Death and (Re) Birth of J.S. Bach : Reconsidering Musical Authorship and the Work-Concept

The study and redefinition of the notion of authorship and its relationship to the idea of the literary work has played a central role in recent research, but its impact on contemporary musicology is still limited. Why? What implications would a reconsideration of the author- and work-concepts have on our understanding of creative musical processes? Why would a re-examination of these concepts be necessary? Could it emerge from a post-structuralist revision of the notion of musical textuality? In this book, Trillo uses the …Bach… project to sketch some critical answers to these fundamental questions, raise new ones, and explore their musicological implications.

While the study and redefinition of the notion of authorship and its relationship to the idea of the literary work have played a central role in recent research on literature, semiotics, and related disciplines, its impact on contemporary musicology is still limited. Why? What implications would a reconsideration of the author- and work-concepts have on our understanding of the creative musical processes? Why would such a re-examination of these regulative concepts be necessary? Could it emerge from a post-structuralist revision of the notion of musical textuality? In this book, Trillo takes the …Bach… project, a collection of new music based on Johann Sebastian Bach’s Partita No.1 for solo violin, BWV 1002, as a point of departure to sketch some critical answers to these fundamental questions, raise new ones, and explore their musicological implications.