Ben Wilson

Thomas', who was in general a worthy artist, once so enraged Bach by a mistake on the organ during the rehearsal of a cantata that Bach tore the wig from his own head and with a thundering exclamation, you should have been a cobbler, threw it at the organist's head. Okay. Again, Bach had a way with words. Great insults, great insult.

You should have been a cobbler, he says to the organist and takes off his wig and throws it at the organist. So Bach had this Jekyll and Hyde thing going on, right? He could be very kind. They were always receiving visitors and helping out the less fortunate in their home. He's very kind in his personal life, but his art was sacred to him. And if you messed with that,

You should have been a cobbler, he says to the organist and takes off his wig and throws it at the organist. So Bach had this Jekyll and Hyde thing going on, right? He could be very kind. They were always receiving visitors and helping out the less fortunate in their home. He's very kind in his personal life, but his art was sacred to him. And if you messed with that,

He was going to demand excellence from you. You know, I'm often asked by people how to be demanding, like Steve Jobs, like Coco Chanel, without becoming a jerk. And I think that's the answer. You put on your game face. You become a different person when you are talking about your life's work. Okay, so that's number four. Number five, try everything, but try the right thing first.

He was going to demand excellence from you. You know, I'm often asked by people how to be demanding, like Steve Jobs, like Coco Chanel, without becoming a jerk. And I think that's the answer. You put on your game face. You become a different person when you are talking about your life's work. Okay, so that's number four. Number five, try everything, but try the right thing first.

Okay, again from the John Elliott Gardner biography. Whatever went on in his mind in terms of pre-composition or was first jotted down in sketches, Bach's working scores show us how concentrated and economical he was when actually composing.

Okay, again from the John Elliott Gardner biography. Whatever went on in his mind in terms of pre-composition or was first jotted down in sketches, Bach's working scores show us how concentrated and economical he was when actually composing.

Among 20th century composers, Shostakovich is reported to have compiled his symphonies straight into full score on the basis that he didn't have time to make errors. He simply couldn't afford the luxury of making mistakes. Bach was much the same, okay? And this reminds me of the Edwin Land quote, we try everything, but we try the right thing first.

Among 20th century composers, Shostakovich is reported to have compiled his symphonies straight into full score on the basis that he didn't have time to make errors. He simply couldn't afford the luxury of making mistakes. Bach was much the same, okay? And this reminds me of the Edwin Land quote, we try everything, but we try the right thing first.

In other words, I'm ready to try everything to solve this problem. I will beat my head against this rock until it gives me water if I have to. And Bach does do that sometimes. Sometimes progress for Bach was slow and steady. Christoph Wolff writes, quote, one of the most remarkable chapters of Forkel's 1802 biography deals with Bach as the reviser of his own works.

In other words, I'm ready to try everything to solve this problem. I will beat my head against this rock until it gives me water if I have to. And Bach does do that sometimes. Sometimes progress for Bach was slow and steady. Christoph Wolff writes, quote, one of the most remarkable chapters of Forkel's 1802 biography deals with Bach as the reviser of his own works.

Here Forkel draws on his experience consulting many unpublished manuscripts. I have had opportunities, he writes, of comparing together many copies of his principal works written in different years, and I confess that I have often felt both surprise and delight at the means which he employed to make little by little the faulty good, the good better, and the better perfect. Okay?

Here Forkel draws on his experience consulting many unpublished manuscripts. I have had opportunities, he writes, of comparing together many copies of his principal works written in different years, and I confess that I have often felt both surprise and delight at the means which he employed to make little by little the faulty good, the good better, and the better perfect. Okay?

So Bach is willing to try everything. However, as we heard from the Gardner biography, when he can, he writes straight into composition with very little in the way of workup or sketching. He just comes kind of fully formed out of his mind. So you do want to be willing to try everything, but you don't want to let that make you lazy.

So Bach is willing to try everything. However, as we heard from the Gardner biography, when he can, he writes straight into composition with very little in the way of workup or sketching. He just comes kind of fully formed out of his mind. So you do want to be willing to try everything, but you don't want to let that make you lazy.

You have to try to get the right answer and be economical if you can. Okay, so I like that formulation. I think it's a really smart way to approach things. Try everything, but try the right thing first. Okay, that was Edwin Land and that was Bach as well. Number six, and I love this takeaway, the power of anti-inspiration. Okay, again from John Elliot Gardner.

You have to try to get the right answer and be economical if you can. Okay, so I like that formulation. I think it's a really smart way to approach things. Try everything, but try the right thing first. Okay, that was Edwin Land and that was Bach as well. Number six, and I love this takeaway, the power of anti-inspiration. Okay, again from John Elliot Gardner.

Another source of the spark of his imaginative ability to elaborate comes in an observation recorded in 1741. He, quote, does not get himself up to speed to delight others with the mingling of his tones until he has played something from the printed or written page inferior to his own ideas and has thus set his powers of imagination in motion.

Another source of the spark of his imaginative ability to elaborate comes in an observation recorded in 1741. He, quote, does not get himself up to speed to delight others with the mingling of his tones until he has played something from the printed or written page inferior to his own ideas and has thus set his powers of imagination in motion.

And yet his superior ideas are the consequences of those inferior ones. So in other words, he can't come up with new original ideas until he has played something inferior first. I think that's so interesting. I've talked about this before, but I like to have both inspirations and anti-inspirations. There are podcasters who I listen to.