Bach Cello Suite In G Major - Complete Solo Bass Recording

[Papabull]

Hi Ben, Thanks for posting this. It's simply beautiful, so musical. Your phrasing is wonderful. Importantly for me it shows how JS Bach's music transcends so many barriers. Have you come across the amazing American musician Chris Thile?  He's a mandolinist with roots in authentic American Folk/country music. In case you haven't here are two links to playing Bach. In one instance a Brandenburg Concerto using Double bass, Mandolin, Guitar and Banjo etc imo it works beautifully also a solo piece for violin played on mandolin. It only goes to show that great music can be performed on instruments that weren't originally meant for as long as it's the hands of a great and sensitive musician. That's certainly what you are. Great playing and fab video. Here are the links to C Thile.

 

 

 

[lownote]

Love the mandoliny stuff. Real eye opener how nice Bach sounds on ‘modern’ instruments. Surprised more musicians don’t do this. Goes to show how deep the lacuna is between the classical community  and most of us is. It also raises the question of what musical excellence is. I’m a competent blues bassist. But listening to this am I a musician at all? 

Edited June 9, 2020 by lownote12

[funkypenguin]

22 hours ago, lownote12 said:

I have tried to copy your achievement. In four days I have stumbled slowly through eight bars. I think I won’t get much further.  Greatest respect to you.

thanks very much! I should say it took me a long time to prepare this!!

[funkypenguin]

19 hours ago, Papabull said:

Hi Ben, Thanks for posting this. It's simply beautiful, so musical. Your phrasing is wonderful. Importantly for me it shows how JS Bach's music transcends so many barriers. Have you come across the amazing American musician Chris Thile?  He's a mandolinist with roots in authentic American Folk/country music. In case you haven't here are two links to playing Bach. In one instance a Brandenburg Concerto using Double bass, Mandolin, Guitar and Banjo etc imo it works beautifully also a solo piece for violin played on mandolin. It only goes to show that great music can be performed on instruments that weren't originally meant for as long as it's the hands of a great and sensitive musician. That's certainly what you are. Great playing and fab video. Here are the links to C Thile.

 

 

 

thanks so much for the very kind words, they are very very much appreciated!! I haven't seen either of these videos but I will be checking them out this evening, but I do find that Bach does translate very nicely onto other instrumentation, which I suppose is part of what defines a masterwork  

[funkypenguin]

12 hours ago, lownote12 said:

Love the mandoliny stuff. Real eye opener how nice Bach sounds on ‘modern’ instruments. Surprised more musicians don’t do this. Goes to show how deep the lacuna is between the classical community  and most of us is. It also raises the question of what musical excellence is. I’m a competent blues bassist. But listening to this am I a musician at all? 

Its an interesting topic for debate for sure. I had around 15 years of classical training, alongside my delving into the world of popular music and jazz fusion, and I feel I have an awful lot left to learn in both worlds. The skillsets for both are incredibly diverse and disparate, but both are 100% valid and just because you haven't delved deeply into the classical mindset doesn't make you any less of a musician