Last week we received the sad news that Bach scholar Eduard van Hengel passed away on September 5, 2024 after a short illness. In memory of Eduard, our conversation with him in our podcast series Bach & Co is being published again.
The team responsible for ‘Bach ad Infinitum’ knew that Eduard was ill, but we hoped together with him that he would have enough time to do all the things he still planned. In every programme we refer to his website, his life’s work, which holds all conceivable information about the vocal works of J.S. Bach. Fortunately, Eduard was able to ensure that, even after his passing, his life’s work is protected and will continue to be available.
In 2021 we visited Eduard and his wife Ria in ‘s-Hertogenbosch for an episode of our podcast series ‘Bach & Co’. It became a special conversation. We talked about his website, which has become a real treasure trove for lovers of Bach’s cantatas and passions. He also told us how he once had the opportunity to leaf through the so-called ‘Partitur-Reinschrift’ of the St. Matthew Passion.
Ria van Hengel has translated the texts of numerous Bach cantatas into Dutch. Ria talked about her approach to these translations and Eduard led us through the cantata ‘Du Friedefürst, Herr Jesu Christ’, BWV 116 using fragments from the individual movements.
In memory of Eduard, this episode of our podcast series Bach & Co has been published again and can also be listened to here.
Photo credits: Eduard van Hengel (image: Anton Dommerholt, source: nd.nl)
