Biography of Bach Johann Sebastian. Brief biography of Bach the most important thing Johann Sebastian Bach pages of life and work

Johann Sebastian Bach, whose biography is still being carefully studied, is included, according to the New York Times, in the top 10 most interesting biographies of composers.

Along with his name are such surnames as Beethoven, Wagner, Schubert, Debussy and others.

Let us also get to know this great musician to understand why his work has become one of the pillars of classical music.

J. S. Bach - German composer and virtuoso

The name Bach is one of the first that comes to mind when listing great composers. Indeed, he was outstanding, as evidenced by more than 1,000 pieces of music that remained after his life.

But we shouldn’t forget about the second Bach – the musician. After all, both of them were true masters of their craft.

In both forms, Bach honed his skills throughout his life. The training did not end with the end of vocal school. It continued throughout my life.

Proof of professionalism, in addition to the surviving musical works, is the impressive career of the musician: from organist in the first position to director of music.

It is all the more surprising to realize that many contemporaries perceived the composer’s musical works negatively. At the same time, the names of musicians popular in those years have practically not survived to this day. Only later did Mozart and Beethoven speak enthusiastically about the composer’s work. From the beginning of the 19th century, the work of the virtuoso musician began to revive thanks to the propaganda of Liszt, Mendelssohn and Schumann.

Now no one doubts the skill and enormous talent of Johann Sebastian. Bach's music is an example of the classical school. Books are written and films are made about the composer. The details of life are still a subject for research and study.

Brief biography of Bach

The first mention of the Bach family appeared in the 16th century. Among them were many famous musicians. Therefore, little Johann’s choice of profession was expected. By the 18th century, when the composer lived and worked, they knew about 5 generations of the musical family.

Father and mother

Father - Johann Ambrosius Bach was born in 1645 in Erfurt. He had a twin brother, Johann Christoph. Along with most of the representatives of his family, Johann Ambrosius worked as a court musician and music teacher.

Mother - Maria Elisabeth Lemmerhirt was born in 1644. She was also from Erfurt. Maria was the daughter of a city councilor, a respected man in the city. The dowry he left for his daughter was substantial, thanks to which she could live comfortably in marriage.

The parents of the future musician got married in 1668. The couple had eight children.

Johann Sebastian Bach was born on March 31, 1685, becoming the youngest child in the family. They then lived in the picturesque city of Eisenach with a population of about 6,000 people. Johann's mother and father are Germans, so his son is also German by nationality.

When little Johann was 9 years old, Maria Elisabeth died. A year later, a few months after the second marriage, the father dies.

Childhood

The orphaned 10-year-old boy was taken in by his older brother, Johann Christoph. He worked as a music teacher and church organist.

Johann Christoph taught little Johann to play the clavier and organ. It is the latter that is considered the composer’s favorite instrument.

Little is known about this period of life. The boy studied at a city school, which he graduated at the age of 15, although its graduates were usually young people 2-3 years older. This means we can conclude that school was easy for the boy.

Another fact from the biography is often mentioned. At night, the boy often copied notes of works by other musicians. One day, the elder brother discovered this and strictly forbade him to do this in the future.

Music training

After graduating from school at the age of 15, the future composer entered the vocal school named after St. Michael, which was located in the city of Luneburg.

During these years, the biography of Bach, the composer, begins. During his studies from 1700 to 1703, he wrote the first organ music and gained knowledge about modern composers.

During the same period, he traveled for the first time to the cities of Germany. He will continue to have this passion for travel in the future. Moreover, all of them were done for the sake of getting acquainted with the work of other composers.

After graduating from vocal school, the young man could have entered the university, but the need to earn a living forced him to abandon this opportunity.

Service

After completing his studies, J. S. Bach received the position of musician at the court of Duke Ernst. He was only a performer, playing the violin. I haven’t started writing my own musical compositions yet.

However, dissatisfied with the job, after a few months he decides to change it and becomes the organist of the Church of St. Boniface in Arndstadt. During these years, the composer created many works, mainly for organ. That is, for the first time in the service I had the opportunity to be not only a performer, but also a composer.

Bach received a high salary, but after 3 years he decided to move due to tense relations with the authorities. Problems arose due to the fact that the musician was absent for a long time due to a trip to Lubeck. According to available information, he was released to this German city for 1 month, and he returned only after 4. In addition, the community expressed complaints about his ability to lead the choir. All this together prompted the musician to change jobs.

