Calligraphing a Bach chaconne
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 20 เม.ย. 2024
- The solo violin chaconne calligraphed after the autograph BWV 1004.
A short video about some aspects of the process.
Copying in the writing style of Johann Sebastian Bach - with the same tools, materials and dimensions.
A story about tensions between staying close to the original and editorial interventions.
A copy made for my good friend and awesome guitarist Danton Oestreich.
About spacing, pencil use, arpeggio’s, being inventive, corrections, thin ice, meaning of symbols. - เพลง
Truly fascinating. I took a college level course on Bach 35 years ago and thought then I will never know all there is to know about him. True to those thoughts, I still learn more about the man and his music every year. I wonder if he had even the slightest idea that he would keep humanity awestruck, inspired, and thankful almost 350 years after his lifetime? What would he think to know his music is headed out of the galaxy on the Voyager probe to be possibly heard by alien races one day thousands or millions of years from now? His music might be the final evidence of humanity's existence long after our world is gone. How fitting.
It is a wonderful experience to be able to be awestruck every day without the experience diminishing, on the contrary, it only grows!
Yours is a Truly Outstanding Comment 📣📣📣📣 ...... it makes me think that there is hope for us after all ! 🎼 Alan B.
Juilliard M.M. 1977 Piano
Absolutely beautiful. Thank you for this deep dive. ❤❤❤
I'm so glad the AI God placed your channel on my TH-cam page. I've always wondered how composers wrote scores before the invention of the steel nib. I looked at some Handel autograph scores in the British Museum and was amazed at how fine the lines were and wondered if they were in fact made with a quill. Now I know that it has to do with rotating the quill to the side.
Yes, the fine lines have also intrigued me for a long time. I learn quite slowly and it took a while before I started to succeed a bit. But at a certain point my technique was so good that the lines even became too thin, which was a special moment to have to adjust it.
Zeeeeer ontspannend te zien dit. Dit heeft me doen inzien dat manuscripten kunstwerken op zich zijn. De geest van de componist komt erin door.
Ja, dat is de kern van mijn beleving
I love this video Joost. It has many great insights into Bach's compositional process that could only be deduced by someone who truly understands the art of calligraphy.
Thank you very much Jon! It feels good to receive a compliment from such an excellent teacher, craftsman and artist like you. I remember reading years ago that you were also into calligraphy, maybe I'm wrong, but I assume you also have a keen eye for the quality of calligraphy. I have mixed feelings about presenting my work because it might take an extra year of practice before it's good enough. On the other hand, it helps and teaches me to find words, images and stories to focus on Bach's great handwriting.
@@joostwitte5546 Thats correct. My Grandma is an excellent calligrapher and taught me a basic alphabet. I've attempted to copy out some Bach and Beethoven with a calligraphy pen, but I found it quite difficult at the time. In general, I am a fan of sketches and manuscripts. I feel like you can learn a lot about how a composer works by seeing the way they write.
@@artofcomposing Yes, it is just as complex as learning to play a musical instrument, I think. Actually describing how a composer works and the insights this provides is also complex, but I experience it as a very fruitful method.
Wow thank you so much. Beautifully engaging method to explain this magic
That is very motivating to hear!
So many interesting and important considerations arise in considering the calligraphy that had never occurred to me. Quite a revelation. The original scores can actually be visually expressive in themselves. This is my second video since subscribing and both have opened up new dimensions. Great detective work.
Yes, close reading has something of crime scene investigation. Having an eye for the expressive quality of the calligraphy is such an enrichment and joy. There is a world of details to discover hardly and sometimes not known in collective wisdom.
Beautiful! There is so much to learn about the way to play Bach just by looking at his manuscripts. Lovely penmanship!
Great to hear Ignatius! Thank you for watching.
Really? What do you learn about how to play Bach by watching this video?
Great question! Nothing new under the sun of course, but some points may be relevant, such as awareness of subjective editorial choices, noticing layout choices and the impact on the overview, having an eye for the expressiveness and appreciation of calligraphy, focusing on close reading and the significance of details and formulation criteria for valuing a score, each of which can influence the way it can be played.
@@joostwitte5546 Sorry, I didn't understand your comment. Anyways, I think your video is really cool.
@@Ziad3195 Thanks Ziad, that's nice to hear!
This is my new favorite channel on youtube
Thank you Chris, I feel very honored
I enjoyed following you on your journey very much. Please - and I know this is easy for me to say and challenging for you to do - keep it up. Soli deo gloria!
Thanks for the encouragement and appreciation, it means a lot to me!
I love your videos! Thank you so much! Chaconne is one of my favourite pieces so it was really fascinating to learn so much details about it
Thank you Kantian Cat, it's great to hear you enjoyed it!
I always love to play Bach from his original scores
The original scores are so vibrant and radiant
I am so glad the TH-cam algorithm recommended this video to me. I'm a calligrapher, so I really appreciate your penmanship and attention to detail! Copying someone's style is difficult but rewarding. I'm also a musician, yet I have to admit I had hitherto given no consideration to how the ink on the page could affect performance practice beyond "play this note at this time." So thank you for this enlightening video. Keep up the excellent work! ~The Qwyrdo
I am happy you shared your impressions and will remember your words when making a new video that those kind of stories are worthwhile to be told.
