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  • Evening in the Palace of Reason: Bach Meets Frederick the Great in the Age of Enlightenment by James R. Gaines book cover
  • Evening in the Palace of Reason: Bach Meets Frederick the Great in the Age of Enlightenment by James R. Gaines book cover
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Evening in the Palace of Reason: Bach Meets Frederick the Great in the Age of Enlightenment

by James R. Gaines

Bach, Frederick, and an era in transition

$16.47 USD
$27.45 USD $16.47 USD
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Paperback New English

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AlbakiReads Editorial

Bach, Frederick, and an era in transition

James R. Gaines uses the 1747 encounter between Johann Sebastian Bach and Frederick the Great as a point of entry into the intellectual and political shifts of eighteenth-century Europe. The book places their meeting against the legacy of the Reformation and the emergence of Enlightenment thought, tracing a moment when religious belief and reason stood in tension. Bach’s music and Frederick’s role in building Prussia—and shaping modern warfare—connect cultural history with the changing power structures of the period. The result is a portrait of two influential figures framed by the transition from an older worldview to a modern one.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Readers interested in Bach and Frederick the Great in historical context
  • Readers exploring the Reformation, Enlightenment, and eighteenth-century European history
  • Readers who enjoy history connecting music, politics, and ideas

Themes

Bach and Frederick the GreatThe Reformation’s legacyThe EnlightenmentBelief and reasonEuropean political and cultural change

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

Johann Sebastian Bach created what may be the most celestial and profound body of music in history; Frederick the Great built the colossus we now know as Germany, and along with it a template for modern warfare. Their fleeting encounter in 1747 signals a unique moment in history where belief collided with the cold certainty of reason. Set at the tipping point between the ancient and modern world, Evening in the Palace of Reason captures the tumult of the eighteenth century, the legacy of the Reformation, and the birth of the Enlightenment in this extraordinary tale of two men.
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