In 1707, the musician moved to Mülhusen, where he continued to work. In the Church of St. Blaise he had a higher salary. Relations with the authorities were going well. The city authorities were satisfied with the activities of the new employee.

However, a year later Bach moved again to Weimar. In this city he received a more prestigious position as a concert organizer. The 9 years spent in Weimar became a fruitful period for the virtuoso; here he wrote dozens of works. For example, he composed “Toccata and Fugue in D Minor” for organ.

Personal life

Before moving to Weimar, in 1707, Bach married his cousin Maria Barbara. During their 13 years of marriage, they had seven children, three of whom died in infancy.

After 13 years of marriage, his wife died, and the composer married again 17 months later. This time Anna Magdalena Wilke became his wife.

She was a talented singer and subsequently sang in the choir led by her husband. They had 13 children.

Two sons from his first marriage - Wilhelm Friedemann and Carl Philipp Emmanuel - became famous composers, continuing the musical dynasty.

Creative path

Since 1717 he has worked for the Duke of Anhalt-Köthen as a bandmaster. Over the next 6 years, numerous suites were written. The Bradenburg Concertos also belong to this period. If we generally evaluate the direction of the composer’s creative activity, it is worth noting that during this period he wrote mainly secular works.

In 1723, Bach became a cantor (that is, organist and choir conductor), as well as a teacher of music and Latin at the Church of St. Thomas. For this reason he moves to Leipzig again. In the same year, the work “St. John’s Passion” was performed for the first time, thanks to which he received a high position.

The composer wrote both secular and sacred music. He performed classical sacred works in a new way. The Coffee Cantata, the Mass in B minor and many other works were composed.

If we briefly characterize the work of the musical virtuoso, it is impossible to do without mentioning Bach’s polyphony. This concept in music was known before him, but it was during the composer’s life that people began to talk about free-style polyphony.

In general, polyphony means polyphony. In music, two equal voices sound simultaneously, and not just melody and accompaniment. The musician’s skill is evidenced by the fact that his works are still used by student musicians to study.

Last years of life and death

During the last 5 years of his life, the virtuoso rapidly lost his sight. To continue composing, he had to dictate music.

There were also problems with public opinion. Contemporaries did not appreciate Bach's music and considered it outdated. This was due to the flourishing of classicism that began during that period.

In 1747, three years before his death, the cycle “Music of the Offering” was created. It was written after the composer visited the court of Frederick II, King of Prussia. This music was intended for him.

The last work of the outstanding musician, “The Art of Fugue,” consisted of 14 fugues and 4 canons. But he didn’t have time to finish it. His sons did this for him after his death.

Some interesting moments from the life and work of the composer, musician and virtuoso:

After studying the family history, 56 musicians were found among the virtuoso’s relatives.
The musician’s surname is translated from German as “stream”.
Having heard a piece once, the composer could repeat it without error, which he did repeatedly.
Throughout his life, the musician moved eight times.
Thanks to Bach, women were allowed to sing in church choirs. His second wife became the first chorus member.
He wrote more than 1000 works throughout his life, so he is rightfully considered the most “prolific” author.
In the last years of his life, the composer was almost blind, and eye surgeries did not help.
The composer's grave remained without a tombstone for a long time.
Until now, not all biographical facts are known, some of them are not confirmed by documents. Therefore, the study of his life continues.
In the musician’s homeland, two museums dedicated to him were opened. In 1907, a museum was opened in Eisenach, and in 1985 in Leipzig. By the way, the first museum houses a lifetime portrait of the musician, made in pastel, about which nothing was known for many years.

The most famous musical works of Bach

All works by him were combined into a single list - the BWV catalogue. Each essay is assigned a number from 1 to 1127.

The catalog is convenient in that all works are divided by type of work, and not by year of writing.

To count how many suites Bach wrote, just look at their numbering in the catalogue. For example, the French suites are assigned numbers from 812 to 817. This means that a total of 6 suites were written within this cycle. In total, you can count 21 suites and 15 parts of suites.

The most recognizable piece is the Scherzo in B minor from Suite for Flute and String Orchestra No. 2, called “The Joke.” This melody was often used for ringing on mobile devices, but despite this, unfortunately, not everyone will be able to name its author.

