Johann Sebastian Bach: biography, video, interesting facts, creativity. Biography of I.S. Bach briefly Johann Sebastian Bach brief biography and work

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Brief biography of Johann Bach

Bach Johann Sebastian is an outstanding composer who wrote more than one thousand musical works; talented teacher and virtuoso organist; master of the polyphony genre. The future musician was born in Eisenach on March 31, 1685. His ancestors belonged to the category of professional musicians, so his early predisposition to music did not surprise anyone. The composer's father was an organizer of secular and church concerts. Bach was the youngest of eight children in the family.

Orphaned at an early age, the boy was sent to be raised by his uncle, who worked as a professional organist. He easily entered the gymnasium, while simultaneously learning to play the clavier and organ. At the age of 15, Johann entered the Lüneburg vocal school, where his musical career began. During his studies, he visited Lubeck, Celle, and Hamburg to get acquainted with the work of famous musicians of that period. From 1703 he worked as a court violinist, then as an organist. Many works were created during the period of work at the court of the Duke of Weimar.

It was then that J. S. Bach wrote dozens of spiritual cantatas for the clavier, a number of choral preludes, an organ toccata and other significant works. In Weimar he had two sons. In total, he and his wife Maria Barbara had six sons, three of whom did not survive. There he also met the famous violinist I. P. von Westhof. Fascinated by the musical trends of other countries, he became acquainted with the works of Vivaldi and Corelli. By 1717, he was already an outstanding organist, with whom no one dared to compete.

He soon entered the service of the Duke of Anhalt-Köthen, who highly valued his talent. In the next six years he lost his wife and wrote many orchestral and keyboard suites. After the death of Maria Barbara, he remarried a famous singer, with whom he had 13 more children. For the last twenty-seven years, the musician has lived in Leipzig, where he first worked as an ordinary music teacher, and then was awarded the position of music director. At the end of the 1740s. His vision began to deteriorate sharply. Despite this, he created a new cycle of musical plays.

The great composer died in July 1750 and was buried in the courtyard of the Church of St. John. He will forever go down in the history of musical culture as one of the titans who created immortal masterpieces and the creators of their own philosophical thought in music.

Johann Sebastian Bach
Years of life: 1685-1750

Bach was a genius of such magnitude that even today he seems an unsurpassed, exceptional phenomenon. His creativity is truly inexhaustible: after the “discovery” of Bach’s music in the 19th century, interest in it has been steadily increasing, Bach’s works are winning audiences even among listeners who usually do not show interest in “serious” art.

Bach's work, on the one hand, was a kind of summing up. In his music, the composer relied on everything that had been achieved and discovered in the art of music before him. Bach had an excellent knowledge of German organ music, choral polyphony, and the peculiarities of German and Italian violin style. He not only became acquainted with, but also copied the works of contemporary French harpsichordists (primarily Couperin), Italian violinists (Corelli, Vivaldi), and major representatives of Italian opera. Possessing an amazing sensitivity to everything new, Bach developed and generalized his accumulated creative experience.

At the same time, he was a brilliant innovator who opened up the development of world musical culture new perspectives. His powerful influence was reflected in the work of the great composers of the 19th century (Beethoven, Brahms, Wagner, Glinka, Taneyev), and in the works of outstanding masters of the 20th century (Shostakovich, Honegger).

Bach's creative heritage is almost immense, it includes more than 1000 works of various genres, and among them there are those whose scale is exceptional for their time (MP). Bach's works can be divided into three main genre groups:

• vocal and instrumental music;
• organ music,
• music for other instruments (clavier, violin, flute, etc.) and instrumental ensembles (including orchestral).

The works of each group are mainly associated with a certain period of Bach’s creative biography. The most significant organ works were created in Weimar, keyboard and orchestral works mainly belong to the Köthen period, vocal and instrumental works were mostly written in Leipzig.

The main genres in which Bach worked are traditional: masses and passions, cantatas and oratorios, choral arrangements, preludes and fugues, dance suites and concertos. Having inherited these genres from his predecessors, Bach gave them a scope that they had never known before. He updated them with new means of expression and enriched them with features borrowed from other genres of musical creativity. A striking example is. Created for the clavier, it incorporates the expressive properties of large organ improvisations as well as dramatic recitation of theatrical origins.

Bach's work, for all its universality and inclusiveness, “passed by” one of the leading genres of its time - opera. At the same time, there is little that distinguishes some of Bach's secular cantatas from the comedic interlude, which was already being reborn at that time in Italy in opera-buffa. The composer often called them, like the first Italian operas, “dramas on music.” It can be said that Bach’s works such as the “Coffee Room” and “Peasant” cantatas, designed as witty genre scenes from everyday life, anticipated the German Singspiel.

Circle of images and ideological content

The figurative content of Bach's music is limitless in its breadth. The majestic and the simple are equally accessible to him. Bach's art contains deep sorrow, simple-minded humor, acute drama and philosophical reflection. Like Handel, Bach reflected the essential aspects of his era - the first half of the 18th century, but others - not effective heroism, but religious and philosophical problems put forward by the Reformation. In his music, he reflects on the most important, eternal questions of human life - the purpose of man, his moral duty, life and death. These reflections are most often associated with religious themes, because Bach served in the church almost all his life, wrote a huge part of the music for the church, and was himself a deeply religious person who knew the Holy Scriptures very well. He observed church holidays, fasted, confessed, and took communion a few days before his death. The Bible in two languages ​​- German and Latin - was his reference book.

Bach's Jesus Christ is the main character and ideal. In this image, the composer saw the personification of the best human qualities: fortitude, loyalty to the chosen path, purity of thoughts. The most sacred thing in the history of Christ for Bach is Calvary and the cross, the sacrificial feat of Jesus for the salvation of humanity. This theme, being the most important in Bach's work, receives ethical, moral interpretation.

Musical symbolism

The complex world of Bach's works is revealed through musical symbolism that developed in line with Baroque aesthetics. Bach's contemporaries perceived his music, including instrumental, “pure” music, as understandable speech due to the presence in it of stable melodic turns expressing certain concepts, emotions, and ideas. By analogy with classical oratory, these sound formulas are called musical and rhetorical figures. Some rhetorical figures were of a figurative nature (for example, anabasis - ascent, catabasis - descent, circulatio - rotation, fuga - run, tirata - arrow); others imitated the intonations of human speech (exclamatio - exclamation - ascending sixth); still others conveyed affect (suspiratio - sigh, passus duriusculus - chromatic move used to express grief, suffering).

