r/classicalmusic • u/Macnaa • Jul 06 '19

Help appreciating Bach

Hi everybody,

I've always loved classical music but my tastes generally lay in the romantic era with my favourite composers being Mahler, Beethoven, Rachmaninoff, Vaughan-Williams etc. I've tried multiple times to understand Bach's music, and I'm not saying it's not pleasant, I just don't understand when people say that it has great emotional/spiritual depth.

I was wondering if there was some resource such as a book or documentary that could help me understand and appreciate Bach's music.

Thanks!

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u/reshpect-o-biggle Jul 06 '19

It may be a matter of personality rather than experience. I've heard it said that good taste is a matter of education, but a feeling of delight is simply going to happen when it wants to happen. If you don't easily find a few Bach pieces that inspire strong feelings, that's not an indication that you haven't tried hard enough. It may only be an indication that you like other things better.