A New Take on Bach

Last night’s concert wasn’t JS or JCE Bach, but instead it was PDQ Bach a la Peter Schickele. This was a live recording done at the Gordon Center in Owings Mills, Maryland. A work colleague had invited us to join him and his wife for the musical evening.

Peter Schickele is a bonafide musician and composer, having graduated from Julliard in the 50's, where he and a group of students invented PDQ Bach in an attempt to escape from the serious diet of classical music they all were being fed. I’ve listened to Schickele Mix on NPR over the years, but have never seen him perform in person.

Schickele was joined by 6 other performers for a lively evening of music and song. I loved some of the rounds, like “If Love Is Real” and “Cyndi”, written to help Schickele remember the girl’s name at the deli where he often ate. But I was surprised at my feelings of anger when the music sounded authentic and then became silly. Somehow I just can’t interject the absurd into music that should be beautiful and serious.

I thought at least the levity of the evening might break my husband’s penchant for falling asleep within 5 minutes of the first note. Nope. Just the sight of a violin closed his eyelids and caused him to nod off.

We were both awake for the rousing finish: Songs from Shakespeare, including Macbeth’s Soliloquy, Hamlet’s Soliloquy, The Three Witches from “Macbeth”, Juliet’s Soliloquy, and the Funeral Oration from “Julius Caesar”.

Was it worth the long drive to Owings Mills? Debatable. Would I see him again? Probably not. But we did enjoy spending the evening with my friend and his wife. Sometimes it’s not just about the entertainment.