Thanks to stable semantics, musical figures turned into “signs”, emblems of certain feelings and concepts. For example, descending melodies (catadasis) were used to symbolize sadness, dying, and entombment; ascending scales expressed the symbolism of resurrection, etc.

Symbolic motifs are present in all of Bach’s works, and these are not only musical and rhetorical figures. Melodies often have a symbolic meaning Protestant chorales, their segments.

Bach was associated with the Protestant chorale throughout his life - both by religion and by occupation as a church musician. He constantly worked with the chorale in a variety of genres - organ choral preludes, cantatas, passions. It is quite natural that P.Kh. became an integral part of Bach's musical language.

Chorals were sung by the entire Protestant community; they entered the spiritual world of man as a natural, necessary element of the worldview. Chorale melodies and the religious content associated with them were known to everyone, so people of Bach’s time easily formed associations with the meaning of the chorale, with a specific event in the Holy Scriptures. Permeating all of Bach’s work, the melodies of P.H. fill his music, including instrumental music, with a spiritual program that clarifies the content.

Symbols are also stable sound combinations that have constant meanings. One of Bach's most important symbols is cross symbol, consisting of four notes in different directions. If you graphically connect the first with the third, and the second with the fourth, a cross pattern is formed. (It is curious that the surname BACH, when transcribed into music, forms the same pattern. Probably, the composer perceived this as a kind of finger of fate).

Finally, there are numerous connections between Bach's cantata-oratorio (i.e. textual) works and his instrumental music. Based on all the listed connections and analysis of various rhetorical figures, a Bach's system of musical symbols. A huge contribution to its development was made by A. Schweitzer, F. Busoni, B. Yavorsky, M. Yudina.

"Second birth"

Bach's brilliant work was not truly appreciated by his contemporaries. While enjoying fame as an organist, during his lifetime he did not attract due attention as a composer. Not a single serious work has been written about his work, only an insignificant part of the works has been published. After Bach's death, his manuscripts gathered dust in the archives, many were irretrievably lost, and the composer's name was forgotten.

Genuine interest in Bach arose only in the 19th century. It was started by F. Mendelssohn, who accidentally found the notes of the “St. Matthew Passion” in the library. Under his direction this work was performed in Leipzig. Most listeners, literally shocked by the music, have never heard the name of the author. This was Bach's second birth.

On the centenary of his death (1850), a Bach Society, which set the goal of publishing all the surviving manuscripts of the composer in the form of a complete collection of works (46 volumes).

Several of Bach's sons became prominent musicians: Philipp Emmanuel, Wilhelm Friedemann (Dresden), Johann Christoph (Bückenburg), Johann Christian (the youngest, "London" Bach).

Biography of Bach

Of all times. The little genius was born on March 31, 1685 in the city of Eisenach, which was located in Thuringia.

Johann's family was musical, and each of them could play at least one instrument. The gift and talent of music has been passed down from generation to generation.

The future talent often ran into the forest and played on an old guitar, which he found in the attic, and this instrument belonged to the patriarch of the family, Voit Bach.

They say that he almost never parted with it, even when he was grinding flour at the mill, and managed to play and sing songs with his guitar until the evening.

Unfortunately, Johann was left an orphan (at the age of 10), his parents died early. The elder brother Johann Christoph took his brother in and gave him his first music lessons.

As a child, the boy learned to play many instruments - cello, violin and viola, clavichord and organ, dulcimer. He read music with ease and then played music on instruments. From childhood to old age, Johann Sebastian's most favorite instrument was the organ. Possessing perfect hearing, sensitive and vulnerable, he could not stand false sounds that caused him suffering and pain.

The boy sang in the school choir, having a clear voice. When Bach was 15 years old, he went to Lüneburg, where he continued his studies at a vocal school for three years. After this, Johann was a court violinist in Weimar, where he did not stay long, because he didn't like it there at all. Around these years, he wrote his first works.

Having moved to Arnstadt, the musician holds the position of cantor and organist in the church. He also teaches children to sing and play an instrument.Soon, Prince Anhalt offered to become a bandmaster in his orchestra. The new position and free time inspire Bach; he writes cantatas for piano, pieces for violin and cello, suites and sonatas, concertos for orchestra, and, of course, preludes and chorales for organ.

The genius was not even thirty years old, and he had already written more than 500 works, and what a lot! In almost all masterpieces, experts capture the rhythms and melodies of German folk songs and dances, which he heard in childhood and remembered well. Bach light and warmth that will not leave anyone indifferent. Contemporaries of that time admired the great composer's virtuoso playing of the instruments more than his works.

Johann Sebastian Bach photo

The music was not clear to everyone; not everyone realized the great talent of this man. Few people admitted that they liked a lyrical, calm melody more than hurricane-like music, although the rumbling music captivated listeners. The author, in his works, shared hopes, dreams, faith in truth and in man, goodness and beauty. Loud sounds convincingly and simply “told” about it.

Only a hundred years later, his work was highly recognized. Much music has been written on biblical themes. Johann arrived in Leipzig in the spring of 1723. At St. Thomas' Church he is organist and cantor. Again, he spends a lot of time teaching children; he is required to play the organ in large churches 2-3 times a day. But he finds time for his creations and enjoys playing the organ for people.

Johann Bach quickly began to go blind, and after an unsuccessful operation he lost his sight. All his life, Johann Sebastian Bach lived in Germany, giving preference to the provinces. The composer was married twice, his sons (Friedemann, Johann Christian, Carl Philipp Emanuel) continued their father's work and became famous composers. Once or twice a week the family organized home concerts.

Johann had many musical instruments, he bought everything as he saved money, never borrowing money. Five harpsichords, three violins, three violas and two cellos, a lute, a viola basso and a viola pomposa, one spinet. All this inheritance was left to the children after his death, who passed away on July 28, 1750.

German composer, virtuoso organist, bandmaster, music teacher

short biography

Johann Sebastian Bach(German Johann Sebastian Bach; March 31, 1685, Eisenach, Saxe-Eisenach - July 28, 1750 [NS], Leipzig, Saxony, Holy Roman Empire) - German composer, virtuoso organist, bandmaster, music teacher.

Bach is the author of more than 1000 musical works in all significant genres of his time (except opera). Bach's creative heritage is interpreted as a generalization of the musical art of the Baroque. A staunch Protestant, Bach wrote a lot of sacred music. His St. Matthew Passion, Mass in minor, cantatas, instrumental arrangements of Protestant chorales are recognized masterpieces of world musical classics. Bach is known as a great master of polyphony; Baroque polyphony reached its peak in his work.

