Popular works of Bach list. Bach's most famous work

Appendix List of the main works of the composer G. R. Terpilovsky Ballets1. Queen of the Fields (Wonderful). Libre. K. Esaulova. 1961.2. Shot in the forest (Forest fairy tale). Libre. V. Vorobyov and K. Esaulova. 1966.3. Shot (Forty-first). Libre. M. Gazieva. 1963.4. Ural. Libre. M. Gazieva.

List of the main sources used in the work on the brochure Archive of the Artillery Historical Museum of the Academy of Artillery Sciences (Leningrad): op 46 file 542; op. 48/1 d.d. 26, 29, 34, 37, 40, 53, 108. Central State Military Historical Archive (Moscow): f. 310 d.d. 764, 2863; f. 516

LIST OF MAIN COMPOSITIONS BY FRENZ LISTA For symphony orchestra: 12 symphonic poems: “What is heard on the mountain”, “Tasso”, “Preludes”, “Orpheus”, “Prometheus”, “Mazeppa”, “Festive sounds”, “Lament for heroes” , "Hungary", "Hamlet", "Battle of the Huns", "Ideals" (completion of the entire cycle

During his life, Bach wrote more than 1000 works. All significant genres of that time are represented in his work, except for opera; he summarized the achievements of the 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 has provided strong influence to the music of subsequent composers, including those in the 20th century. Bach's pedagogical works are still used for their intended purpose.

Biography

Childhood

Johann Sebastian Bach was the sixth child of the 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 the musicians, especially in Thuringia and Saxony. Bach's father lived and worked in Eisenach. At that time, the city had about 6,000 inhabitants. The work of Johann Ambrosius included organizing secular concerts and performing church music.

When Johann Sebastian was 9 years old, his mother died, and a year later, his father, having managed to marry again shortly before that. 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 was very fond of music and did not miss the opportunity to study it or study new works. The following story is known to illustrate Bach's passion for music. Johann Christoph kept a notebook with notes of famous composers of that time in his closet, but, despite the requests of Johann Sebastian, he did not let him get acquainted with it. Once, young Bach managed to extract a notebook from his brother’s always locked cabinet, and for six months on moonlit nights he copied its contents for himself. When the work was already completed, the brother found 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 possibly took part in it himself.

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

Arnstadt and Mühlhausen (1703-1708)

In January 1703, after finishing his studies, he received the position of court musician from the Weimar Duke Johann Ernst. It is not known exactly what his duties were, but, most likely, this position was not related to performing activities. For seven months of service in Weimar, the fame of him as a performer spread. Bach was invited to the post of superintendent of the organ in the church of St. Boniface in Arnstadt, located 180 km from Weimar. The Bach family had long-standing ties with 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 to a new system that expanded the possibilities of the composer and performer. During this period, Bach created many organ works, including the famous toccata and fugue in D minor.

Family ties and a music-loving employer could not prevent the tension between Johann Sebastian and the authorities that arose a few years later. Bach was dissatisfied with the level of training of the singers in the choir. In addition, in 1705-1706, Bach arbitrarily went to Lübeck for several months, where he got acquainted with the game of Buxtehude, which caused dissatisfaction with the authorities. In addition, the authorities charged Bach with "strange choral accompaniment" that embarrassed the community, and inability to manage the choir; The latter accusation appears to have been justified. The first biographer of Bach Forkel writes that Johann Sebastian walked more than 400 km on foot to listen to the outstanding composer, but today some researchers question this fact.

In 1706, Bach decides to change jobs. He was offered a more profitable and high position as organist in the church of St. Vlasia in Mühlhausen, a large city in the north of the country. IN next year Bach accepted this offer, taking the place of organist Johann Georg Ahle. His salary was increased compared to the previous one, and the level of the choristers was better. Four months later, on October 17, 1707, Johann Sebastian married his cousin Maria Barbara of Arnstadt. They subsequently had seven children, three of whom died in childhood. Three of the survivors - Wilhelm Friedemann, Johann Christian and Carl Philipp Emmanuel - went on to become well-known composers.

The city and church authorities of Mühlhausen were pleased with the new employee. They approved without hesitation his plan for the restoration of the church organ, which required great expense, and for the publication of the festive cantata "The Lord is my king", BWV 71 (it 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 at Mühlhausen for about a year, Bach changed jobs again, this time taking 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 high salaries and a well-chosen composition 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, the elder unmarried sister of Maria Barbara moved to the Bahamas, who helped them run the household until her death in 1729. In Weimar, Wilhelm Friedemann and Carl Philipp Emmanuel were born to Bach.

started in Weimar a long period compositions of clavier and orchestral works, in which Bach's talent reached its peak. During this period, Bach absorbs musical influences 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 schemes. Bach studied the works of Italian composers well, creating transcriptions of Vivaldi's concertos for organ or harpsichord. He could borrow the idea of ​​writing arrangements 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 notes, 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 whole 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 Wilhelm Friedemann's teaching. This collection consists of adaptations of Lutheran chants.

By the end of his service in Weimar, Bach was already a well-known organist. The episode with Marchand belongs to this time. In 1717, the famous French musician Louis Marchand arrived in Dresden. The 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 owner did not want to let him go, and on November 6, 1717, he even arrested him for constant requests for resignation - but already on December 2 he released him "with an expression of disgrace." Leopold, Duke of Anhalt-Köthen, hired Bach as Kapellmeister. The duke, himself a musician, appreciated Bach's talent, paid him well and provided him with great freedom of action. However, the duke was a Calvinist and did not welcome the use of sophisticated 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 written in the same period.

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

Leipzig (1723-1750)

In 1723, the performance of his "Passion according to John" took place in the church of St. Thomas in Leipzig, and on June 1, Bach received the position of cantor of this church while simultaneously acting as a school teacher at the church, replacing Johann Kuhnau in this post. Bach's duties included teaching singing and holding weekly concerts in Leipzig's two main churches, St. Thomas and St. Nicholas. The position of Johann Sebastian also provided for the teaching of Latin, but he was allowed to hire an assistant who did this work for him - therefore Petzold taught Latin for 50 thalers a year. Bach received the position of "music director" of all the churches in the city: his duties included selecting performers, overseeing their training and choosing music to perform. While working in Leipzig, the composer repeatedly entered into conflicts 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 in 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 below the organ; wind instruments and timpani were located on the side gallery to the right of the organ, strings were located to the left. 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 himself had to hire up to 20 musicians to perform orchestral works. The composer himself usually played the organ or harpsichord; if he directed the choir, then that place was filled by the staff organist or one of Bach's eldest sons.

