie to CM (4 years), I listen to very little Bach.
>I know, I know, this is sacrilege.  But I _love_ melody, and Bach just
>doesn't do it for me (not yet).

There certainly is lots of melody in Bach.  There are long, long melodic
lines, too, and surprisingly romantic in mood.  And some of these melodies
are found in --surprise!-- religious works.

But I find that when people complain about Bach saying that there is
no melody there, what really destroys it for them is the countermelody.
If you want all the melodies removed except one, like a single pearl on
a silver salver, well, yeah; Bach hardly ever gives you that.  (But try
the slow movement of the Italian Concerto for solo harpsichord.)

But it you can stand two melodies (just two, kids, not a trillion) at the
same time, you are in for a treat.  For starters, try

"Qui sedes ad dextram patris" from the B minor mass.  This has some of the
most plangent, long phrases ever.  But the solo oboe has equally lovely
countermelodies.  So we have counterpoint, yes, but very bearable, IMO.

The adagio from the double concerto in D minor for oboe and violin, S 1060.
Here the violin and oboe trade quite long melodies, and one finished almost
before the other begins, and for one who can't stand having two melodies
cluttering up the air, this is a good way to edge into the kind of
counterpoint Bach used in his most simple romantic adagios.

If Jeffrey Hall would care to tell us what Bach he has listened to, (and
has been thrown off by,) we might be able to suggest alternative flavors
of Bach.  Because, contrary to popular belief, Bach is certainly NOT a
one-flavor composer!

(BTW, a rather painless way to hear snatches of Bach is to log into the
BMG site (as a "visitor", if necessary) and listen to the Real Audio
files.  Real Audio is available for free from the Netscape home page:
www.netscape.com

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