Uploaded July 2023 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
Finally! The influential Joshua Rifkin (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joshua_Rifkin) guests on the WTF Bach Podcast.
Rifkin made Bach fame with his groundbreaking (and controversial!) theory (nytimes.com/1998/04/26/arts/classical-music-the-case-for-minimal-bach-one-singer-to-a-part.html) that Bach’s vocal works (and other 17th & 18th century) composers’ works were sung with only one singer per part. He recorded the b minor mass, several cantatas, and other Bach works in this format.
We spoke for almost three hours about ragtime, the Beatles, PDQ Bach (my distant uncle), even crossword puzzles, coffee and meditation. For this episode, though, I culled it quite severely to only that which deals with Bach’s music.
It’s fascinating to hear him talk about his scholastic endeavors dealing with first-hand examination of source material. Do you agree with Rifkin? Do you like the sound of one singer per part?
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Follow Evan's instagram (instagram.com/wtfbach) , because... well... it's the only one you should follow.
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Support us:
patreon.com/wtfbach
paypal.me/wtfbach
venmo.com/wtfbach
https://cash.app/$wtfbach
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Suggestions? Want Evan to analyze a specific piece of Bach? Have other questions for Evan about music or... anything... anything at all?
Write us: bach@wtfbach.com (mailto:bach@wtfbach.com)
Get full access to WTF Bach? at wtfbach.substack.com/subscribe (wtfbach.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4)
Finally! The influential Joshua Rifkin (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joshua_Rifkin) guests on the WTF Bach Podcast.
Rifkin made Bach fame with his groundbreaking (and controversial!) theory (nytimes.com/1998/04/26/arts/classical-music-the-case-for-minimal-bach-one-singer-to-a-part.html) that Bach’s vocal works (and other 17th & 18th century) composers’ works were sung with only one singer per part. He recorded the b minor mass, several cantatas, and other Bach works in this format.
We spoke for almost three hours about ragtime, the Beatles, PDQ Bach (my distant uncle), even crossword puzzles, coffee and meditation. For this episode, though, I culled it quite severely to only that which deals with Bach’s music.
It’s fascinating to hear him talk about his scholastic endeavors dealing with first-hand examination of source material. Do you agree with Rifkin? Do you like the sound of one singer per part?
- -
Follow Evan's instagram (instagram.com/wtfbach) , because... well... it's the only one you should follow.
- -
Support us:
patreon.com/wtfbach
paypal.me/wtfbach
venmo.com/wtfbach
https://cash.app/$wtfbach
--
Suggestions? Want Evan to analyze a specific piece of Bach? Have other questions for Evan about music or... anything... anything at all?
Write us: bach@wtfbach.com (mailto:bach@wtfbach.com)
Get full access to WTF Bach? at wtfbach.substack.com/subscribe (wtfbach.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4)