Bach recruited sopranos and altos from among the students, and tenors and basses - not only from school, but 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 for these purposes. Part of his usual work in the church was the performance of motets by composers of the Venetian school, as well as some Germans, such as Schutz; while composing his motets, Bach was guided by the works of these composers.

Writing cantatas for most of the 1720s, Bach amassed an extensive repertoire for performance in Leipzig's main churches. 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 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 ever greater role in public musical life; they were often led by renowned professional musicians. For most of the year, the College of Music held two-hour concerts twice a week at Zimmermann's coffee house, located near the market square. The owner of the coffee shop provided the musicians with Big hall and bought some tools. Many of Bach's secular works dating back to the 1730s, 40s, and 50s were composed specifically for performance in Zimmermann's coffee shop. Such works include, for example, the Coffee Cantata and the clavier collection Clavier-Übung, as well as many concertos for cello and harpsichord.

In the same period, Bach wrote the Kyrie and Gloria parts of the famous Mass in B minor, later adding the remaining parts, the melodies of which are almost entirely borrowed from the composer's best cantatas. Bach soon secured an appointment as court composer; apparently, he had long sought this high post, which was a weighty argument in his disputes with the city authorities. Although the entire Mass was never performed in its entirety during the composer's lifetime, today it is considered by many to be one of the finest 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 compose something on it right there. Bach was a master of improvisation and immediately performed a three-voice 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 the theme dictated by Friedrich. This cycle was called "The Musical Offering".

Another major cycle, The Art of the Fugue, was not completed by Bach, despite the fact that it was written, most likely, long before his death. During his lifetime, he 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, almost on his deathbed. The name of the prelude is "Vor deinen Thron tret ich hiermit" ("Here I stand before Your throne"); this work often ends the performance of the unfinished Art of the Fugue.

Over time, Bach's vision became progressively worse. However, 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, arrived in Leipzig. Taylor operated on Bach twice, but both operations were unsuccessful, Bach remained blind. On July 18, he suddenly regained his sight for a short time, but in the evening he had a stroke. Bach died on 28 July; the cause of death may have been complications from surgery. His remaining fortune was estimated at more than 1000 thalers and included 5 harpsichords, 2 lute harpsichords, 3 violins, 3 violas, 2 cellos, viola da gamba, lute and 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. Especially 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, the godfather of Carl Philipp Emmanuel. Interestingly, Georg Friedrich Handel, Bach's age from Halle, just 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 brought together 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 the remains of Bach 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 life, set out by his widow Anna Magdalena. After the death of Johann Sebatian, no attempt was made to publish his biography until, in 1802, his friend Forkel, based on his own memoirs, an obituary and the stories of Bach's sons and friends, published the first detailed biography. In the middle of the 19th century, interest in Bach's music revived, composers and researchers began collecting, studying and publishing all of his works. The next major work on Bach was the book by Philippe 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 Bach's biography, 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 places came into conflict with traditional ideas. So, for example, it was established that Bach wrote some cantatas in 1724-1725 (it was previously 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 over 1000 pieces of music. Today, each of the famous works has been assigned a BWV number (short for Bach Werke Verzeichnis - a catalog of Bach's works). Bach wrote music for various instruments, both spiritual 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

Organ music in Germany by the time of Bach already had a long tradition that had developed thanks to Bach's predecessors - Pachelbel, Böhm, Buxtehude and other composers, each of whom influenced him in his 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 "free" genres traditional for that time, such as prelude, fantasy, toccata, and in more strict forms - chorale prelude and fugue. In his works for organ, Bach skillfully combined the features of different musical styles with which he became acquainted throughout his life. The composer was influenced both by 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 rewrote the works of many French and Italian composers for himself in order to understand their musical language; later he even transcribed some 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 and fugues and toccata and fugues, but also composed an unfinished Organ booklet - a collection of 46 short choral preludes, in which various techniques and approaches to composing works on choral themes. After leaving Weimar, Bach wrote less for the organ; however, many famous works were written after Weimar (6 trio sonatas, the Clavier-Übung collection and 18 Leipzig chorales). Throughout his life, Bach not only composed music for the organ, but also consulted in the construction of instruments, checking and tuning new organs.

Other clavier works

Bach also wrote a number of works for 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. Most of Bach's clavier 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 made it possible to equally easily play music in any key - primarily to the modern equal temperament scale, 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 the standard scheme (allemande, courante, sarabande, gigue and an optional part between the last two). In the English suites, the allemande is preceded by a prelude, and there is exactly one movement between the sarabande and the gigue; in the French suites, the number of optional movements increases, and there are no preludes. In partitas, the standard scheme is expanded: in addition to exquisite introductory parts, there are additional ones, and not only between the sarabande and the gigue.

* Goldberg Variations (circa 1741) - a melody with 30 variations. The cycle has a rather complex and unusual structure. Variations are built more on the tonal plane of the theme than on the melody itself.

* Varied pieces like "French Style Overture", BWV 831, "Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue", BWV 903, or "Italian Concerto", BWV 971.

Orchestral and chamber music

Bach wrote music both for individual instruments and for ensembles. His works for solo instruments - 6 sonatas and partitas for solo violin, BWV 1001-1006, 6 suites for cello, BWV 1007-1012, and a 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 lute solo. 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 "Art of the Fugue" and "Musical Offering".

Bach's most famous works for orchestra are the Brandenburg Concertos. They were so named because Bach, having sent them to Margrave Christian Ludwig of Brandenburg-Schwedt in 1721, was thinking of getting a job at his court; this attempt was unsuccessful. Six concertos were written in the concerto grosso genre. Other surviving 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 just transcriptions of older works by Johann Sebastian, now lost. In addition to concertos, Bach composed 4 orchestral suites.

