Great to see Bach on HN, and WTK II as well - there is so much to say about Bach, especially the conventions and freedom of expression in his keyboard works. I

Great to see Bach on HN, and WTK II as well - there is so much to say about Bach, especially the conventions and freedom of expression in his keyboard works. I am probably not the right one to articulate These thoughts. I can only say, the joy of Bach is hard to put into words. It is the emotional and at the same time almost mechanically feeling musical nature of his works, how he makes two or more voices "sing" together - I can't imagine my adult life without discovering Bach's keyboard music when I was in an especially hard time. The unity of learning and listening also can't be overstated. Bach made me really appreciate my tiny glimpse into the Western musical tradition and also opened other worlds for me. And his works are unbelievably enjoyable to play, even when imperfect. Listening to or playing Bach can sometimes feel like rediscovering life itself, without intending to sound dramatic, I mean it exactly like that. It seems like a miracle that another human could feel and even create the perfect interplay of rhythm, harmony, melody and patterns in Bachs work. And at the same time it feels like his work was driven by an unstoppable, deterministic, positive energy. I know I'm rambling, but I really love Bach. Back to where I started: I might be unable to express my admiration and thankfulness for his work in a readable or useful way. But I'd almost go so far as to say that Bach instilled some kind of hope, faith and appreciation of human life itself in me, at a time when I was ready to just give up on my life.