Indeed, the names of many of Bach’s works are not well-known, but their melodies will seem familiar to many. For example, “Brandenburg Concertos”, “Goldberg Variations”, “Toccata and Fugue in D minor”.

Alexander MAYKAPAR

Johann Sebastian Bach

1685 - 1750

Major milestones in life

I.S. Bach is a German composer and clavier player, that is, a performer on keyboard instruments (organ, harpsichord, clavichord).
Born in 1685 in Eisenach. The largest representative of the largest musical family. During his lifetime he was famous not so much as a composer, but as an organist and harpsichordist. The external circumstances of his life are much less varied than those of many of his contemporary colleagues, for example Handel.

The house in Eisenach where J.S. was born. Bach

Bach spent his childhood in Eisenach. The boy, who lost his parents early (Bach was orphaned by the age of ten), was taken into his family by his older brother Johann Christoph, who lived in Ohrdruf. In 1700, Bach moved to Lüneburg and entered the gymnasium there. By this time, he played the organ, clavier, violin, viola well, and performed the duties of an assistant cantor.
In 1702, Bach visited Hamburg several times to listen to the venerable J. Reincken. As a result, Reincken himself gives an enthusiastic review of the young Bach's organ playing. Next year, Bach graduates from the Luneburg gymnasium, and in the spring he accepts an invitation to serve in Weimar. He takes part in testing a new organ in Arnstadt and as a result is confirmed as an organist. In this capacity, in 1705 he traveled to Lubeck to listen to the performance of the famous organist Dietrich Buxtehude.
In 1707, Bach moved to Mühlhausen and became organist here at the Blasiuskirche (St. Blaise Church). In the same year he marries his cousin, also an orphan, Maria Barbara. Maria Barbara bore Bach seven children, of whom four survived. The two eldest sons - Wilhelm Friedemann and Carl Philipp Emanuel - later became major composers and went down in music history as the creators of their own musical style.
In 1708, Bach received the position of court organist, chamber musician, and from 1714 - court accompanist in Weimar. In 1717–1723 we find him court bandmaster at Köthen.

Interior of the castle church in Weimar, in which J.S. Bach performed his cantatas

In 1721, after the sudden death of Maria Barbara, Bach married the daughter of the court musician in Weissenfeld, Anna Magdalena Wilken. She also represents a musical dynasty and has a beautiful voice and good hearing. Helping her husband, Anna Magdalena rewrote many of his works. In this marriage, Bach has 13 children, but six of them survive. One of Bach's sons from this marriage, Johann Christian, became a famous musician. (Due to the large number of Bach composers in world musical culture, the de facto practice of calling all Bachs by name has become established; when it is simply called “Bach,” we understand that we are talking about Johann Sebastian.)

Courtyard of the Church of St. Thomas, where the school was located and I.S. lived. Bach

In 1723, Bach received his most important position, as later life showed, as cantor of the Thomaskirche (St. Thomas Church) and city music director in Leipzig. He moves here and stays here for the rest of his life. From here he made a number of trips, including in 1747 to Potsdam, where he played before King Frederick II, improvising on a theme given by him. Returning to Leipzig, Bach developed this theme in a series of complex polyphonic pieces, printed them and presented them to the king. This work is called “Musical Offering”.
Bach died in 1750.