Vocal works

* Cantatas. For a long period of his life every Sunday Bach in the church of St. Thomas supervised 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 spiritual cantatas, 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 a choir; some require a large orchestra to perform, and some require only a few instruments. However, the most commonly used model is as follows: the cantata opens with a solemn choral introduction, then alternate recitatives and arias for soloists or duets, and ends with a chorale. As a recitative, the same words from the Bible are usually taken that are read this week according to the Lutheran canons. The final chorale is often preceded by a chorale prelude in one of the middle parts, and is also sometimes included in the introductory part 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 also composed a number of secular cantatas, usually dedicated to some events, such as a wedding. Among the most famous secular cantatas of Bach are two Wedding Cantatas and a 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 to be performed at Vespers on Good Friday in the churches of St. Thomas and St. Nicholas. 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 completely survived to this day.

* Oratorios and Magnificats. The most famous is the Christmas Oratorio (1734) - a cycle of 6 cantatas to be performed during the Christmas period of the liturgical year. The Easter Oratorio (1734-1736) and the Magnificat are rather extensive and elaborate cantatas and are of 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 well-known (D major, 1730).

* Masses. The most famous and significant Mass of Bach is the Mass in B minor (completed in 1749), which is a complete cycle of the ordinary. This mass, like many other works of the composer, included revised early compositions. 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 come down to us, as well as separate movements, such as Sanctus and Kyrie.

The rest of Bach's 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 performance, that is, using the instruments and methods of the Bach 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 passions, do not involve large ensembles. In addition, in some of Bach's chamber works, instrumentation is not indicated at all, so very different versions of the performance of the same works are known today. In organ works, Bach almost never indicated the registration and change of manuals. Of the stringed keyboard instruments, Bach preferred the clavichord. He met Zilberman and discussed with him the structure of his new instrument, contributing to the creation of the modern piano. Bach's music for some instruments was often rearranged for others, for example, Busoni arranged the organ toccata and fugue in D minor and some other works for the piano.

Numerous "lightened" 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 a newly invented synthesizer. Bach's music was also processed by jazz musicians such as Jacques Loussier. Among Russian contemporary performers, Fyodor Chistyakov tried to pay tribute to the great composer in his solo album 1997 "When Bach wakes up."

The fate of Bach's music

In the last years of his life and after the death of Bach, his fame as a composer began to decline: his style was considered old-fashioned compared to the burgeoning classicism. He was more known and remembered as a performer, teacher and father of the Bachs Jr., primarily 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 St. Thomas Mozart heard one of the motets (BWV 225) and exclaimed: "There is much to learn here!" - after which, asking for notes, he studied them for a long time and rapturously. 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 "not the Stream, but the Sea is his name" (the word Bach in German means "stream"). Chopin locked himself in a room before concerts and played Bach's music. The works of Johann Sebastian have influenced many composers. Some themes from Bach's works, such as the theme of the toccata and fugue in D minor, were repeatedly used in the music of the 20th century.

A biography written in 1802 by Johann Nikolai Forkel, who knew Bach personally, spurred the general public's interest in his music. More and more people were discovering his music. For example, Goethe, who became acquainted with his works quite late in his life (in 1814 and 1815, some of his clavier and choral works were performed in the city of Bad Berka), in a letter of 1827 he compared the sensation of Bach's music with "eternal harmony in dialogue with the 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 re-learned to fully appreciate." In subsequent years, Mendelssohn's work continued to popularize Bach's music and the composer's fame grew. In 1850, the Bach Society was founded, the purpose of which was to collect, study and disseminate the works of Bach. In 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 spawned a new movement among performers: the idea of ​​authentic performance became widespread. Such performers, for example, use the harpsichord instead of the modern piano and smaller choirs than was customary in the 19th and early 20th centuries, wanting to accurately recreate the music of the Bach era.

Some composers expressed their reverence for Bach by including the BACH motif (B-flat - la - do - si in Latin notation) in the themes of their works. For example, Liszt wrote a prelude and fugue on 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 their cue from his works or used themes from them. Examples are Beethoven's Variations on a Theme of Diabelli, inspired by the Goldberg Variations, Shostakovich's 24 Preludes and Fugues inspired by the Well-Tempered Clavier, and Brahms' Cello Sonata in D Major, with musical quotations from Iskusstvo fugue." Bach's music is among the best creations of mankind recorded on Voyager's golden 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 Rietschel and Julius Hübner.

* Bronze statue on the Frauenplan in Eisenach, designed by Adolf von Donndorf, erected on September 28, 1884. At first she stood on the Market Square near the church of St. George, 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 Walhalla monument near Regensburg, 1916.

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

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

* Relief by Robert Propf in Köthen, 1952.

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

* Monument in Ansbach, designed by Jurgen Görtz, 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. Manuscripts of Bach were found in Germany, confirming his studies with Böhm - 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. On the life, art and works of J.-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 meeting of the magistrate 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 - Report by L. Mitzler about the Collegium Musicum concerts

20. Documents of the life and work of I.-S. Bach - Quellmalz about Bach's operations

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

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

en.wikipedia.org

During his life, Bach wrote more than 1000 works. All significant genres of that time are represented in his work, except for opera; he summarized the achievements of the musical art of the Baroque period. Bach is a master of polyphony. Contrary to popular myth, Bach was not forgotten after his death. True, this primarily concerned works for the clavier: his opuses were performed and published, used for didactic purposes. Bach's works for organ continued to sound in the church, harmonizations of chorales were in constant use. Bach's cantata-oratorio opuses were rarely heard (although the notes were carefully preserved in the Church of St. Thomas), as a rule, at the initiative of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, but already in 1800, Carl Friedrich Zelter organized the Singakademie Berlin Singing Academy, the main purpose of which was precisely the promotion of Bach's singing heritage. The performance of the 20-year-old Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy on March 11, 1829 in Berlin, acquired the performance of the Matthew Passion by Zelter's student, a great public outcry. Even the rehearsals conducted by Mendelssohn became an event - they were visited by many music lovers. The performance was such a success that the concerto was repeated on Bach's birthday. "Passion according to Matthew" was also heard in other cities - in Frankfurt, Dresden, Koenigsberg. Bach's work had a strong influence on the music of subsequent composers, including in the 21st century. Without exaggeration, Bach created the foundations of all music of modern and contemporary times - the history of music is reasonably divided into pre-Bach and post-Bach. Bach's pedagogical works are still used for their intended purpose.

