Bach is the musical love of my life. I cannot go more than a couple of days without playing his works. For me, Bach’s music does not belong to a bygone era, it belongs to the here and now. That’s one of the reasons he fascinates every new generation of musicians – because of how inherently open this music is to new ideas, styles and emotions. His music always reflects the world it finds itself in, past, present and future.
I write this as I embark on a most extraordinary year – by any standards – but particularly by those of a classical musician. I am playing one single work, the Goldberg Variations, 88 times in concert halls on six continents. Usually I have a much bigger mix of orchestra concerts, solo recitals and occasionally chamber music, but this is my year away from the big orchestras and conductors – it’s my year with Bach.
