Sigurd Raschèr taught himself how to play the saxophone.
During his studies in Stuttgart he had the fortune of meeting Mr. Georg Walter, an extraordinary pedagogue, singer, and renowned Bach expert of his day.
The two became friends, and it was Walter who recommended that SMR try playing Bach on his saxophone.
Mr. Raschèr found this to be an ideal idea, and continued to pair old with new during his entire playing career:
The newer works sounded great with the music of Bach as an indispensable companion, and he carried this page of his artistic recipe book with him when he founded the Raschèr Saxophone Quartet later on in life, a fine example of which you heard on the first of December.
Johann Sebastion Bach is perhaps the most important friend of our tradition.
His music holds the key to connecting all points on the timeline.
Being a friend of his music helps to understand and champion even the most challenging of melodies from other composers in a way that sounds both logical and with a linguistic lilt!