Biography

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 were professional musicians. During this period, the Church, local authorities and the aristocracy supported the musicians, especially in Thuringia and Saxony. Bach's father lived and worked in Eisenach. At that time, the city had about 6,000 inhabitants. The work of Johann Ambrosius included organizing secular concerts and performing church music.

When Johann Sebastian was 9 years old, his mother died, and a year later, his father, having managed to marry again shortly before that. 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 was very fond of music and did not miss the opportunity to study it or study new works.

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, perhaps, he himself took part in this [source not specified 316 days].

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

Arnstadt and Mühlhausen (1703-1708)

In January 1703, after finishing his studies, he received the position of court musician from the Weimar Duke Johann Ernst. It is not known exactly what his duties were, but, most likely, this position was not related to performing activities. For seven months of service in Weimar, the fame of him as a performer spread. Bach was invited to the post of superintendent of the organ in the church of St. Boniface in Arnstadt, located 180 km from Weimar. The Bach family had long-standing ties with 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 to a new system that expanded the possibilities of the composer and performer. During this period, Bach created many organ works.

Family ties and a music-loving employer could not prevent the tension between Johann Sebastian and the authorities that arose a few years later. Bach was dissatisfied with the level of training of the singers in the choir. In addition, in 1705-1706, Bach arbitrarily went to Lübeck for several months, where he got acquainted with the game of Buxtehude, which caused dissatisfaction with the authorities. The first biographer of Bach Forkel writes that Johann Sebastian walked more than 40 km on foot to listen to the outstanding composer, but today some researchers question this fact.

In addition, the authorities charged Bach with "strange choral accompaniment" that embarrassed the community, and inability to manage the choir; The latter accusation appears to have been justified.

In 1706, Bach decides to change jobs. He was offered a more profitable and high position as organist at St. Blaise's Church 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 level of the choristers was better. Four months later, on October 17, 1707, Johann Sebastian married his cousin Maria Barbara of Arnstadt. They subsequently had seven children, three of whom died in childhood. Three of the survivors - Wilhelm Friedemann, Johann Christian and Carl Philipp Emmanuel - went on to become well-known composers.

Weimar (1708-1717)

After working at Mühlhausen for about a year, Bach changed jobs again, this time getting a position as 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 high salaries and a well-chosen composition 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, the elder unmarried sister of Maria Barbara moved to the Bahamas, who helped them run the household until her death in 1729. In Weimar, Wilhelm Friedemann and Carl Philipp Emmanuel were born to Bach. In 1704, Bach met the violinist von Westhoff, who had a great influence on Bach's work. Von Westhof's works inspired Bach to create his sonatas and partitas for solo violin.

In Weimar, a long period of composing clavier and orchestral works began, in which Bach's talent reached its peak. During this period, Bach absorbs musical influences 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 schemes. Bach studied the works of Italian composers well, creating transcriptions of Vivaldi's concertos for organ or harpsichord. He could borrow the idea of ​​writing arrangements from his employer, Duke Johann Ernst, a composer and musician. In 1713, the duke returned from a trip abroad and brought with him a large number of notes, 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 whole 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 Booklet, a collection of organ chorale preludes, possibly for the instruction of Wilhelm Friedemann. This collection consists of adaptations of Lutheran chants.

Köthen (1717-1723)

After some time, Bach again went in search of a more suitable job. The old owner did not want to let him go, and on November 6, 1717, he even arrested him for constant requests for resignation - but already on December 2 he released him "with an expression of disgrace." Leopold, Prince of Anhalt-Köthen, hired Bach as Kapellmeister. 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 sophisticated music in worship, so most of Bach's 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 written in the same period.

On July 7, 1720, while Bach was abroad with the prince, his wife Maria Barbara died suddenly, leaving four young children. The following year, Bach met Anna Magdalena Wilcke, a young and highly gifted soprano who sang at the ducal court. They married on December 3, 1721. Despite the difference in age - she was 17 years younger than Johann Sebastian - their marriage, apparently, was happy [source not specified 316 days]. They had 13 children.

Leipzig (1723-1750)

In 1723, the performance of his "Passion according to John" took place in the church of St. Thomas in Leipzig, and on June 1 Bach received the post of cantor of this church while simultaneously acting as a school teacher at the church, replacing Johann Kunau in this post. Bach's duties included teaching singing and holding weekly concerts in Leipzig's two main churches, St. Thomas and St. Nicholas. Johann Sebastian's position also provided for the teaching of Latin, but he was allowed to hire an assistant to do this work for him, so Petzold taught Latin for 50 thalers a year. Bach received the position of "music director" of all the churches in the city: his duties included selecting performers, overseeing their training and choosing music to perform. 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 in 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 chants.

Writing cantatas for most of the 1720s, Bach amassed an extensive repertoire for performance in Leipzig's main churches. 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 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 ever greater role in public musical life; they were often led by renowned professional musicians. For most of the year, the College of Music held two-hour concerts twice a week at Zimmermann'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 back to the 1730s, 1740s, and 1750s were written specifically for performance in Zimmermann's coffee shop. Such works include, for example, the Coffee Cantata and, possibly, clavier pieces from the Clavier-Ubung collections, as well as many concertos for cello and harpsichord.

In 1747, Bach visited the court of the Prussian king Frederick II, where the king offered him a musical theme and asked him to compose something on it right there. Bach was a master of improvisation and immediately performed a three-voice 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 the theme dictated by Friedrich. This cycle was called "The Musical Offering".