Grave of I.S. Bach in the Church of St. Thomas

The scale of genius

Bach is one of the greatest representatives of world musical culture. He created in all musical genres that existed in his time, with the exception of opera, to which his oratorios are essentially close. In terms of musical style, his art represents the highest point of musical baroque. A distinctly national artist, Bach combined the traditions of the Protestant chorale with the traditions of the Italian and French schools of music.
The leading genre in Bach's vocal and instrumental work is the spiritual cantata. Bach created five annual cycles of cantatas, which differ in their belonging to the church calendar, in text sources (psalms, chorale stanzas, “free” poetry), in the role of the chorale, etc. Of the secular cantatas, the most famous are “Peasant” and “Coffee”. The dramatic principles developed in the cantata were implemented in the masses and the Passion. The “High” Mass in B minor, the “St. John Passion,” and the “Matthew Passion” became the culmination of the centuries-long history of these genres. Organ music occupies a central place in Bach's instrumental work.
Synthesizing the experience of organ improvisation inherited from his predecessors (D. Buxtehude, J. Pachelbel, G. Böhm, I.A. Reinken), various variational and polyphonic composition techniques and modern principles of concertoing, Bach rethought and updated the traditional genres of organ music - toccata , fantasy, passacaglia, chorale prelude. A virtuoso performer, one of the greatest experts of keyboard instruments of his time, Bach wrote a lot for the clavier. Among the keyboard works, the most important place is occupied by the “Well-Tempered Clavier” - the first experience in the history of music in the artistic application of the instrument developed at the turn of the 17th–18th centuries. tempered system. The greatest polyphonist, in the fugues "HTK" Bach created unsurpassed examples, a kind of school of contrapuntal mastery, which was continued and completed in the "Art of Fugue", on which Bach worked over the last ten years of his life. Bach's music for violin, cello, flute, oboe, instrumental ensemble, orchestra - sonatas, suites, partitas, concertos - marks a significant expansion of the expressiveness and technical capabilities of instruments, reveals a deep knowledge of instruments and universalism in their interpretation. The six Brandenburg Concertos for various instrumental compositions, which implemented the genre and compositional principles of the concerto grosso, were an important step on the path to the classical symphony.
During Bach's lifetime, a small part of his works was published. The true scale of Bach's genius, which had a strong influence on the subsequent development of European musical culture, began to be realized only half a century after his death. Among the first connoisseurs is the founder of Bach studies I.N. Forkel (who published “Essay on the Life and Work of Bach” in 1802), K.F. Zelter, whose work to preserve and promote Bach's legacy led to the performance of the St. Matthew Passion under the baton of F. Mendelssohn in 1829. This performance, which had historical significance, served as an impetus for the revival of Bach's work in the 19th and 20th centuries. In 1850, the Bach Society was formed in Leipzig. (On the fruits of the Society’s activities, see our article “Monument of World Musical Culture” - “Art” No. 18 (354), September 16–30, 2006, p. 3).

During his life, Bach wrote more than 1000 works. His work represents all the significant genres of that time, except opera; he summarized the achievements of musical art of the Baroque period. Bach is a master of polyphony. After Bach's death, his music went out of fashion, but in the 19th century, thanks to Mendelssohn, it was rediscovered. His work had a strong influence on the music of subsequent composers, including in the 20th century. Bach's pedagogical works are still used for their intended purpose.

Biography

Childhood

Johann Sebastian Bach was the sixth 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 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, having managed to get married again shortly before. 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. Johann Sebastian loved music very much and never missed an opportunity to practice it or study new works. The following story is known to illustrate Bach's passion for music. Johann Christoph kept a notebook in his closet with sheet music by composers famous at that time, but, despite Johann Sebastian’s requests, he did not let him read it. One day, young Bach managed to remove a notebook from his brother’s always locked closet, and for six months, on moonlit nights, he copied its contents for himself. When the work was already completed, the brother discovered a copy and took away the notes.

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. Johann Sebastian observed how the organ was cared for, and may have taken part in it himself.

At the age of 15, Bach moved to Lüneburg, where from 1700-1703 he studied at the singing school of St. Mikhail. 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 a cappella 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 and Bruns 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, Bach took over as organist of the church. He had to work only 3 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, including the famous Toccata and Fugue in D minor.

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. 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. Bach's first biographer, Forkel, writes that Johann Sebastian walked more than 400 km to listen to the outstanding composer, but today some researchers question this fact.

In 1706, Bach decides to change his job. He was offered a more profitable and high position as an organist in the Church of St. Vlasia 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. Three of the survivors - Wilhelm Friedemann, Johann Christian 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 count's 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 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 may have borrowed the idea of writing transcriptions from his employer, Duke Johann Ernst, who was a professional musician. In 1713, the 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 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. In Weimar, Bach wrote most of his fugues (the largest and most famous collection of Bach's fugues is the Well-Tempered Clavier). While serving in Weimar, Bach began work on the Organ Notebook, a collection of pieces 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. 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 organists, 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.” Leopold, Duke of Anhalt-Köthen, hired Bach as conductor. The Duke, himself a musician, appreciated Bach's talent, paid him well and gave him great freedom of action. However, the Duke was a Calvinist and did not encourage 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. The famous Brandenburg Concertos were also written during this period.

On July 7, 1720, while Bach was abroad with the Duke, tragedy struck: his wife Maria Barbara suddenly died, leaving four young children. The following year, Bach met Anna Magdalena Wilke, a young, highly gifted soprano who sang at the ducal court. They married on December 3, 1721. Despite the age difference - she was 17 years younger than Johann Sebastian - their marriage was apparently a happy one. They had 13 children.

