Gordon spoke not only about Bach’s music but also about Bach’s desk. Near the end of the talk, Gordon enlisted a prop. Until this point, he had performed a cappella, as it were — no audio clips, no performance video, not even a backdrop with an etching of Potsdam in 1727 or linecuts of period instruments. Just Gordon’s resonant speaking voice and a beautifully behaved invisible microphone. Then, Gordon held high an inkpot with three quills sticking out: one with feather on both sides, one with feather on one side, and one denuded quill.

Gordon gave us a detailed, learned tour of the inkpot, which has little indentations to hold four quills. Bach would have trimmed the feather off at least one side of his quill, but probably both. He would have kept a tiny penknife at hand, needing to resharpen his quill’s point frequently. A drawer in the base of the inkpot held sand, which Bach would have dusted over his freshly-inked lines, then curled the two edges of the page toward each other and funneled the sand back into the drawer.

Gordon, in addition to being an internationally reknowned Bach tenor, operatic soloist and vocal mentor, is a scholar of 18th-century domestic life in general — and lighting in particular. He assured us that when Bach wrote at night, he had no slightly aromatic beeswax candle on his table. Bach was poor; such candles were costly and primarily found in church. Bach would have set a splint of sappy pine — sappy, smoky, stinky pine — in a stand, burning with an open flame. When Bach did write by candlelight, his candle was made of beef tallow. Wicks hadn’t been invented yet, nor picturesque kerosene lamps, nor glass wind lanterns to protect the flame and amplify the light.

Gordon’s finale was a parting wish for his audience that, as we listen to the coming performance, we also picture the composer painstakingly penning his manuscript. You can hear this superb talk for yourself, by ordering Gordon’s audio lecture. And the next time you are feeling sorely vexed that your color copier is streaking, or your printer is out of paper, or your little halogen desk bulb has just blown, take a deep breath and think of Bach.

All images courtesy of David Gordon, who has also let us know that the inkwell he used in his lecture was made by a London pewterer named Jacob Dent, in the 1730s or ’40s. We do not jest.

You can learn more about the Carmel Bach Festival here.

This Mini Business Card File Cabinet is absolutely brilliant. According to Think Geek, it holds up to 500 cards and even includes lettered tabs to help keep things organized. I think I spot a little digital clock in the upper drawer. Maybe it’s not too late to get another intern…. [LS]

The impressive jury—Marcy Blum, Colin Cowie, Eric Hildebrand, Mark Ingram and Liene Stevens— will be hard-pressed to choose from the impressive list below. A special toast from Felt & Wire to all the nominees. Winners will be announced in August. [PW]

Best Blog for Wedding Inspiration
100 Layer Cake
Postcards & Pretties
Ruffled
Style Me Pretty

Best Blog for Wedding Planning Advice
A Practical Wedding
All You Need Is Love
NYC Wedding Planner
Wedding Bee

Best Bridal Fashion Blog
From Hello to Hitched
Merci New York
The Cinderella Project

Best Community Blog
Chatty Brides
Offbeat Bride
So You’re Engayged
Wedding Bee

Best DIY Blog
100 Layer Cake
iDiy
Once Wed
Ruffled
Wedding Bee

Best Groom Blog
Grooms Advice
Temple of Groom
The Groom Says

Best International Blog
Brancoprata
Parisian Party
The Girl in the Pink Wedding Dress

Best Local Area Blog
Atlanta Occasions
Beantown Bride
Merci New York
The Vegas Wedding Planner

Best Magazine or Wedding Website’s Blog
Atlanta Occasions
Southern Weddings
Utterly Engaged’s Journal
What Junebug Loves!

Best Real Bride’s Blog
Bridalhood
Thao & Robert
The Knotty Bride

Best Retailer’s Blog
From Hello to Hitched
Betsy White’s Flights of Fancy
Jennie Fresa Beauty
Truly Engaging

Best Service Vendor’s Blog
Album Boutique
NYC Wedding Planner
Studio 222

Photo: Timeless Paper on Felt & Wire Shop