Another major cycle, The Art of the Fugue, was not completed by Bach, despite the fact that it was written, most likely, long before his death (according to modern research, before 1741). During his lifetime, he 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 mistakenly called 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 progressively worse. However, 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, arrived in Leipzig. Taylor operated on Bach twice, but both operations were unsuccessful, Bach remained blind. On July 18, he suddenly regained his sight for a short time, but in the evening he had a stroke. Bach died on 28 July; the cause of death may have been complications from surgery. His remaining fortune was estimated at more than 1000 thalers and included 5 harpsichords, 2 lute harpsichords, 3 violins, 3 violas, 2 cellos, viola da gamba, lute and 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. Especially fruitful was the collaboration with the poet Christian Friedrich Heinrici, 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, the godfather of Carl Philipp Emmanuel. Interestingly, Georg Friedrich Handel, Bach's age from Halle, just 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 brought together by John Taylor, who operated on both shortly before their deaths.

The composer was buried near the Church of St. John (German: Johanniskirche), one of the two churches where he served for 27 years. However, the grave was soon lost, and only in 1894 the remains of Bach were accidentally found during construction work to expand the church, where they were reburied in 1900. After the destruction of this church during the Second World War, the ashes were transferred on July 28, 1949 to the Church of St. Thomas. In 1950, which was called the year of J.S. Bach, a bronze tombstone was erected 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 middle of the 19th century, the interest of the general public in Bach's music increased, composers and researchers began to collect, study and publish all of his works. Honored propagandist of Bach's works - Robert Franz, published several books about the composer's work. The next major work on Bach was the book by Philippe 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 Bach's biography, 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 places came into conflict with traditional ideas. So, for example, it was established that Bach wrote some cantatas in 1724-1725 (it was previously believed that this happened in the 1740s), unknown works were found, and some previously attributed to Bach were 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 hoax of the 20th century, "Chronicle of the life of Johann Sebastian Bach, compiled by his widow Anna Magdalena Bach", written by the English writer Esther Meynel on behalf of the composer's widow.

Creation

Bach wrote over 1000 pieces of music. Today, each of the famous works has been assigned a BWV number (short for Bach Werke Verzeichnis - a catalog of Bach's works). Bach wrote music for various instruments, both spiritual and secular. Some of Bach's works are adaptations of works by other composers, and some are revised versions of their own works.

Other clavier works

Bach also wrote a number of works for 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. Most of Bach's clavier works published during his lifetime were contained in collections called "Clavier-Ubung" ("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 easy to play music in any key - first of all, to the modern equal temperament system.
* 15 two-voice and 15 three-voice inventions - small works, arranged in order of increasing number of characters in the key. They were intended (and are used to this day) for learning to play the keyboard instruments.
* Three collections of suites: English suites, French suites and Partitas for clavier. Each cycle contained 6 suites built according to the standard scheme (allemande, courante, sarabande, gigue and an optional part between the last two). In the English suites, the allemande is preceded by a prelude, and there is exactly one movement between the sarabande and the gigue; in the French suites, the number of optional movements increases, and there are no preludes. In partitas, the standard scheme is expanded: in addition to exquisite introductory parts, there are additional ones, and not only between the sarabande and the gigue.
* Goldberg Variations (circa 1741) - a melody with 30 variations. The cycle has a rather complex and unusual structure. Variations are built more on the tonal plane of the theme than on the melody itself.
* Varied pieces like "French Style Overture", BWV 831, "Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue", BWV 903, or "Italian Concerto", BWV 971.

Orchestral and chamber music

Bach wrote music both for individual instruments and for ensembles. His works for solo instruments - 6 sonatas and partitas for solo violin, BWV 1001-1006, 6 suites for cello, BWV 1007-1012, and a 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 lute solo. 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 "Art of the Fugue" and "Musical Offering".

Bach's most famous works for orchestra are the Brandenburg Concertos. They were so named because Bach, having sent them to Margrave Christian Ludwig of Brandenburg-Schwedt in 1721, was thinking of getting a job at his court; this attempt was unsuccessful. Six concertos were written in the concerto grosso genre. Other surviving 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 just transcriptions of older works by Johann Sebastian, now lost [source not specified 649 days]. In addition to concertos, Bach composed 4 orchestral suites.

Among the chamber works, the second partita for violin should be especially highlighted, in particular last part- chaconne. [source not specified 316 days]

Vocal works

* Cantatas. For a long period of his life, every Sunday in the church of St. Thomas, Bach led the performance of a 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 200 have survived to this day (the last one is in the form of a single fragment). Bach's cantatas vary greatly in form and instrumentation. Some of them are written for one voice, some for a choir; some require a large orchestra to perform, and some require only a few instruments. However, the most commonly used model is as follows: the cantata opens with a solemn choral introduction, then alternate recitatives and arias for soloists or duets, and ends with a chorale. As a recitative, the same words from the Bible are usually taken that are read this week according to the Lutheran canons. The final chorale is often preceded by a chorale prelude in one of the middle parts, and is also sometimes included in the introductory part 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 also composed a number of secular cantatas, usually timed to coincide with some event, such as a wedding. Among Bach's most famous secular cantatas are two Wedding Cantatas and a humorous 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 to be performed at Vespers on Good Friday in the churches of St. Thomas and St. Nicholas. 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 completely survived to this day.
* Oratorios and Magnificats. The most famous is the Christmas Oratorio (1734) - a cycle of 6 cantatas to be performed during the Christmas period of the liturgical year. The Easter Oratorio (1734-1736) and the Magnificat are rather extensive and elaborate cantatas and are of 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 well-known (D major, 1730).
* Masses. The most famous and significant Mass of Bach is the Mass in B minor (completed in 1749), which is a complete cycle of the ordinary. This mass, like many other works of the composer, included revised early compositions. 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 inconsistency with the Lutheran canon (it 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, 4 short two-movement Masses by Bach (Kyrie and Gloria) have come down to us, as well as separate parts, such as Sanctus and Kyrie.

The rest of Bach's 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 performance (or "historically oriented performance"), that is, using the instruments and methods of the Bach 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 passions, do not involve large ensembles. In addition, in some of Bach's chamber works, instrumentation is not indicated at all, so very different versions of the performance of the same works are known today. In organ works, Bach almost never indicated the registration and change of manuals. Of the stringed keyboard instruments, Bach preferred the clavichord. He met Zilberman and discussed with him the structure of his new instrument, contributing to the creation of the modern piano. Bach's music for some instruments was often rearranged for others, for example, Busoni arranged the organ toccata and fugue in D minor and some other works for the piano.