Childhood

Johann Sebastian Bach was the youngest, eighth child in the family of musician Johann Ambrosius Bach and Elisabeth Lemmerhirt. The Bach family has been known for its musicality since the beginning of the 16th century: many of Johann Sebastian's ancestors and relatives were professional musicians. During this period, the Church, local authorities and the aristocracy supported musicians, especially in Thuringia and Saxony. Bach's father lived and worked in Eisenach. At this time the city had about 6,000 inhabitants. Johannes Ambrosius's work included organizing secular concerts and performing church music.

When Johann Sebastian was 9 years old, his mother died, and a year later his father died. The boy was taken in by his older brother, Johann Christoph, who served as an organist in nearby Ohrdruf. Johann Sebastian entered the gymnasium, his brother taught him to play the organ and clavier. While studying in Ohrdruf under the guidance of his brother, Bach became acquainted with the work of contemporary South German composers - Pachelbel, Froberger and others. It is also possible that he became acquainted with the works of composers from Northern Germany and France.

At the age of 15, Bach moved to Lüneburg, where from 1700-1703 he studied at the St. Michael's vocal school. During his studies, he visited Hamburg, the largest city in Germany, as well as Celle (where French music was held in high esteem) and Lubeck, where he had the opportunity to get acquainted with the work of famous musicians of his time. Bach's first works for organ and clavier date back to the same years. In addition to singing in the choir, Bach probably played the school's three-manual organ and the harpsichord. Here he received his first knowledge of theology, Latin, history, geography and physics, and may also have begun to learn French and Italian. At school, Bach had the opportunity to communicate with the sons of famous North German aristocrats and famous organists, most notably Georg Böhm in Lüneburg and Reincken in Hamburg. With their help, Johann Sebastian may have had access to the largest instruments he had ever played. During this period, Bach expanded his knowledge of the composers of the era, most notably Dietrich Buxtehude, whom he greatly respected.

Arnstadt and Mühlhausen (1703-1708)

In January 1703, after completing his studies, he received the position of court musician to the Weimar Duke Johann Ernst. It is not known exactly what his duties included, but most likely this position was not related to performing activities. During his seven months of service in Weimar, his fame as a performer spread. Bach was invited to the position of organ caretaker at the Church of St. Boniface in Arnstadt, located 180 km from Weimar. The Bach family had long-standing ties to this oldest German city.

In August 1703, Bach took up the post of organist of the Church of St. Boniface in Arnstadt. He had to work three days a week, and the salary was relatively high. In addition, the instrument was maintained in good condition and was tuned according to a new system that expanded the capabilities of the composer and performer. During this period, Bach created many organ works.

Family connections and an employer passionate about music could not prevent tension between Johann Sebastian and the authorities that arose several years later. Bach was dissatisfied with the level of training of the singers in the choir. In addition, in 1705-1706, Bach left without permission for several months in Lübeck, where he became acquainted with Buxtehude's playing, which displeased the authorities. Bach's first biographer Forkel writes that Johann Sebastian walked 50 km to listen to the outstanding composer, but today some researchers question this fact.

In addition, the authorities accused Bach of “strange choral accompaniment” that confused the community, and of inability to manage the choir; the latter accusation apparently had some basis.

In 1706, Bach decides to change his job. He was offered a more lucrative and higher position as organist at the Church of St. Blaise in Mühlhausen, a large city in the north of the country. The following year, Bach accepted this offer, taking the place of organist Johann Georg Ahle. His salary was increased compared to the previous one, and the standard of the singers was better.

Four months later, on October 17, 1707, Johann Sebastian married his cousin Maria Barbara from Arnstadt. They subsequently had seven children, three of whom died in childhood. Two of the survivors - Wilhelm Friedemann and Carl Philipp Emmanuel - later became famous composers.

The city and church authorities of Mühlhausen were pleased with the new employee. They without hesitation approved his expensive plan for the restoration of the church organ, and for the publication of the festive cantata “The Lord is my King,” BWV 71 (this was the only cantata printed during Bach’s lifetime), written for the inauguration of the new consul, he was given a large reward.

Weimar (1708-1717)

After working in Mühlhausen for about a year, Bach changed jobs again, this time receiving the position of court organist and concert organizer - a much higher position than his previous position - in Weimar. Probably, the factors that forced him to change jobs were the high salary and a well-selected line-up of professional musicians. The Bach family settled in a house just a five-minute walk from the Ducal Palace. The following year, the first child in the family was born. At the same time, Maria Barbara's older unmarried sister moved in with the Bahamas and helped them run the household until her death in 1729. Wilhelm Friedemann and Carl Philipp Emmanuel were born to Bach in Weimar. In 1704, Bach met the violinist von Westhof, who had a great influence on Bach's work. Von Westhof's works inspired Bach's sonatas and partitas for solo violin.

In Weimar, a long period of composing keyboard and orchestral works began, in which Bach's talent reached its peak. During this period, Bach absorbed musical trends from other countries. The works of the Italians Vivaldi and Corelli taught Bach how to write dramatic introductions, from which Bach learned the art of using dynamic rhythms and decisive harmonic patterns. Bach studied the works of Italian composers well, creating transcriptions of Vivaldi concertos for organ or harpsichord. He could have borrowed the idea of ​​writing transcriptions from the son of his employer, Hereditary Duke Johann Ernst, a composer and musician. In 1713, the Crown Duke returned from a trip abroad and brought with him a large number of sheet music, which he showed to Johann Sebastian. In Italian music, the Crown Duke (and, as can be seen from some works, Bach himself) was attracted by the alternation of solo (playing one instrument) and tutti (playing the entire orchestra).

In Weimar, Bach had the opportunity to play and compose organ works, as well as use the services of the ducal orchestra. While serving in Weimar, Bach began work on the “Organ Book,” a collection of organ chorale preludes, possibly for the teaching of Wilhelm Friedemann. This collection consists of arrangements of Lutheran chorales.

By the end of his service in Weimar, Bach was already a well-known organist and harpsichordist. The episode with Marchand dates back to this time. In 1717, the famous French musician Louis Marchand arrived in Dresden. Dresden accompanist Volumier decided to invite Bach and arrange a musical competition between two famous harpsichordists, Bach and Marchand agreed. However, on the day of the competition it turned out that Marchand (who, apparently, had previously had the opportunity to listen to Bach play) hastily and secretly left the city; the competition did not take place, and Bach had to play alone.

