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Coffee, I Have to Have Coffee

1/10/2016

 
by Rebecca Cochran
 
I had dinner with a group of friends at a Turkish restaurant last evening. One in our group, during our entire, leisurely meal, was anxiously awaiting ordering coffee –- real, Turkish coffee –- to go with dessert.
 
When her coffee finally arrived, I noted that a Bach harpsichord concerto was being broadcast via the overhead music system. It was at that moment that I knew what I would share in this space today: the beautiful video of a staged performance of Bach’s Cantata 211, "Schweigt stille, plaudert nicht" ("Kaffeekantate"). It features the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir, conducted by Ton Koopman. The soprano soloist is Anne Grimm.
 
This cantata, really a miniature comic opera, was probably first performed in 1734 or 1735 at Zimmermann’s coffee house in Leipzig. Bach and his librettist, Picander, tell the story of a young woman addicted to coffee. One of my favorite lines is, “If I couldn't, three times a day, be allowed to drink my little cup of coffee, in my anguish I will turn into a shriveled-up roast goat." And, of course, I love the fact that Bach wrote a generous flute part!
 
Ah! How sweet coffee tastes! Enjoy watching and listening here.

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    My Year of Bach.

    This is an experiment.
    I love Bach: listening to Bach; playing Bach (alone or with others); discovering Bach; learning from Bach; sharing Bach.

    ​I need Bach in my daily life.

    ​So, for 2016, I'm challenging myself to write a short daily post about Bach. Come along for the ride, if you're so inclined. Let's listen, share and learn together!

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