In 1974, scientist Lewis Thomas was asked what he would include in the Voyager interstellar missions to explain to aliens a bit about the human race. He replied, ‘ The works of J. S. Bach – but that would be boasting’. On Bach’s birthday, and Early Music Day, I’m doing my own bit of exploring, and finding all kinds of left-of-centre versions of his music. Proving that his music is indestructible and timeless, we’ll hear selections from The Modern Jazz Quartet, electronic cellist Peter Gregson, Al Di Meola, the Feria Saxophone quartet, and the Grammy Award winning Goldberg Variations by Icelandic wunderkind, Vikingur Olafson.
RTÉ lyric fm, Friday 21st March, 10pm-1am