Köthen (1717-1723)

After some time, Bach again went in search of a more suitable job. The old master did not want to let him go, and on November 6, 1717 he was even arrested for constantly asking for his resignation, but on December 2 he was released “with disgrace.”

Palace and gardens in Köthen, engraving from the book "Topography" Matthaus Merian, 1650

At the end of 1717, Leopold, Prince of Anhalt-Köthen, hired Bach as conductor. The prince - himself a musician - appreciated Bach's talent, paid him well and provided him with great freedom of action. However, the prince was a Calvinist and did not welcome the use of refined music in worship, so most of Bach's Köthen works were secular.

Among other things, in Köthen, Bach composed suites for orchestra, six suites for solo cello, English and French suites for clavier, as well as three sonatas and three partitas for solo violin. Also during this period, The Well-Tempered Clavier (the first volume of the cycle) and the Brandenburg Concertos were written.

Violin Sonata in G minor(BWV 1001), Bach manuscript

On July 7, 1720, while Bach and the prince were abroad in Carlsbad, his wife Maria Barbara suddenly died at the age of 35, leaving four young children. J. S. Bach learned about her funeral upon his return to Köthen. He actually expressed his feelings in connection with the death of his wife in musical form in the chaconne from the partita in D minor for solo violin, which later became one of his most recognizable works.

The following year, 1721, Bach met Anna Magdalena Wilke, a young twenty-year-old highly gifted soprano who sang at the ducal court. They married on December 3, 1721, and subsequently had 13 children (of whom 7 died in childhood).

Leipzig (1723-1750)

In 1723, the performance of his “St. John Passion” took place in the Church of St. Thomas in Leipzig, and on June 1, Bach received the post of cantor of the St. Thomas Choir and at the same time performed the duties of a school teacher at the church, replacing Johann Kuhnau in this post. Bach's duties included teaching singing and conducting weekly concerts in Leipzig's two main churches, St. Thomas and St. Nicholas. Johann Sebastian's position also included teaching Latin, but he was allowed to hire an assistant to do this work for him, so Pezold taught Latin for 50 thalers a year. Bach was given the position of “musical director” (German: Musikdirektor) of all the churches in the city: his duties included selecting performers, supervising their training and choosing music for performance. While working in Leipzig, the composer repeatedly came into conflict with the city administration.

The first six years of his life in Leipzig turned out to be very productive: Bach composed up to 5 annual cycles of cantatas (two of them, in all likelihood, were lost). Most of these works were written on gospel texts, which were read in the Lutheran church every Sunday and on holidays throughout the year; many (such as “Wachet auf! Ruft uns die Stimme" or "Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland") are based on traditional church chants - Lutheran chorales.

During the performance, Bach apparently sat at the harpsichord or stood in front of the choir in the lower gallery under the organ; on the side gallery to the right of the organ there were wind instruments and timpani, and to the left there were string instruments. The city council provided Bach with only about 8 performers, and this often became the cause of disputes between the composer and the administration: Bach had to hire up to 20 musicians himself to perform orchestral works. The composer himself usually played the organ or harpsichord; if he led the choir, then this place was occupied by a full-time organist or one of Bach's eldest sons.

Bach recruited sopranos and altos from boys students, and tenors and basses - not only from school, but also from all over Leipzig. In addition to regular concerts paid for by the city authorities, Bach and his choir earned extra money by performing at weddings and funerals. Presumably, at least 6 motets were written precisely for these purposes. Part of his regular work in the church was the performance of motets by composers of the Venetian school, as well as some Germans, for example, Schutz; When composing his motets, Bach was guided by the works of these composers.

Composing cantatas for most of the 1720s, Bach amassed an extensive repertoire for performance in the main churches of Leipzig. Over time, he wanted to compose and perform more secular music. In March 1729, Johann Sebastian became the head of the College of Music ( Collegium Musicum) - a secular ensemble that has existed since 1701, when it was founded by Bach's old friend Georg Philipp Telemann. At that time, in many large German cities, gifted and active university students created similar ensembles. Such associations played an increasingly important role in public musical life; they were often led by famous professional musicians. For most of the year, the College of Music held two-hour concerts twice a week at Zimmerman's Coffee House, located near the market square. The owner of the coffee shop provided the musicians with a large hall and purchased several instruments. Many of Bach's secular works, dating from the 1730s to the 1750s, were composed specifically for performance at Zimmermann's coffee house. Such works include, for example, “Coffee Cantata” and, possibly, keyboard pieces from the collections "Clavier-Übung", as well as many concertos for cello and harpsichord.

During the same period, Bach wrote parts Kyrie And Gloria the famous Mass in B minor (the rest of the Mass was written much later). Soon Bach achieved appointment to the post of court composer; Apparently, he sought this high post for a long time, which was a strong argument in his disputes with the city authorities. Although the entire mass was never performed during the composer's lifetime, it is today considered by many to be one of the best choral works of all time.

In 1747, Bach visited the court of the Prussian king Frederick II, where the king offered him a musical theme and asked him to immediately compose something on it. Bach was a master of improvisation and immediately performed a three-part fugue. Later he composed a whole cycle of variations on this theme and sent it as a gift to the king. The cycle consisted of ricercars, canons and trios, based on a theme dictated by Frederick. This cycle was called the "Musical Offering".

Another major cycle, “The Art of Fugue,” was not completed by Bach, despite the fact that it was most likely written long before his death (according to modern research, before 1741). During his lifetime he was never published. The cycle consists of 18 complex fugues and canons based on one simple theme. In this cycle, Bach used all his rich experience in writing polyphonic works. After Bach's death, The Art of Fugue was published by his sons, along with the chorale prelude BWV 668, which is often erroneously described as Bach's last work - in fact it exists in at least two versions and is a reworking of an earlier prelude to the same melody, BWV 641 .

Over time, Bach's vision became worse and worse. Nevertheless, he continued to compose music, dictating it to his son-in-law Altnikkol. In 1750, the English ophthalmologist John Taylor, whom many modern researchers consider a charlatan, came to Leipzig. Taylor operated on Bach twice, but both operations were unsuccessful and Bach was left blind. On July 18, he unexpectedly regained his sight for a short time, but in the evening he suffered a stroke. Bach died on July 28; it is possible that the cause of death was complications after surgery. His estate was valued at more than 1,000 thalers and included 5 harpsichords, 2 lute harpsichords, 3 violins, 3 violas, 2 cellos, a viola da gamba, a lute and a spinet, as well as 52 sacred books.

