Christian Tetzlaff: Infinite Bach

Brucknerfest Linz 2026  

"Not Bach! He should be called Meer: because of his infinite, inexhaustible wealth of tone combinations and harmonies." Ludwig van Beethoven is said to have expressed his admiration for Johann Sebastian Bach with these words. Even if this statement was probably only put into his mouth by posterity, it nevertheless sums up the special fascination that Bach's music still exerts today. Christian Tetzlaff traces the hint of infinity that lies hidden within it in the Old Cathedral. The program includes the famous sonatas and partitas for solo violin that Bach composed during his time as Kapellmeister in Köthen. He may even have performed these complex works himself as a soloist at the court in Köthen. Infinity and finiteness lie close together: the polyphonic, contrapuntal structures of the sonatas and partitas conceal many a chorale quotation that revolves around the themes of death and resurrection.