For me, this Bach is now who i imagine to be Bach. That says it all!

The perfect present for every Bach (eh, music) fan. Ulrich Thein is the Bach how I always imagined him to be. Bach behind the organ, Bach behind the harpsichord, Bach in a carriage, Bach with his children, Bach chopping wood: It's kind of unbelievable that Bach was an actual person, and it's nervechilling to see him just going about his business. All this in the context of the wig period, through which Bach moves more or less indifferently. Couple of high-artistic scenes, too. Great!

An exercise in slowness, full of unending camera zooms accompanied by middling performances of Bachʼs music. (Of course the greatness of Bach shines through even in the worst performance, but you donʼt need this series to listen to him.) Since this is a GDR production the well-known facts of Bachʼs life are evaluated somewhat differently than in the West, with a droll attempt to portray him as some sort of populist. Thatʼs probably its strongest claim to interest.