Tomb of Johann Sebastian Bach in St. Thomas Church, Leipzig, Germany. August 9, 2011.

During his life, Bach wrote more than 1000 works. In Leipzig, Bach maintained friendly relations with university professors. Particularly fruitful was the collaboration with the poet Christian Friedrich Henrici, who wrote under the pseudonym Picander. Johann Sebastian and Anna Magdalena often hosted friends, family members and musicians from all over Germany in their home. Frequent guests were court musicians from Dresden, Berlin and other cities, including Telemann, godfather of Carl Philipp Emmanuel. It is interesting that George Frideric Handel, the same age as Bach from Halle, 50 km from Leipzig, never met Bach, although Bach tried to meet him twice in his life - in 1719 and 1729. The fates of these two composers, however, were linked by John Taylor, who operated on both shortly before their deaths.

The composer was buried near St. John's Church (German: Johanniskirche), one of two churches where he served for 27 years. However, the grave was soon lost, and only in 1894 Bach’s remains were accidentally found during construction work to expand the church, where they were reburied in 1900. After the destruction of this church during World War II, the ashes were transferred on July 28, 1949 to the Church of St. Thomas. In 1950, which was named the year of J. S. Bach, a bronze tombstone was installed over his burial place.

Bach studies

The first description of Bach's life and work was a work published in 1802 by Johann Forkel. Forkel's biography of Bach is based on an obituary and stories from Bach's sons and friends. In the mid-19th century, the general public's interest in Bach's music increased, and composers and researchers began work on collecting, studying and publishing all of his works. Honored promoter of Bach's works, Robert Franz, has published several books about the composer's work. The next major work on Bach was the book by Philip Spitta, published in 1880. At the beginning of the 20th century, the German organist and researcher Albert Schweitzer published a book. In this work, in addition to the biography of Bach, description and analysis of his works, much attention is paid to the description of the era in which he worked, as well as theological issues related to his music. These books were the most authoritative until the middle of the 20th century, when, with the help of new technical means and careful research, new facts about the life and work of Bach were established, which in some places contradicted traditional ideas. For example, it was established that Bach wrote some cantatas in 1724-1725 (previously it was believed that this happened in the 1740s), unknown works were found, and some previously attributed to Bach turned out to be not written by him. Some facts of his biography were established. In the second half of the 20th century, many works were written on this topic - for example, books by Christoph Wolf. There is also a work called a 20th century hoax, “The Chronicle of the Life of Johann Sebastian Bach, Compiled by His Widow Anna Magdalena Bach,” written by the English writer Esther Meinel on behalf of the composer’s widow.

Creation

Bach wrote more than a thousand musical works in almost all genres known at that time. Bach did not work only in the opera genre.

Today, each of the famous works is assigned a number BWV (short for Bach Werke Verzeichnis- catalog of Bach's works). Bach wrote music for various instruments, both sacred and secular. Some of Bach's works are adaptations of works by other composers, and some are revised versions of their own works.

Organ creativity

By the time of Bach, organ music in Germany already had long-standing traditions that had developed thanks to Bach’s predecessors - Pachelbel, Böhm, Buxtehude and other composers, each of whom influenced him in their own way. Bach knew many of them personally.

During his lifetime, Bach was best known as a first-class organist, teacher and composer of organ music. He worked both in the “free” genres traditional for that time, such as prelude, fantasy, toccata, passacaglia, and in more strict forms - chorale prelude and fugue. In his works for organ, Bach skillfully combined features of different musical styles with which he became acquainted throughout his life. The composer was influenced both by the music of North German composers (Georg Böhm, whom Bach met in Lüneburg, and Dietrich Buxtehude in Lübeck) and by the music of South German composers. In addition, Bach copied the works of French and Italian composers in order to better understand their technique; he later transcribed several of Vivaldi's violin concertos for organ. During the most fruitful period for organ music (1708-1714), Johann Sebastian not only wrote many pairs of preludes, toccatas and fugues, but also the "Orgelbüchlein" - a collection of 46 preludes, which demonstrated various methods and techniques instrumental arrangement of Protestant chorales. After leaving Weimar, Bach began to write less for organ; however, many famous works were written after Weimar, including 6 trio sonatas, the third part of the collection “Clavier-Übung” and 18 Leipzig chorales. Throughout his life, Bach not only composed music for the organ, but also consulted in the construction of instruments, examined new organs and was well versed in the peculiarities of their tuning.

Keyboard creativity

Bach also wrote many works for the harpsichord, many of which could also be played on the clavichord. Many of these creations are encyclopedic collections demonstrating various techniques and methods for composing polyphonic works. The most famous:

• “The Well-Tempered Clavier” in two volumes, written in 1722 and 1744, is a collection, each volume of which contains 24 preludes and fugues, one for each common key. This cycle was very important in connection with the transition to instrument tuning systems that make it equally easy to perform music in any key - first of all, to the modern equal temperament system. “The Well-Tempered Clavier” laid the foundation for a cycle of movements sounding in all keys. It is also a unique example of a “cycle within a cycle” - each prelude and fugue are thematically and figuratively linked to each other and form a single cycle, which is always performed together.
• 15 two-voice and 15 three-voice inventions are small works, arranged in increasing order of key characters. They were intended (and are still used to this day) for teaching how to play keyboard instruments.
• English Suites and French Suites. Each collection contains 6 suites, built according to a standard scheme (allemande, courante, sarabande, gigue and an optional part between the last two). In English suites, the allemande is preceded by a prelude, and between the sarabande and the gigue there is exactly one movement; in French suites the number of optional parts increases, and there are no preludes.
• The first and second parts of the collection “Clavier-Übung” (lit. “exercises for the clavier”). The first part (1731) included six partitas, the second (1735) included an Overture in the French style (BWV 831) and an Italian concerto (BWV 971).
• Goldberg Variations (published in 1741 as the fourth part of the Clavier-Übung) - a melody with 30 variations. The cycle has a rather complex and unusual structure. The variations are built more on the tonal plan of the theme than on the melody itself.