Numerous "lightened" 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 a newly invented synthesizer. Bach's music was also processed by jazz musicians such as Jacques Loussier. Joel Spiegelman handled the New Age Goldberg Variations. Among Russian contemporary performers, Fyodor Chistyakov tried to pay tribute to the great composer in his 1997 solo album When Bach Wakes Up.

The fate of Bach's music

In the last years of his life and after the death of Bach, his fame as a composer began to decline: his style was considered old-fashioned compared to the burgeoning classicism. He was more known and remembered as a performer, teacher and father of the Bachs Jr., primarily 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. In Russia at the beginning of the 19th century, Field's student Maria Shimanovskaya and Alexander Griboedov stand out as connoisseurs and performers of Bach's music. For example, when visiting the St. Thomas School, Mozart heard one of the motets (BWV 225) and exclaimed: “There is much to learn here!” - after which, asking for notes, he studied them for a long time and rapturously. 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 "not the Stream, but the Sea is his name" (the word Bach in German means "stream"). The works of Johann Sebastian have influenced many composers. Some themes from Bach's works, such as the theme of the toccata and fugue in D minor, were repeatedly used in the music of the 20th century.

A biography written in 1802 by Johann Nikolaus Forkel spurred the general public's interest in his music. More and more people were discovering his music. For example, Goethe, who became acquainted with his works quite late in his life (in 1814 and 1815, some of his clavier and choral works were performed in the city of Bad Berka), in a letter of 1827 he compared the feeling of Bach's music with "eternal harmony in dialogue with herself." 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 fame grew. In 1850, the Bach Society was founded, the purpose of which was to collect, study and disseminate the works of Bach. In 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 spawned a new movement among performers: the idea of ​​authentic performance became widespread. Such performers, for example, use the harpsichord instead of the modern piano and smaller choirs than was customary in the 19th and early 20th centuries, wanting to accurately recreate the music of the Bach era.

Some composers expressed their reverence for Bach by including the BACH motif (B-flat - la - do - si in Latin notation) in the themes of their works. For example, Liszt wrote a prelude and fugue on 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 their cue from his works or used themes from them. Examples are Beethoven's Variations on a Theme of Diabelli, inspired by the Goldberg Variations, Shostakovich's 24 Preludes and Fugues inspired by the Well-Tempered Clavier, and Brahms' Cello Sonata in D Major, with musical quotations from Iskusstvo fugue." The chorale prelude "Ich ruf' zu Dir, Herr Jesu Christ" performed by Garry Grodberg is featured in the film Solaris (1972). Bach's music is among the best creations of mankind recorded on the golden disc of Voyager.

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 Rietschel and Julius Hübner.
* Bronze statue on the Frauenplan in Eisenach, designed by Adolf von Donndorf, erected on September 28, 1884. First stood on the Market Square near the Church of St. George, April 4, 1938 was moved to Frauenplan with a shortened pedestal.
* Monument to Heinrich Pohlmann on Bach Square in Köthen, erected on March 21, 1885.
* Bronze statue of Karl Seffner from the south side of St. Thomas Church in Leipzig - May 17, 1908.
* Bust by Fritz Behn in the Walhalla monument near Regensburg, 1916.
* Statue of Paul Birr at the entrance to the Church of St. George in Eisenach, erected on April 6, 1939.
* The monument to Bruno Eiermann in Weimar, first installed in 1950, then removed for two years and reopened in 1995 on Democracy Square.
* Relief by Robert Propf in Köthen, 1952.
* Monument to Bernd Goebel near the market of Arnstadt, erected on March 21, 1985.
* Wooden stele by Ed Harrison on Johann Sebastian Bach Square in front of St. Blaise's Church in Mühlhausen - 17 August 2001.
* Monument in Ansbach, designed by Jurgen Görtz, erected in July 2003.

Literature

* Documents of the life and work of Johann Sebastian Bach (Collection, translated from German, compiled by Hans Joachim Schulze). M.: Music, 1980. (Book at www.geocities.com (web archive))
* I. N. Forkel. About the life, art and works of Johann Sebastian Bach. Moscow: Music, 1987. (Book on early-music.narod.ru, Book in djvu format on www.libclassicmusic.ru)
* F. Wolfrum. Johann Sebastian Bach. M.: 1912.
* A. Schweitzer. Johann Sebastian Bach. M.: Music, 1965 (with cuts; book on ldn-knigi.lib.ru, book in djvu format); M.: Classics-XXI, 2002.
* M. S. Druskin. Johann Sebastian Bach. M.: Music, 1982. (Book in djvu format)
* M. S. Druskin. Passions and Masses by Johann Sebastian Bach. M.: Music, 1976.
* A. Milka, G. Shabalina. Entertaining Bahian. Issues 1, 2. St. Petersburg: Composer, 2001.
* S. A. Morozov. Bach. (Biography of J. S. Bach in the ZhZL series), M .: Young Guard, 1975. (djvu book, Book on www.lib.ru)
* M. A. Saponov. Bach's masterpieces in Russian. Moscow: Classics-XXI, 2005. ISBN 5-89817-091-X
*Ph. Spitta. Johann Sebastian Bach (two vols.). Leipzig: 1880. (German)
* K. Wolff. Johann Sebastian Bach: the learned musician (New York: Norton, 2000) ISBN 0-393-04825-X (hbk.); (New York: Norton, 2001) ISBN 0-393-32256-4 (pbk.)