Leipzig (1723-1750)

In 1723, his “Passion according to John” was performed in the Church of St. Thomas in Leipzig, and on June 1, Bach received the position of cantor of this church while simultaneously fulfilling 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" 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" and "Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland") are based on traditional church chants.

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 among 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 Collegium Musicum, a secular ensemble that had 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, 40s and 50s, were composed specifically for performance at Zimmermann's coffee house. Such works include, for example, the “Coffee Cantata” and the keyboard collection “Clavier-Übung”, as well as many concertos for cello and harpsichord.

During the same period, Bach wrote the Kyrie and Gloria parts of the famous Mass in B minor, later completing the remaining parts, the melodies of which were almost entirely borrowed from the composer’s best cantatas. 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, Johann Sebastian 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. 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 the tools and techniques for writing polyphonic works.

Bach's last work was a chorale prelude for organ, which he dictated to his son-in-law while practically on his deathbed. The title of the prelude is “Vor deinen Thron tret ich hiermit” (“Here I appear before Your throne”); This work often ends the performance of the unfinished “The Art of Fugue.”

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.

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, who wrote under the pseudonym Pikander. 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, which is only 50 kilometers 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 the Church of St. Thomas, 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; then the reburial took place.

Bach studies

The first descriptions of Bach's life were his obituary and a brief chronicle of his life presented by his widow Anna Magdalena. After Johann Sebatian's death, no attempts were made to publish his life story until, in 1802, his friend Forkel, based on his own memoirs, obituary and stories of Bach's sons and friends, published the first detailed biography. In the mid-19th century, interest in Bach's music was revived, and composers and researchers began work on collecting, studying and publishing all of his works. The next major work on Bach was the book by Philip Spitta, published in 1880. At the beginning of the 20th century, the French 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 they thought 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.

Creation

Bach wrote more than 1000 pieces of music. Today, each of the known works is assigned a BWV number (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 life, Bach was best known as a first-class organist, teacher and composer of organ music. He worked both in the traditional “free” genres of that time, such as prelude, fantasy, toccata, 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 by both the music of northern German composers (Georg Böhm, whom Bach met in Lüneburg, and Dietrich Buxtehude in Lübeck) and the music of southern composers: Bach copied the works of many French and Italian composers for himself in order to understand their musical language; later he even transcribed several Vivaldi violin concertos for organ. During the most fruitful period for organ music (1708-1714), Johann Sebastian not only wrote many pairs of preludes and fugues and toccatas and fugues, but also composed the unfinished Organ Book - a collection of 46 short choral preludes, which demonstrated various techniques and approaches to compose works on chorale themes. After leaving Weimar, Bach began to write less for organ; nevertheless, after Weimar many famous works were written (6 trio sonatas, the collection “Clavier-Übung” and 18 Leipzig chorales). Throughout his life, Bach not only composed music for the organ, but also consulted on the construction of instruments, testing and tuning new organs.

Other keyboard works

Bach also wrote a number of works for the harpsichord, many of which could also be performed on the clavichord. Many of these creations are encyclopedic collections demonstrating various techniques and methods for composing polyphonic works. Most of Bach's keyboard works published during his lifetime were contained in collections called "Clavier-Übung" ("clavier exercises").

* “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 play music in any key - primarily to the modern equal temperament system, although it is not known whether Bach used it.

* Three collections of suites: English Suites, French Suites and Partitas for Clavier. Each cycle contained 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. In the partitas, the standard scheme is expanded: in addition to the exquisite introductory parts, there are additional ones, and not only between the sarabande and the gigue.

* Goldberg Variations (circa 1741) - 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.

* Various pieces such as Overture in the French Style, BWV 831, Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue, BWV 903, or Italian Concerto, BWV 971.

Orchestral and chamber music

Bach wrote music for both individual instruments and ensembles. His works for solo instruments - 6 sonatas and 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's most famous works for orchestra 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. Six concertos are written in the genre of concerto grosso. Other extant works by Bach for orchestra include two violin concertos, a concerto for 2 violins in D minor, BWV 1043, and concertos for one, two, three and even four harpsichords. Researchers believe that these harpsichord concertos were merely transcriptions of older works by Johann Sebastian, now lost. In addition to concerts, Bach composed 4 orchestral suites.