Orchestral and chamber music

Bach wrote music for both individual instruments and ensembles. His works for solo instruments - 3 sonatas and 3 partitas for solo violin, BWV 1001-1006, 6 suites for cello, BWV 1007-1012, and partita for solo flute, BWV 1013 - are considered by many to be among the composer's most profound works. In addition, Bach composed several works for solo lute. He also wrote trio sonatas, sonatas for solo flute and viola da gamba, accompanied only by a general bass, as well as a large number of canons and ricercars, mostly without specifying the instruments for performance. The most significant examples of such works are the cycles “The Art of Fugue” and “Musical Offering”.

Bach wrote many works for orchestra and solo instruments. Some of the most famous are the Brandenburg Concertos. They were so called because Bach, having sent them to Margrave Christian Ludwig of Brandenburg-Schwedt in 1721, thought of obtaining employment at his court; this attempt was unsuccessful. These six concertos are written in the genre of concerto grosso. Bach's orchestral masterpieces include two violin concertos (BWV 1041 and 1042), a concerto for 2 violins in D minor BWV 1043, the so-called "triple" concerto in A minor (for flute, violin, harpsichord, strings and basso continuo) BWV 1044 and concertos for claviers and chamber orchestra: seven for one clavier (BWV 1052-1058), three for two (BWV 1060-1062), two for three (BWV 1063 and 1064) and one - in A minor BWV 1065 - for four harpsichords. Nowadays, these concertos with orchestra are often performed on the piano, which is why they are sometimes called Bach's "piano" concertos, but it is worth remembering that in Bach's time there was no piano. In addition to the concertos, Bach composed four orchestral suites (BWV 1066-1069), individual parts of which are widely popular today, especially the last part of the Second Suite (the so-called “Joke” - an overly literal translation of the genre Scherzo) and II part of the Third Suite (“Aria”).

German postage stamp dedicated to J. S. Bach, 1961, 20 pfennigs (Scott 829)

Vocal works

• Cantatas. For a long period of his life, every Sunday Bach led the performance of a cantata in the Church of St. Thomas, the theme of which was chosen according to the Lutheran church calendar. Although Bach also performed cantatas by other composers, in Leipzig he composed at least three complete annual cycles of cantatas, one for each Sunday of the year and each church holiday. In addition, he composed a number of cantatas in Weimar and Mühlhausen. In total, Bach wrote more than 300 cantatas on spiritual themes, of which about 200 have survived to this day. Bach's cantatas vary greatly in form and instrumentation. Some of them are written for one voice, some for choir; some require a large orchestra to perform, and some require only a few instruments. However, the most commonly used model is this: the cantata opens with a solemn choral introduction, then alternates recitatives and arias for soloists or duets, and ends with a chorale. The same words from the Bible that are read this week according to the Lutheran canons are usually taken as recitative. The final chorale is often anticipated by a chorale prelude in one of the middle movements, and is also sometimes included in the opening movement in the form of a cantus firmus. Popular church cantatas include "Christ lag in Todesbanden" (BWV 4), "Ein' feste Burg" (BWV 80), "Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme" (BWV 140) and "Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben" ( BWV 147). In addition, Bach also composed a number of secular cantatas, usually timed to coincide with some event, for example, a wedding. Popular secular cantatas include "Coffee" (BWV 211) and "Peasant" (BWV 212).
• Passions, or passions. The St. John Passion (1724) and the St. Matthew Passion (c. 1727) are works for choir and orchestra on the gospel theme of the suffering of Christ, intended for performance at vespers on Good Friday in the churches of St. Thomas and St. Nicholas. The St. Matthew Passion (along with the Mass in b minor) is Bach's most ambitious work.
• Oratorios and Magnificat. The most famous is the Christmas Oratorio (1734) - a cycle of 6 cantatas for performance during the Christmas period of the liturgical year. The Easter Oratorio (1734-1736) and the Magnificat (1730; first edition 1723) are rather extensive and elaborate cantatas and have a smaller scope than the Christmas Oratorio or Passions.
• Masses. Bach's most famous and significant mass is the Mass in B minor (completed in 1749), which is a complete cycle of the Ordinary. This mass, like many of the composer’s other works, included revised early works. The Mass was never performed in its entirety during Bach's lifetime - the first time this happened only in the 19th century. In addition, this music was not performed as intended due to its inconsistency with the Lutheran canon (which included only Kyrie And Gloria), and also because of the duration of the sound (about 2 hours). In addition to the Mass in B minor, Bach wrote 4 short two-part masses ( Kyrie And Gloria), as well as individual parts ( Sanctus And Kyrie).

Bach's other vocal works include several motets, about 180 chorales, songs and arias.

Features of the performance of Bach's works

Today, performers of Bach's music are divided into two camps: those who prefer authentic performance (or "historically oriented performance"), that is, using the instruments and methods of Bach's era, and those who perform Bach on modern instruments. In Bach's time there were no such large choirs and orchestras as, for example, in the time of Brahms, and even his most ambitious works, such as the Mass in B minor and the passions, are not intended to be performed by large groups. In addition, some of Bach's chamber works do not indicate the instrumentation at all, so today very different versions of performances of the same works are known. In organ works, Bach almost never indicated the registration and change of manuals. Of the stringed keyboard instruments, Bach preferred the clavichord; Nowadays, the harpsichord or piano are more often used to perform his music. Bach met with I.G. Zilberman and discussed with him the structure of his new instrument, making a contribution to the creation of the modern piano. Bach's music for some instruments was often arranged for others, for example, Busoni arranged some organ works for piano (chorales and others). A very important milestone in pianistic and musicological practice is his popular edition of The Well-Tempered Clavier - perhaps the most widely used edition of this work today.

Numerous "lite" and "modern" versions of his works contributed to the popularization of Bach's music in the 20th century. Among them are today's well-known tunes performed by the Swingle Singers and Wendy Carlos' 1968 recording of "Switched-On Bach", which used the newly invented synthesizer. Jazz musicians such as Jacques Loussier also worked on Bach's music. The New Age arrangement of the Goldberg Variations was performed by Joel Spiegelman. Among Russian contemporary performers, Fyodor Chistyakov tried to pay tribute to Bach in his 1997 solo album “When Bach Wake Up.”

The fate of Bach's music

Contrary to popular myth, Bach was not forgotten after his death. True, this concerned works for the clavier: his works were performed and published, and were used for didactic purposes. Bach's works for organ continued to be played in the church, and organ harmonizations of chorales were in constant use. Bach's cantata-oratorio works were rarely performed (although the notes were carefully preserved in the Church of St. Thomas), as a rule, on the initiative of Carl Philipp Emmanuel Bach.

