My Only Comfort: Death, Deliverance, and Discipleship in the Music of Bach

Christian Century, Nov 22, 2000 by Victoria J. Barnett

Written by experts, these books are demanding; some sections of both may be of more interest to musicologists than to lay readers. Yet each reminds us that, at its best, Bach's music is an expression of the divine. For me, the first measures of the Christmas Oratorio--the hushed drums, the swell of trumpets and the burst of song--are simply what Advent and Christmas sound like. These opening measures relate the story of anticipation, promise and the certainty of joy as dearly and profoundly as do the words of the Gospels. With remarkable craft and genius, Bach transposed the essential language of faith into music. Readers of these splendid books will listen to that music with renewed appreciation.

Victoria J. Barnett, editor of the revised edition of Eberhard Bethge's biography of Dietrich Bonhoeffer.