Vocal works

* Cantatas. For a long period of his life, every Sunday Bach in the church of St. Thomas led the performance of the cantata, 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 only about 195 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. The most famous of Bach's spiritual cantatas are "Christ lag in Todesbanden" (number 4), "Ein" feste Burg" (number 80), "Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme" (number 140) and "Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben" (number 147). In addition, Bach composed a number of secular cantatas, usually dedicated to some event, for example, a wedding. Among Bach's most famous secular cantatas are two Wedding cantatas and the comic Coffee Cantata.

* Passions, or passions. Passion according to John (1724) and Passion according to Matthew (c. 1727) - 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 Passions are one of Bach's most ambitious vocal works. It is known that Bach wrote 4 or 5 passions, but only these two have survived completely to this day.

* Oratorios and Magnificats. 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 Magnificat are rather extensive and elaborate cantatas and have a smaller scope than the Christmas Oratorio or Passions. The Magnificat exists in two versions: the original (E-flat major, 1723) and the later and famous (D major, 1730).

* 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 the duration of the sound (about 2 hours). In addition to the Mass in B minor, 4 short two-movement Masses by Bach have reached us, as well as individual movements such as Sanctus and Kyrie.

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

Execution

Today, performers of Bach's music are divided into two camps: those who prefer authentic performances, 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 Brahms's time, 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. He met with Silberman and discussed with him the design of his new instrument, contributing to the creation of the modern piano. Bach's music for some instruments was often arranged for others, for example, Busoni arranged the organ toccata and fugue in D minor and some other works for piano.

Numerous “lite” and modernized 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. Among Russian contemporary performers, Fyodor Chistyakov tried to pay tribute to the great composer in his 1997 solo album “When Bach Wake Up.”

The fate of Bach's music

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, Beethoven and Chopin, knew and loved the work of Johann Sebastian. For example, when 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 the 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” (the word Bach in German means “stream”). Before concerts, Chopin locked himself in a room and played Bach's music. The works of Johann Sebastian influenced many composers. Some themes from Bach's works, for example, the theme of the Toccata and Fugue in D minor, were reused in the music of the 20th century.

A biography written in 1802 by Johann Nikolai Forkel, who knew Bach personally, spurred 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.” yourself." But the real revival of Bach's music began with the performance of the St. Matthew Passion in 1829 in Berlin, organized by Felix Mendelssohn. 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 continued to popularize Bach's music and the composer's growing fame. 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 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 respect for Bach by including the BACH motif (B-flat - A - C - B in Latin 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. Bach himself used the same theme, for example, in the XIV counterpoint from The Art of Fugue. Many composers took cues from his works or used themes from them. Examples are Beethoven's Variations on a Theme Diabelli, the prototype of which is the Goldberg Variations, Shostakovich's 24 Preludes and Fugues, written under the influence of The Well-Tempered Clavier, and Brahms's Cello Sonata in D major, the finale of which includes musical quotations from The Art of fugues." Bach's music, among the best creations of mankind, was recorded on the Voyager gold disc.

Bach monuments in Germany

* Monument in Leipzig, erected on April 23, 1843 by Hermann Knaur on the initiative of Mendelssohn and according to the drawings of Eduard Bendemann, Ernst Ritschel and Julius Gübner.

* Bronze statue on the Frauenplan in Eisenach, designed by Adolf von Donndorff, erected on September 28, 1884. At first it stood on the Market Square near the Church of St. George, on April 4, 1938, was moved to Frauenplan with a shortened pedestal.

* Bronze statue of Karl Seffner on the south side of St. Thomas in Leipzig - May 17, 1908.

* Bust by Fritz Behn in the Valhalla monument near Regensburg, 1916.

* Statue of Paul Birr at the entrance to the Church of St. George in Eisenach, installed on April 6, 1939.

* Monument to Bruno Eiermann in Weimar, first erected in 1950, then removed for two years and reopened in 1995 on Democracy Square.

* Relief by Robert Propf in Köthen, 1952.

* Wooden stele of Ed Garison on Johann Sebastian Bach Square in front of the Church of St. Vlasiya in Mühlhausen - August 17, 2001.

* Monument in Ansbach, designed by Jürgen Goertz, erected in July 2003.