In the last years of his life and after Bach's death, his fame as a composer began to decline: his style was considered old-fashioned in comparison with the burgeoning classicism. He was better known and remembered as a performer, teacher and father of the younger Bachs, especially Carl Philipp Emmanuel, whose music was more famous.

However, many major composers, such as Mozart and Beethoven, knew and loved the work of Johann Sebastian Bach. They were brought up on the works of Bach from childhood. One day, while visiting the School of St. Thomas, Mozart heard one of the motets (BWV 225) and exclaimed: “There is something to learn here!” - after which, asking for the notes, he studied them for a long time and enthusiastically.

Beethoven greatly appreciated Bach's music. As a child, he played preludes and fugues from The Well-Tempered Clavier, and later called Bach “the true father of harmony” and said that “his name is not the Brook, but the Sea” (word Bach in German it means "stream"). Bach's influence can be noted both at the level of ideas, choice of genres, and in some polyphonic fragments of Beethoven's works.

In 1800, the Berlin Singing Academy (German) was organized by Karl Friedrich Zelter ( Singakademie), the main purpose of which was precisely the promotion of Bach's singing heritage. A biography written in 1802 by Johann Nikolaus Forkel stimulated general public interest in his music. More and more people discovered his music. For example, Goethe, who became acquainted with his works quite late in his life (in 1814 and 1815 some of his keyboard and choral works were performed in Bad Berka), in a letter of 1827 compared the feeling of Bach’s music with “eternal harmony in dialogue with itself."

But the real revival of Bach's music began with the performance of the St. Matthew Passion on March 11, 1829 in Berlin, organized by Felix Mendelssohn, a student of Zelter. The performance gained a powerful public response. Even the rehearsals conducted by Mendelssohn became an event - they were attended by many music lovers. The performance was such a success that the concert was repeated on Bach's birthday. “The St. Matthew Passion” was also performed in other cities - Frankfurt, Dresden, Königsberg. Hegel, who attended the concert, later called Bach "a great, true Protestant, a strong and, so to speak, erudite genius, whom we have only recently learned to fully appreciate again." In subsequent years, Mendelssohn's work to popularize Bach's music and the composer's growing fame continued.

In 1850, the Bach Society was founded, the purpose of which was to collect, study and disseminate the works of Bach. Over the next half century, this society carried out significant work on compiling and publishing a corpus of the composer’s works.

In Russia at the beginning of the 19th century, Filda's student Maria Shimanovskaya and Alexander Griboyedov especially stood out as experts and performers of Bach's music.

In the 20th century, awareness of the musical and pedagogical value of his compositions continued. Interest in Bach's music gave rise to a new movement among performers: the idea of ​​authentic performance became widespread. Such performers, for example, use a harpsichord instead of a modern piano and smaller choirs than was common in the 19th and early 20th centuries, wanting to accurately recreate the music of Bach's era.

Some composers expressed their homage to Bach by including the BACH motif (B-flat - A - C - B in German alphabetic notation) in the themes of their works. For example, Liszt wrote a prelude and fugue on the theme BACH, and Schumann wrote 6 fugues on the same theme. Among the works of contemporary composers on the same theme, one can name “Variations on a Theme BACH” by Roman Ledenev. It is worth especially noting that Bach himself often used this same theme, for example, in the XIV counterpoint from The Art of Fugue.

Composers often used themes from Bach's works. For example, Brahms' Cello Sonata in D major uses musical quotations from The Art of Fugue in the finale.

Many composers have successfully used the genres developed by Bach. For example, Beethoven's variations on a theme by Diabelli, the prototype of which is the Goldberg Variations. “The Well-Tempered Clavier” was the founder of the genre of a cycle of movements written in all keys. There are many examples of this genre, for example, 24 preludes and fugues by Shostakovich, two cycles of 24 etudes by Chopin, partly Ludus tonalis Paul Hindemith .

The chorale prelude “Ich ruf’ zu Dir, Herr Jesu Christ” (BWV 639) from Bach’s Organ Book performed by Leonid Roizman is heard in Andrei Tarkovsky’s film “Solaris” (1972).

Bach's music, among the best creations of mankind, was recorded on the Voyager gold disc.

According to The New York Times Johann Sebastian Bach topped the top ten greatest composers of all time.

Bach monuments in Germany

Monument to J. S. Bach at the Church of St. Thomas in Leipzig.

• Monument in Leipzig, erected on April 23, 1843 by Hermann Knaur on the initiative of Felix Mendelssohn according to the drawings of Eduard Bendemann, Ernst Ritschel and Julius Hübner.
• Bronze statue in the square Frauenplan in Eisenach, designed by Adolf von Donndorff, installed on September 28, 1884. At first it stood on the Market Square near the Church of St. George; April 4, 1938 was moved to Frauenplan with a short pedestal.
• Monument on Bach Square in Köthen, erected on March 21, 1885. Sculptor - Heinrich Pohlmann
• Bronze statue by Karl Seffner on the south side of St. Thomas Church in Leipzig - 17 May 1908.
• Bust by Fritz Behn in the Valhalla monument near Regensburg, 1916.
• Statue by Paul Birr at the entrance to St. George's Church in Eisenach, erected on April 6, 1939.
• Monument to the arch. Bruno Eiermann in Weimar, first installed in 1950, then removed for two years and reopened in 1995 on Democracy Square.
• Relief in Köthen (1952). Sculptor - Robert Propf.
• The monument near the Arnstadt market was erected on March 21, 1985. Author - Bernd Goebel
• Wooden stele by Ed Garison on Johann Sebastian Bach Square in front of St. Blaise Church in Mühlhausen - August 17, 2001.
• The monument in Ansbach, designed by Jürgen Goertz, was erected in July 2003.

