On the occasion of the 250th anniversary of Bach's death in 2000, Dutch writer and Bach scholar Maarten 't Hart wrote a handy little book about this composer (1)". It was a pocket-sized edition available only at Het Kruidvat and contained a "small compendium of the cantatas". A reference work with an engaging appreciation of several works by the Cantor of Leipzig.

In 2022, another little book appeared under the title "Not a Day Without Bach" (2)", 15 conversations with well-known, mostly Dutch, Bach enthusiasts who can't go a day without him. But what lies before you now is quite another matter. It's a heavyweight in every sense of the word—literally and figuratively. A prestigious hardcover work of 438 pages. If you really want Bach every single day, try this new "Bach Day by Day".

It's the latest book by the popular Flemish Bach expert Ignace Bossuyt. It gives you a year full of Bach and Co., from January 1st to December 31st, arranged chronologically (366 pieces, including leap years!), with a generous selection from his more than 200 preserved cantatas, seasoned with other works by this Baroque giant and his sons. Each discussed with the erudite flair that defines Bossuyt's reputation: explanations of the Latin texts plus Dutch translation, situated in their religious context of the time, score excerpts, history of their creation. For scholars, with musicological analysis of all these compositions, and for enthusiasts with immediate listenability via QR codes. So it's a book for both readers and listeners. A gigantic work written from enormous knowledge of this composer, assembled with passion during a lifetime career as a student and professor of musicology at KU Leuven. With all these commentaries, you get a clear picture of the evolution of music in Germany of that era and the later influence of all his BWVs on his contemporaries and later composers.

May I give you an example? Take his commentary on a cantata I'm a big fan of: BWV 95, "Christus, der ist mein Leben". Bossuyt begins by explaining the liturgical context, the 16th Sunday after Trinity, the date of first performance (September 12, 1723), discusses the anonymous librettist, with text and translation, the instrumentation, and explores the main theme of the cantata. For him, that's the famous "Todessehnsucht, the yearning for death as deliverance from this earthly vale of tears", with that beautiful tenor aria "Ach schlage doch bald, selge Stunde". According to Bossuyt "...of otherworldly beauty". In his analysis, the author points out three different, complementary layers. "First, the obsessive repetition of the word 'Ach'...", "...the second layer is the pizzicato playing of all strings..." and thirdly "the two oboe d'amore that sketch a soft filigree of rocking figures above it, like a pastoral lullaby in 3/4 time". Have a look and listen for yourself:

Delightful, isn't it? And so it goes for every day of the year...

A dry-as-dust book? Not at all. It's more of a study book than a coffee table book to leave lying around. It's absolutely not a book to read in one sitting, but more than a manual for getting through the year musically with Bach. So read and listen here and there. Take it at a leisurely pace. You'll almost automatically find yourself in "those heavenly spheres", as Bossuyt writes, and that's his intention too. He very generously also gives you countless tips for further reading or listening, on the internet or via the numerous writings he consulted about this great master.

Bossuyt gives the reader a brief biographical sketch at the beginning. And to make all these cantatas clear to the modern, often secularized person, he also first explains the structure of the church year, with all its high days and special feast days. Only then can you understand what a gigantic task Bach faced: the cantor had to have a cantata ready for every Sunday. And he succeeded brilliantly. Just like Bossuyt, who chooses to begin his "Bach Day by Day" calendar on January 1st with that jubilant "Christmas Oratorio". And then follow those engaging, sometimes anecdotal commentaries, but above all thorough and comprehensible analyses. He can certainly draw on his experience and long career as a professor and musicologist at KU Leuven to write accessibly for both professionals, students, and the layperson. From the latter, he does expect some interest in and knowledge of the subject. But he helps them with something he's more than adept at, with a little chapter on "Finding Your Way Through Musical Concepts", from which he can draw on his well-known publication "On Notes and Tones". And what a treasure trove of performers you get to hear via those QR codes. It's not just a book with an original approach; call it truly masterful, with precision in every detail.

When I heard this book by Bossuyt "Bach Day by Day" was coming, I thought, here we go again, and when I saw and read it, I thought, this must surely be his life's work. Unless there's still something in the pipeline, because he seems inexhaustible—and he is. He's already written about the early years of Handel, that rival from the same birth year as Bach. Perhaps something more about mature Handel will follow...

Product code (EAN): 9789464714289 – publication date: 15.11.2025