Notes

1. Documents of the life and work of I.-S. Bach - genealogy of the Bach family

2. I. N. Forkel. About the life, art and works of I.-S. Bach, chapter II

3. Bach’s manuscripts were found in Germany, confirming his studies with Boehm - RIA Novosti, 08/31/2006

4. Documents of the life and work of I.-S. Bach - Bach Interrogation Protocol

5. A. Schweitzer. Johann Sebastian Bach - Chapter 7

6. I. N. Forkel. About the life, art and works of I.-S. Bach, chapter II

7. M. S. Druskin. Johann Sebastian Bach - page 27

9. Documents of the life and work of I.-S. Bach - entry in the church book, Dornheim

10. Documents of the life and work of I.-S. Bach - Organ Reconstruction Project

12. I. N. Forkel. About the life, art and works of I.-S. Bach, chapter II

14. M. S. Druskin. Johann Sebastian Bach - page 51

15. Documents of the life and work of I.-S. Bach - entry in the church book, Köthen

16. Documents of the life and work of I.-S. Bach - Minutes of the magistrate's meeting and other documents related to the move to Leipzig

17. Documents of the life and work of I.-S. Bach - Letter to J.-S. Bach to Erdman

18. A. Schweitzer. Johann Sebastian Bach - Chapter 8

19. Documents of the life and work of I.-S. Bach - Message from L. Mitzler about the Collegium Musicum concerts

20. Documents of the life and work of I.-S. Bach - Quellmaltz on Bach's operations

21. Documents of the life and work of I.-S. Bach - Inventory of Bach's estate

22. A. Schweitzer. Johann Sebastian Bach - Chapter 9

23. M. S. Druskin. Johann Sebastian Bach - page 8

24. A. Schweitzer. I.-S. Bach - chapter 14

26. http://www.bremen.de/web/owa/p_anz_presse_mitteilung?pi_mid=76241 (German)

27. http://www.bach-cantatas.com/Vocal/BWV244-Spering.htm (English)

28. http://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/spacecraft/music.html (English)

Johann Sebastian Bach, an outstanding German composer, one of the most influential composers in history, died on July 28, 1750 - exactly 9 years after the death of Antonio Vivaldi. Bach's creative baggage includes more than 1000 works, among which there are representatives of, perhaps, all genres, in addition to opera.

Biography of Johann Sebastian

Johann Sebastian Bach was born on March 31, 1685 in the small town of Eisenach. He was the sixth child in the family of the then famous violinist Johann Ambrose Bach. This was a musically gifted family with rich traditions. Among the composer's ancestors there were organists, flutists, violinists, trumpeters, and bandmasters. On his 5th birthday, his father gave Bach his first violin, which the boy very quickly learned to play.

In addition to his talented violin playing, the young Bach was also famous for his magnificent voice, which allowed him to sing in the church choir. However, it is difficult to call his childhood happy, since at the age of nine he lost his mother, and a year later, his father. Until 1700, he lived with his older brother, but when the latter’s own family grew quite large, Sebastian was forced to move out and settle in Lunerbrurg. There he studied at the church choir school.

Bach wanted to go to university after graduating from school, but was forced to postpone this idea because he needed to earn money for food. He got a job as an organist in the new church of the city of Arnstadt, but due to disagreements with the local environment and authorities, he soon left the city and at the beginning of 1707 moved to Mühlhausen, where he got a job as an organist in the church of St. Vlasiya.

Composer Bach

In 1708-1717, Bach lived in the city of Weimar, where he not only worked as a local organist, but also received the position of court musician for the Duke of Weimar. At the same time, Bach created many compositions for the organ in such genres as fugues, fantasies, preludes, and toccatas, which would later be considered the pinnacle of organ musical art.

After Weimar, Bach moved to Köthen, where he devoted a lot of time to writing music - mainly orchestral. He paid great attention to the clavier and was one of the first to compose concert works specifically for this instrument.

The last years of Bach's life

The last period of his life, from 1723 to 1750, Bach lived in Leipzig, where he served as “musical director” of all churches. His responsibilities included supervising the training and work of new musicians and singers, as well as assigning works that were allowed to be performed.

By the end of the 1740s, the composer's health had deteriorated significantly, most of all he was worried about the sharp deterioration of his vision. Bach underwent two operations to remove cataracts, but both were unsuccessful and ultimately led to complete blindness. True, this did not stop Bach, and he continued to write, dictating notes to his assistant.