Films about J. S. Bach

• Bach: The Fight for Freedom(1995, dir. S. Gillard, feature)
• Johann Bach and Anna Magdalena (“Il etait une fois Jean-Sebastien Bach”)(2003, dir. Jean-Louis Guillermou, feature)
• (series “Famous Composers”, documentary)
• (series “German Composers”, documentary)
• Johann Sebastian Bach: life and work, in two parts (TV channel “Culture”, Yu. Nagibin, documentary)
• The competition continues(1971, dir. N. Khrobko, teleplay)
• My name is Bach(2003, dir. Dominique de Rivaz, feature)
• Silence before Bach(2007, dir. Pere Portabella, feature)
• Johann Sebastian Bach's futile journey to fame(1980, dir. V. Vikas, feature)
• Possible meeting(1992, directed by V. Dolgachev, S. Satyrenko, teleplay based on the play of the same name; starring: O. Efremov, I. Smoktunovsky, S. Lyubshin)
• Dinner for four hands(1999, directed by M. Kozakov, television feature; in the role of Bach - Evgeny Steblov).
• Chronicle of Anna Magdalena Bach(1968, dir. Daniel Huillet, Jean-Marie Straub, feature, G. Leonhardt)
• Bach Cello Suite #6: Six Gestures(1997, dir. Patricia Rozema, feature)
• Friedemann Bach(1941, dir. Traugott Müller, Gustaf Gründgens, feature)
• Anton Ivanovich is angry(1941, dir. Alexander Ivanovsky, feature)
• Great Composers (BBC TV series)- The life and work of J. S. Bach, documentary (English), in 8 parts: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8
• Johann Sebastian Bach(1985, dir. Lothar Bellag, television series, in the title role Ulrich Thain) (German)
• Johann Sebastian Bach - Der liebe Gott der Musik(series “Die Geschichte Mitteldeutschlands”, season 6, episode 3, dir. Lew Hohmann, documentary) (German)
• The Cantor of St Thomas's(1984, dir. Colin Nears, feature) (English)
• The Joy of Bach(1980, documentary) (English)

Childhood and adolescence

Bach was born in 1685 in Eisenach. He belonged to an extensive German family, the vast majority of whose representatives over the course of three centuries were professional musicians who served in various cities of Germany. He received his primary musical education under the guidance of his father (playing the violin and harpsichord). At the age of 9, Bach was left an orphan and was taken into care by his older brother Johann Christoph, who served as a church organist. In 1700-03 he studied at the church choir school in Lüneburg. Bach's first compositional experiments - works for organ and clavier - date back to the same years.

Years of wanderings (1703-08)

After graduation, Bach was busy looking for work. From 1703 to 1708 he served in Weimar, Arnstadt, and Mühlhausen. In 1707 he married his cousin Maria Barbara Bach. His creative interests were then focused mainly on music for organ and clavier. The most famous composition of that time is “Capriccio on the Departure of a Beloved Brother” (1704).

Weimar period (1708-17)

Having received the position of organist and court musician from the Duke of Weimar in 1708, Bach settled in Weimar, where he spent 9 years. These years became a time of intense creativity, in which the main place belonged to compositions for organ, including numerous chorale preludes, organ toccata and fugue in D minor, passacaglia in C minor. The composer wrote music for the clavier and spiritual cantatas (more than 20). Using traditional forms, such as the Protestant chorale, he brought them to the highest perfection.

Keten period (1717-23)

In 1717 Bach accepted an invitation to serve as the Duke of Köthen. Life in Köthen was at first the happiest time in the composer’s life: the prince, an enlightened man for his time and a good musician, appreciated Bach and did not interfere with his work, inviting him on his trips. In Köthen, Bach's favorite instrument, the organ, was absent, and Bach composed exclusively keyboard And ensemble music. In Köthen, three sonatas and three partitas for solo violin, six suites for solo cello, English and French suites for clavier, and six Brandenburg concertos for orchestra were written. Of particular interest is the collection “The Well-Tempered Clavier” - 24 preludes and fugues, written in all keys and in practice proving the advantages of the tempered musical system, the approval of which was hotly debated. Subsequently, Bach created the second volume of The Well-Tempered Clavier, also consisting of 24 preludes and fugues in all keys. But the cloudless period of Bach's life was cut short in 1720: his wife dies, leaving four young children. In 1721, Bach married Anna Magdalena Wilken for the second time.

Leipzig period (1723-50)

In 1723, his “Passion according to John” was performed in the Church of St. Thomas in Leipzig, and Bach soon received the position of cantor of this church while simultaneously performing the duties of a teacher at the church school (Latin and singing). Bach becomes the “musical director” of all the churches in the city, overseeing the personnel of musicians and singers, overseeing their training, assigning works required for performance, and doing much more. By that time the artist had reached the heights of his skill and created magnificent examples in various genres. First of all, this spiritual vocal-instrumental music: cantatas (about 200 have survived), “Magnificat” (1723), masses (including the immortal “High Mass” in B minor, 1733), “St. Matthew Passion” (1729), dozens of secular cantatas (among them comic “ Coffee" and "Peasant"), works for organ, orchestra, harpsichord (among the latter, it is necessary to highlight the cycle "Aria with 30 variations", the so-called "Goldberg Variations", 1742).

In 1747, Bach created a cycle of plays, “Musical Offerings,” dedicated to the Prussian king Frederick II. The last work was a work called “The Art of Fugue” (1749-50) - 14 fugues and 4 canons on one theme.

The fate of the creative heritage

At the end of the 1740s, Bach's health deteriorated, and he was particularly concerned about the sudden loss of his vision. Two unsuccessful cataract surgeries resulted in complete blindness. Ten days before his death, Bach unexpectedly regained his sight, but then he suffered a stroke that brought him to his grave.

The solemn funeral caused a huge gathering of people from different places. The composer was buried near the Church of St. Thomas, where he served for 27 years. However, later the grave was lost. It was only in 1894 that Bach’s remains were accidentally found during construction work, and then the reburial took place.

The fate of his legacy also turned out to be difficult. During his lifetime, Bach enjoyed fame. However, after the death of the composer, his name and music began to fall into oblivion. Genuine interest in his work arose only in the 1820s, which began with the performance of the St. Matthew Passion in Berlin in 1829 (organized by F. Mendelssohn-Bartholdy). In 1850, the Bach Society was created in Leipzig, which sought to identify and publish all the composer’s manuscripts (46 volumes were published over half a century).

Among the continuers of Bach's quest are his sons. In total he had 20 children, only nine of them survived their father. Four sons became composers:

Wilhelm Friedemann(1710-1784) - “Gallic” Bach, composer and organist, improviser

Carl Philip 53 mmanuel(1714-1788) - “Berlin” or “Hamburg” Bach, composer and harpsichordist; his work, akin to the Sturm und Drang literary movement, influenced the composers of the Viennese classical school

Johann Christian(1735-82) - “Milanese” or “London” Bach, composer and harpsichordist, representative of the gallant style, influenced the work of the young Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Johann Christoph Friedrich(1732-95) - “Bückeburg” Bach, composer, harpsichordist, bandmaster.