Unleash Your Inner Bach with the Perfect Blend of Coffee and Classical Music: Discover the Magic of the Coffee Cantata
The Prussian king condemned the increase in coffee consumption as "disgusting" and urged his subjects to drink beer instead. The King even employed coffee smellers, who stalked the streets sniffing for the outlawed smell of fresh roasted coffee beans. However the public was so upset by this whole situation that eventually he was forced to change his mind.
"If I couldn't three times a day, be allowed to drink my little cup of coffee, in my anguish, I will turn into a shriveled-up roast goat. ... Ah! How sweet coffee tastes, more delicious than a thousand kisses, milder than muscatel wine." Is the start to Bach's Schweigt stille, plaudert nicht (“Be Still, Stop Chattering”), commonly called the Coffee Cantata, a light-hearted operetta about the struggles of parenting and how a father, Schlendrian, tries to save his daughter Liesgen from her own lusts. When we listen to the Cantata today, it depicts how greatly people once feared coffee! During the coffee ban, rumors were spread about the negative affects of our beloved beverage claiming it was a devilish drink unfit for children, women, and men concerned about their virility.
Melanie King, author of Tea, Coffee & Chocolate: How We Fell in Love with Caffeine, said, "Early critics of coffee felt that Englishmen [particularly] were too prone to copying the Turks, whom they thought originated coffee. Coffee was described as a 'mere decoction of the Devil' and supposedly tasted like the 'syrrop of soot' or the 'essence of old shoes'."
It didn’t help that in that time coffeehouses were a rowdy place. Musicians played music and partied, men and women mingled freely without chaperones, people told dirty jokes, and, if rumors are true, political plots were born.
So, in the eyes of Bach's father character, Schlendrian, coffee was not the beverage for a good girl, and coffeehouses were no place for respectable women. In 17th-century England, women were often barred from entry.
Schlendrian pulls out all his cards in an effort to make Liesgen give up her coffee habit. He tries to ground Liesgen though it does not work, telling her she’s banned from attending weddings and parties. He claims he will stop buying her dresses and bonnets. Liesgen, though, remains unfazed. But then he ups the stakes: Until she gives up coffee, there will be no husband!
Take a listen to the Coffee Cantata here to find out if Liesgen gets her way or if her father stops her coffee shenanigans.
You can get your copy of the score for the Coffee Cantata here.
We definitely have to agree with Liesgen on this one! Coffee is worth fighting for.
We love Death Wish Coffee for those long rehearsal nights! After all they are the Worlds Strongest Coffee. (hmmm wonder what Papa Schlendrian would think if Liesgen wanted to have a drink of this coffee!)
Not a fan of coffee? Try Coffee Fruit Extract! All the same benefits and energy without the taste or hassle of brewing your beans.
Or give Coffee Fruit Tea a try. It still has all the same antioxidants and can be enjoyed hot or cold.
Whichever type of coffe you choose make sure you have the perfect mug to show off your love for both music and coffee.
And if you're here just because you love the Fresh Coffee Smell, this Candle was made just for you.
However you like your coffee, I'm sure we can all agree on one thing, coffee has a crazy history!