Literally ten days before his death, the composer unexpectedly regained his sight, but within a few hours he was struck down. Despite the titanic efforts of doctors, the great composer died on July 28, 1750.

A huge number of people came to Bach's funeral. He was buried near the Church of St. Tom, where he served for 27 years. In 1894, the composer’s body was reburied due to the fact that a road was built at the place of his previous burial.

Johann Sebastian Bach was born on March 21, 1685, in Eisenach, a small provincial town in Thuringia, in the family of a poor city musician. At the age of ten, orphaned, I.S. Bach moved to Ohrdruf, to live with his older brother Johann Christoph, an organist, who taught his little brother, who entered the gymnasium, to play the organ and clavier.

At the age of 15, Bach moved to Lüneburg, where from 1700-1703 he studied at the St. Michael's vocal school. An excellent voice and mastery of playing the violin, organ, and harpsichord helped him enter the choir of “selected singers,” where he received a small salary. The extensive library of the Luneburg school contained many handwritten works by ancient German and Italian musicians, and Bach immersed himself in their study. 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. During this period of his life, Bach expanded his knowledge of the composers of the era, most notably Dietrich Buxtehude, whom he greatly respected.

In January 1703, after completing his studies, Bach received the position of court musician to the Weimar Duke Johann Ernst. But he did not work there for long. Not satisfied with his work and dependent position, he willingly accepted an invitation to the post of organist of the New Church in the city of Arnstadt and moved there in 1704.
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In 1707, after a three-year stay in Arnstadt, I.S. Bach moved to Mühlhausen and took the same position as a church musician. Four months later, on October 17, 1707, Johann Sebastian married his cousin Maria Barbara from Arnstadt. They subsequently had six children, three of whom died in childhood. Three of the survivors - Wilhelm Friedemann, Johann Christian and Carl Philipp Emmanuel - later became famous composers.

After working in Mühlhausen for about a year, Bach changed jobs again, this time receiving a position as court organist and concert organizer - a much higher position than his previous position - in Weimar, where he remained for about ten years. Here for the first time in his biography I.S. Bach had the opportunity to reveal his multifaceted talent in versatile performing music, to experience it in all directions: as an organist, a musician in an orchestral chapel, in which he had to play the violin and harpsichord, and, from 1714, as an assistant bandmaster.

After some time, I.S. Bach again began looking for more suitable work. 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.” 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.

In 1722 I.S. Bach completed work on the first volume of preludes and fugues of the Well-Tempered Clavier. Before that, in 1720, another, no less outstanding work for the same instrument appeared - *Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue* in D minor, which transfers the monumentality of forms and dramatic pathos of organ compositions into the realm of the clavier. The best works for other instruments also appear: six sonatas for solo violin, six famous Brandenburg Concertos for instrumental ensemble. All of these works are among the composer’s outstanding works, but they are far from exhausting what Bach wrote in the Köthen period.

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. The first six years of his life in Leipzig turned out to be very productive: Bach composed up to 5 annual cycles of cantatas. Bach was unable to overcome the stinginess and inertia of the Leipzig bosses. But the entire bureaucratic authorities took up arms against the “obstinate” cantor. “Cantor not only does nothing, but does not want to give an explanation this time.” They decide that “the cantor is incorrigible,” and that, as a punishment, his salary should be reduced and he should be transferred to the lower grades. The severity of Bach's situation was somewhat brightened up by his artistic successes. The long-won fame of an incomparable virtuoso on the organ and clavier brought him new triumphs, attracted admirers and friends, among whom were such outstanding people as the composer Gasse and his famous wife, the Italian singer Faustina Bordoni.

In March 1729, Johann Sebastian became the head of the Collegium Musicum, a secular ensemble that had existed since 1701, when it was founded by Bach's old friend Georg Philipp Telemann. Bach devoted himself enthusiastically to work, free from intrusive interference and constant control. He acts as a conductor and performer in public concerts held in various public places. The new form of musical activity also brought forward new creative tasks. It was necessary to create works in accordance with the tastes and needs of the urban audience. Bach wrote a huge variety of music for performances; orchestral, vocal. There is a lot of fiction, jokes and ingenuity in it.

In the last decade of his life, Bach's interest in social and musical activities noticeably decreased. In 1740 he resigned the leadership of the Collegium Musicum; did not take part in the new concert musical organization founded the following year, 1741.

During his life, Bach wrote more than 1000 works.