Jaroslav Tůma - fortepiano Anton Walter 1790
World premiere recording on period hammer-clavier

Ritornello, directed by Michael Pospíšil

What one earth do you mean, ”Bacchanalistica”? No, don’t worry, this isn’t about some cheap vulgar approach to marketing the great Johann Sebastian (although he certainly had a great appetite for food!), or some trendy display of musicological expertise, or a hygienist’s analysis of the drinkability of water from the stream (der Bach = stream in German). Bacchanalia, in the sense of wild and opulent revels took their name from Bacchus, “the patron of feasting and drinking” – yes, when wine flowed in the streams! We might find a certain etymological association with another German word, der Bauch = the belly, which is related to our Czech word “bachor” meaning one of the stomachs of the cow. Bachanti or vaganti, was once the name given to people – mostly students – who wandered from university to university, from town to town and from inn to inn, begging, seducing, and enjoying their food and drink. From the Middle Ages the vagabond pupils and students were an element akin to the homeless of today. But...