Notes

* 1. A. Schweitzer. Johann Sebastian Bach - chapter 1. The origins of Bach's art
* 2. S. A. Morozov. Bach. (Biography of J. S. Bach in the ZhZL series), M .: Young Guard, 1975. (Book on www.lib.ru)
* 3. Eisenach 1685-1695, J. S. Bach Archive and Bibliography
* 4. Documents of the life and work of J.S. Bach - the genealogy of the Bach family (web archive)
* 5. Manuscripts of Bach were found in Germany, confirming his studies with Böhm - RIA Novosti, 08/31/2006
* 6. Documents of the life and work of J.S. Bach - Protocol of the interrogation of Bach (web archive)
* 7. 1 2 I. N. Forkel. On the Life, Art and Works of J. S. Bach, Chapter II
* 8. M. S. Druskin. Johann Sebastian Bach - page 27
* 9. A. Schweitzer. Johann Sebastian Bach - chapter 7
* 10. Documents of the life and work of J.S. Bach - Entry in the file, Arnstadt, June 29, 1707 (web archive)
* 11. Documents of the life and work of J.S. Bach - entry in the church book, Dornheim (web archive)
* 12. Documents of the life and work of J.S. Bach - Organ Reconstruction Project (web archive)
* 13. Documents of the life and work of J.S. Bach - Entry in the file, Mühlhausen, June 26, 1708 (web archive)
* 14. Yu. V. Keldysh. Music Encyclopedia. Volume 1. - Moscow: Soviet Encyclopedia, 1973. - S. 761. - 1070 p.
* 15. Documents of the life and work of J.S. Bach - Entry in the file, Weimar, December 2, 1717 (web archive)
* 16. M. S. Druskin. Johann Sebastian Bach - page 51
* 17. Documents of the life and work of J.S. Bach - entry in the church book, Köthen (web archive)
* 18. Documents of the life and work of J.S. Bach - Minutes of the meeting of the magistrate and other documents related to the move to Leipzig (web archive)
* 19. Documents of the life and work of J. S. Bach - Letter from J. S. Bach to Erdman (web archive)
* 20. A. Schweitzer. Johann Sebastian Bach - chapter 8
* 21. Documents of the life and work of J.S. Bach - Report by L. Mitzler about the concerts of the Collegium Musicum (web archive)
* 22. Peter Williams. The Organ Music of J. S. Bach, p. 382-386.
* 23. Russell Stinson. J. S. Bach's Great Eighteen Organ Chorales, p. 34-38.
* 24. Documents of the life and work of J. S. Bach - Quellmalz about Bach's operations (web archive)
* 25. Documents of the life and work of J.S. Bach - Inventory of Bach's legacy (web archive)
* 26. A. Schweitzer. Johann Sebastian Bach - chapter 9
* 27. City of music - Johann Sebastian Bach, Leipzig Tourist Office
* 28. Leipzig Church of St. Thomas (Thomaskirche)
* 29. M. S. Druskin. Johann Sebastian Bach - page 8
* 30. A. Schweitzer. J. S. Bach - chapter 14
* 31. Documents of the life and work of J. S. Bach - Rokhlits about this event, November 21, 1798 (web archive)
* 32. Pressemitteilungen (German)
* 33. Matthaus-Passion BWV 244 - conducted by Christoph Spering
* 34. Solaris, dir. Andrei Tarkovsky. Mosfilm, 1972
* 35. Voyager - Music From Earth (English)

Biography

Childhood and youth.

Weimar (1685–1717).

Johann Sebastian Bach was born March 21, 1685 in Eisenach, a small Thuringian town in Germany, where his father Johann Ambrosius served as the town musician and his uncle Johann Christoph as organist. The boy began to study music early. Apparently, his father taught him to play the violin, his uncle - the organ, and thanks to a good soprano, he was accepted into the church choir, which performed motets and cantatas. At the age of 8, the boy entered the church school, where he made great strides.

A happy childhood ended for him at the age of nine, when he lost his mother, and a year later, his father. The orphan was brought up in his modest home by his elder brother, an organist in nearby Ohrdruf; there the boy went to school again and continued his music lessons with his brother. Johann Sebastian spent 5 years in Ohrdruf.

When he was fifteen, on the recommendation of a school teacher, he was given the opportunity to continue his education at the school at the church of St. Michael in Lüneburg in northern Germany. To get there, he had to walk three hundred kilometers. There he lived on full board, received a small scholarship, studied and sang in the school's choir, which enjoyed a high reputation (the so-called morning choir, Mettenchor). This was a very important stage in the education of Johann Sebastian. Here he got acquainted with the best examples of choral literature, struck up a relationship with the famous master of organ art Georg Böhm (his influence is obvious in Bach's early organ compositions), got an idea of ​​\u200b\u200bFrench music, which he had the opportunity to hear at the court of neighboring Celle, where French culture was held in high esteem ; in addition, he often traveled to Hamburg to listen to the virtuoso playing of Johann Adam Reinken, the most important representative of the North German organ school.

In 1702, at the age of 17, Bach returned to Thuringia and, after serving briefly as a "footman and violinist" at the Weimar court, received a position as organist of the New Church in Arnstadt, the city where Bach served both before and after him, until 1739. Thanks to a brilliantly passed test performance, he was immediately assigned a salary that far exceeded that paid to his relatives. He remained in Arnstadt until 1707, leaving the city in 1705 to attend the famous "evening concerts" held in Lübeck, in the north of the country, by the brilliant organist and composer Dietrich Buxtehude. Obviously, Lübeck was so interesting that Bach spent four months there instead of the four weeks he asked for as a vacation. The ensuing troubles in the service, as well as dissatisfaction with the weak and untrained Arnstadt church choir, which he was obliged to lead, forced Bach to look for a new place.

In 1707 he accepted an invitation to the post of organist in the famous church of St. Blaise in Thuringian Mühlhausen. Back in Arnstadt, the 23-year-old Bach married his cousin Maria Barbara, an orphan daughter of the organist Johann Michael Bach of Geren. In Mühlhausen, Bach quickly gained fame as an author of cantatas (one of them was even printed at the expense of the city) and as a specialist in the repair and reconstruction of organs. But a year later he left Mühlhausen and moved to a more attractive place at the ducal court in Weimar: there he served as an organist, and from 1714 as a bandmaster. Here, his artistic development was influenced by his acquaintance with the works of outstanding Italian masters, especially Antonio Vivaldi, whose orchestral concertos Bach translated for keyboard instruments: such work helped him master the art of expressive melody, improve harmonic writing, and develop a sense of form.

In Weimar, Bach reached the pinnacle of excellence as a virtuoso organist and composer, and thanks to numerous trips to Germany, his fame spread far beyond the borders of the Duchy of Weimar. His reputation was furthered by the outcome of a competition organized in Dresden with the French organist Louis Marchand. Contemporaries say that Marchand did not dare to speak to the public, who were looking forward to the competition, and hastily left the city, recognizing the superiority of the opponent. In 1717 Bach became Kapellmeister of the Duke of Anhalt-Köthen, who offered him more honorable and favorable conditions. The former owner at first did not want to let him go and even put him under arrest for "too stubborn requests for dismissal", but then he nevertheless allowed Bach to leave Weimar.

