Anette Bik, violinist with the internationally popular Klangforum Wien, is familiar with both early and contemporary music. On her first solo album, “Double Bach”, she presents a fascinating experiment: she asked leading contemporary composers to write a “double” of each movement of Johann Sebastian Bach’s famous Partita in B-minor. The idea seemed even more compelling since Bach also added a variation, or double, to each movement of his suite. As listeners we are in the unique situation of being able to experience a Bach double double, a stroke of genius in the mirror of our times, a fascinating auditory document where the greatest virtuosity and immediate impact come together in a rare coalescence. In that moment, we feel what the Austrian publicist Armin Thurnher expresses so succintly in the Liner Notes for this release: “Bach is a complete cosmos for sceptics, Bach is the experience of infinity for mortals.”
