Evening in the Palace of Reason -- James R. Gaines

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	• Evening in the Palace of Reason: Bach Meets Frederick the Great in the Age of Enlightenment (P.S.) James R. Gaines Harper Perennial, 2006 - 368 pages average customer review:based on 31 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

read this asap

i have read numerous books on j. s. bach and own all the standard biographies yet i was beguiled with this book as the author is supremely adept at placing the information in the right perspective and is such a good writer that you cannot put it down. i read it through in almost one sitting. i have since recommended to other professional musicians that are colleagues of mine and they love it as well. i cannot recommend this book highly enough! buy it!!!

Evidently A Sadly Neglected Book

I bought this book as a "bargain" because it looked interesting. I was most pleasantly surprised to find an articulate, informed and evidently very knowledgeable introduction to the lives of two fascinating individuals - Sebastian Bach ("The" Bach) and Fredrick the Great. Gaines' prose is informal and "homey" with an occasional "aside" where he speaks directly to the reader. It is a bit jarring to have him mention to me during a very complex description of counterpoint music to "not worry, this will be over soon." I suppose this is his way of acknowledging that in a Post-Modern culture the reader has to constantly have his feathers smoothed. Other than that, Gaines' prose is lucid and direct.

What Gaines does very well is introduce us to the lives of these two very great but very different individuals. Along the way he illumines the age in which they lived, reminding us of its vagaries as well as its temper. It was the day when the great question of truth was addressed at every level. Does one find "truth" by being conformed to the harmonies of the universe through its self-evident symmetry (Bach, counterpoint music, etc. all the way back to Pythagoras) or does one rise to "truth" in the open ended quest for answers in a world of infinite possibilities, being stirred by passion and reflecting it in expression (Fredrick, the incipient romantic style, etc. all the way back to Aristotle). Quite frankly I had no intimation that such a philosophical tone had been consciously pursued in the underpinnings of Baroque music although I have long admired it. I am indebted to Gaines for this insight.

Further, the historical figure of Fredrick the Great is worth this books reading alone. Gaines' understands him well and his treatment is even handed when such fairness with such a figure is difficult to maintain. Fredrick is one of those men that we feel compelled to justify or castigate. Even to this day his controversial nature moves people to take sides (much like Andrew Jackson in our own history. Gaines does a good job.

I think this book has an awful lot to commend it and so - five stars though I admit that I am insufficiently acquainted with the more technical aspects of the book to affirm their accuracy. I would trust other specialists to that task.

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best ever

This is a must read for anyone who loves music of anykind. This book clarifies the mystery of the history an the amazing story of two of western civilizations greatest individuals, tieing together the transition from old to new europe, shaping western culture forever.

Evening in the Palace of Reason -- James R. Gaines

I do not understand why Amazon charged me $48.81 for this book
(a 2005 HarperCollins publication) including economy shipping,
when the list price printed on the front flap of the dust jacket
is only $23.95. If I had known what the real retail price was,
I would have purchased the book at a local Barnes & Noble or Borders
bookstore. Somebody at Amazon really goofed on this one!

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A unique parallel

A unique description of the life and art of Bach parallel to the times of his life with particular emphasise of Frederic the Great.

reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

Johann Sebastian Bach created what may be the most celestial and profound body of music in history; Frederick the Great built the colossus we now know as Germany, and along with it a template for modern warfare. Their fleeting encounter in 1757 signals a unique moment in history where belief collided with the cold certainty of reason. Set at the tipping point between the ancient and modern world, Evening in the Palace of Reason captures the tumult of the eighteenth century, the legacy of the Reformation, and the birth of the Enlightenment in this extraordinary tale of two men.

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