UNPEELING BACH, David Stancliffe’s new book (available now for pre-order)

David Stancliffe, the former bishop of Salisbury, is now more of a jobbing musician – but for more than 50 years now, he has pioneered new approaches to performing Bach’s music as it would have been heard originally in late sixteenth and early seventeenth century Germany.  This book (subtitle: ‘What have we learned over the past 50 years, and how has has our performance practice changed?’) sets out the background to his investigations and where he has reached…

This book is due for publication in the summer 0f 2024, but it is available for pre-order now, with £3 off and with FREE p&p (use code; UNPEELING).

(This is not the final cover!)

PRAISE FOR THE BOOK SO FAR…

“David Stancliffe peels Bach with an almost unrivalled combination of musical and theological experience. He looks forward to Bach from the practices of his predecessors as well as backwards, from our own assumptions. And he mines his own developing practice throughout the last fifty years, together with many of the major new discoveries in Bach scholarship and performance..” John Butt, the doyen of Bach performers.

“How we perform Bach has changed radically in the last half century, and continues to change as we better understand the musical world he took for granted. David Stancliffe‘s fresh and challenging study opens all kinds of new possibilities for recovering what Bach was aiming to do.  Combining the best of musicological scholarship with the experience of a seasoned practitioner, it will be a vital and welcome addition to the bookshelf of any musician or musical enthusiast...” Rowan Williams (Lord Williams of Oystermouth), former Archbishop of Canterbury. now Master of Magdalene College, Cambridge.  

“David Stancliffe writes from long practical experience performing Bach’s vocal music. In his hands one can always feel confident that HIP has not lost touch with the spiritual purpose of the music…” Bill Hunt, a founder member of the established viol consort Fretwork.