Thanks a lot for this careful and loving analysis!
Thanks, it feels good to read that!
This is such a fascinating video. You've done beautiful work.
Thank you Tom, your words make me happy!
Didn't even know that someone actually studied this to the leve. I am amazed
Thanks for the compliment!
@@joostwitte5546 I really look forward to more videos like this. It is pure gold and a joy to watch and study Bach's manuscripts.
This is so cool! Thanks!
Thanks for your qualification!
Sir, This is indeed painstaking work Mr. Witte as was the application of this remarkable composer to his trade. The outlay for his compostions was clearly thought out, whether it be for solo instruments or larger works. Stupendous. It's like watching a master sculptor like Michael Angello chip away at his marble block in note values, large breves to fine demi-semi quavers to create his master pieces. Thank you for your masterful insight and giving us a glimpse of how Bach wrought his 'architecture' from thought to paper.
Yes, it sometimes feels like a glimpse into Bach's head - thanks for the eloquent words!
You Can Sense Genius Just by Looking at Bach’s Calligraphy.....even before hearing one note 📣📣📣📣
Yes it shows!
Beautiful handwriting!
Thank you, that's nice to hear!
There is a famous relationship between violin playing and calligraphy, cf. e.g. Suzuki and Japanese calligraphy. Also: Bach's sheet music in his own handwriting evokes waves/Wellen. A Bach is a creek, in Hebrew Yuval, the father of all the violin (string) and flute (organ) players, Gen/Br 4:21.
I love this kind of meanings!
@@joostwitte5546 Bedankt, Joost. Then you might be susceptible for this also: In the writing system of musicians and in the language that Bach used it is possible to write his name with a single note on the central staff line. It’s even possible to add accidentals for keys with a corresponding letter for Bach’s name. Thus the central note (B) in B-Dur with violin key, 2nd letter/note: a in a-moll with tenor key, 3. C-Dur with alto-key, 4. h-moll with violin key. Note that this is only possible because of this peculiar shift of naming the note between a and c as an “h” instead of the logical “b”, which might go back to a scribal error. Yéhouda ben Yuval
What a cool subject and interesting video. Where did you get your quill, and what paper are you using?
The feather comes from a swan, I pick it up when they are moulting from June to September. The paper is made in India and the fibers are from hemp and rags.
Very very beautiful
Thank you, it's nice to hear that!
@@joostwitte5546 There's no exaggeration, I tried to practice writing scores in pencil... failed badly! 🐖
This was great! The choice of Italian "Ciaccona" naming and title stylization with three Cs is also intentional, thought to be a reference to "Christus coronabit crucigeros".
Thanks, I didn't realize that the 3 c's are a reference.
Amazingly done!
Thanks Jacob!
I had no idea that curved beams could be a thing or that they could look so good. I'd much prefer them over the standard straight and angular beams.
Yes, it are the beams that makes it pretty and connect and dance!
That's fascinating. I'm trying out some music nibs for writing scores lately, and they're awful hard. I can't imagine what using a quill must have been.
Calligraphy is like learning to play a musical instrument with a similar learning curve for mastery I think. A quill is like holding a Stradivarius in your hands.
Inspiring. Do you sell these? Or do you do requests? Would like to have a copy of several Bach pieces I play
Yes, I work on commission, at the end of the ink video you can find my email address for contact, I don't write it here so as not to be picked up by spambots.
nice
Thanks Vittorio!
Is Mr. Witte’s complete recalligraphed score of Chaconne available for purchase or viewing online? How nice it would be to have a side-by-side display of Bach’s autograph and Witte’s recreation of it.
My scores are for sale, contact is possible via the email address at the end of the video - I don't like to mention it here to avoid spam mail from bots. On my Instagram account @happy.sad.sad.happy.bach you can see various scores, as well as music performances based on my copies.
A question from someone who knows relatively little about (music) calligraphy: what are the specific benefits of using a quill pen as opposed to a flexible metal dip nib?
Such a great question! The best way to find out is by actual experience. A quill is such an ideal combination of strength and ductility, making it a very fine tuned sensitive tool - the superlative for expressive, personal communication - there is no better writing equipment.
@@joostwitte5546 Thanks for taking the time to answer my question! Alas, I have no calligraphy skill whatsoever. But I certainly enjoy yours. Please keep up the good work. It's so important to keep history alive in this hands-on way.
Do you have a website where you sell this kind of stuff?
Yes, I do scores in commission, contact via Dm on Insta: @happy.sad.sad.happy.bach or G mail adres visible at the end of the Ink video
Is that J.S. Bach's hand writting or his copyist's, though?
Yes, I selected the autograph from Berlin Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin - Preußischer Kulturbesitz D-B Mus.ms. Bach P 967 for making a copy.
@@joostwitte5546 amazing! I live in Berlin, and l will visit this library any time soon this week.
It's possible that it is the hand of Anna Magdalena.
You had me until you started writing out the arpeggio. Totally unnecessary. Also, playing the four part harmony faithfully is difficult but very possible
The writing out has the potential for some to be helpful. Someday when I will do the violin pieces complete I will prefer the way Bach did it.