Oh, Schütz!

I just finished my History of the Baroque class and I presented tonight on Heinrich Schütz's The Seven Last Words of Christ. The presentation went really well, but I need to stay focused and start working on my final paper. I think due to exhaustion, I find Schütz's name hysterical and feel like it could be used as an expletive (as in Schütz! not again or something). I can also imagine a sitcom titled "Oh, Schütz," in which the protagonist always finds himself in awkward situations and then someone exclaims, "Oh, Schütz!" In re-reading this post, it doesn't seem that funny and I realize that I need to get some serious rest.

I must say that I like this man Schütz. I think if we were contemporaries we would be friends. I also think that we must have had very similar parents (in a letter, he states, "Now, too, I did not lack for counsel and inducement from my parents and kinsfolk whose opinion, briefly, was that I should endeavor to use my qualities slight as they were, and seek advancement by other means, and treat music as a secondary matter). I wonder if there are any parents out there who actually want their children to pursue a career in the arts? I wonder how much any of us could achieve if we were given that support? I guess this is my deep moment for the day. I do have to say that Schütz is completely modest when he describes his abilities as slight. Listen to the Seven Last Words of Christ - it is a work of supreme beauty: full of drama, passion and joy. Listening to this work is a religious experience (please pardon the pun).