Köthen, 1717–1723.

During the 6 years spent at the Calvinist Köthen court, Bach, as a devout Lutheran, was not obliged to write church music: he had to compose for court music. Therefore, the composer focused on instrumental genres: in the Köthen period, such masterpieces as the Well-Tempered Clavier (1st volume), sonatas and suites for violin and cello solo, as well as six Brandenburg concertos (dedicated to the Margrave of Brandenburg) appeared. The Köthen prince, himself an excellent musician, highly valued his bandmaster, and the time spent in this city is one of the happiest periods in Bach's life. But in June 1720, when the composer accompanied the prince on a trip, Maria Barbara died suddenly. The following December, the 36-year-old widower married 21-year-old Anna Magdalena Wilken, a singer who, like Bach himself, came from the famous musical dynasty . Anna Magdalena became an excellent assistant to her husband; many of his scores were transcribed by her hand. She gave birth to Bach 13 children, of which six survived to adulthood (in total, Johann Sebastian had 20 children in two marriages, ten of them died in infancy). In 1722 a profitable vacancy for cantor opened up at the famous St. Thomas in Leipzig. Bach, who again wanted to return to church genres, filed a corresponding petition. After a competition in which two more candidates participated, he became a Leipzig cantor. This happened in April 1723. Leipzig, 1723-1750. Bach's duties as cantor were of two kinds. He was the "music director", i.e. was responsible for the musical part of the services in all Leipzig Protestant churches, including St. Thomas (Thomas Church) and St. Nicholas, where quite complex works were performed. In addition to this, he became a teacher at a very respectable school at the Thomaskirche (founded in 1212), where he was supposed to teach boys the basics of musical art and prepare them for participation in church services. Bach diligently performed the duties of "music director"; as for teaching, it rather bothered the composer, deeply immersed in the world of his own creativity. Most of the sacred music that sounded at that time in Leipzig belonged to his pen: such masterpieces as the Passion according to John, the Mass in B minor, the Christmas Oratorio were created here. Bach's attitude to official affairs caused discontent among the city fathers; in turn, the composer accused the "strange and insufficiently devoted to music authorities" of creating an atmosphere of persecution and envy. An acute conflict with the headmaster increased tension, and after 1740 Bach began to neglect his official duties - he began to write more instrumental music than vocal music, tried to print a number of compositions. The triumph of the last decade of the composer's life was a trip to the Prussian King Frederick II in Berlin, which Bach made in 1747: one of the sons of Johann Sebastian, Philip Emanuel, served at the court of the king, a passionate lover of music. The Leipzig cantor played the excellent royal harpsichords and demonstrated to admiring listeners his unsurpassed skill as an improviser: without any preparation, he improvised a fugue on a theme given by the king, and on his return to Leipzig used the same theme as the basis for a grandiose polyphonic cycle in a strict style and printed this work titled Musical Offering (Musikalisches Opfer) with a dedication to Frederick II of Prussia. Soon, Bach's vision, which he had been complaining about for a long time, began to deteriorate rapidly. Almost blind, he decided to undergo an operation by a well-known English ophthalmologist at that time. Two operations carried out by a charlatan did not bring relief to Bach, and the medicines that he had to take completely ruined his health. On July 18, 1750, his sight suddenly returned, but only a few hours later he had a stroke. On July 28, 1750, Bach died.

WORKS

In the work of Bach, all the main genres of the late Baroque era are represented with the exception of opera. His legacy includes compositions for soloists and choir with instruments, organ compositions, clavier and orchestral music. His powerful creative imagination brought to life an extraordinary wealth of forms: for example, in numerous Bach cantatas it is impossible to find two fugues of the same structure. Nevertheless, there is a structural principle very characteristic of Bach: it is a symmetrical concentric form. Continuing the centuries-old tradition, Bach uses polyphony as the main expressive means, but at the same time, the most complex contrapuntal constructions are based on a clear harmonic basis - this was undoubtedly the trend of a new era. In general, Bach's "horizontal" (polyphonic) and "vertical" (harmonic) beginnings are balanced and form a magnificent unity.

Cantatas.

Most of Bach's vocal and instrumental music consists of spiritual cantatas: he created five cycles of such cantatas for every Sunday and for the holidays of the church year. About two hundred of these works have come down to us. The early cantatas (before 1712) were written in the style of Bach's predecessors such as Johann Pachelbel and Dietrich Buxtehude. The texts are taken from the Bible or from Lutheran church hymns - chorales; the composition consists of several relatively short sections, usually contrasting in melody, tonality, tempo, and performing composition. A prime example Bach's early cantata style can be served by the beautiful Tragic Cantata (Actus Tragicus) No. 106 (The Time of the Lord - best time, Gottes Zeit ist die allerbeste Zeit). After 1712, Bach turns to another form of spiritual cantata, which was introduced into Lutheran life by the pastor E. Neumeister: it does not use quotations from Scripture and Protestant hymns, but paraphrases of biblical fragments or chorales. In this type of cantata, sections are more clearly separated from one another, and solo recitatives are introduced between them, accompanied by an organ and a general bass. Sometimes such cantatas are two-part: during the service, a sermon was delivered between the parts. Most of Bach's cantatas belong to this type, including No. 65 All of them will come from Sava (Sie werden aus Saba alle kommen), on the day of the Archangel Michael No. 19 And there was a battle in heaven (Es erhub sich ein Streit), on the feast of the Reformation No. 80 Strong stronghold our God (Ein "feste Burg), No. 140 Rise from sleep (Wachet auf). A special case is cantata No. 4 Christ lay in chains of death (Christ lag in Todesbanden): it uses 7 stanzas of Martin Luther's chorale of the same name, moreover, in each stanza, the choral theme is processed in its own way, and in the final it sounds in simple harmonization.In most cantatas, solo and choral sections alternate, replacing each other, but Bach's heritage also contains entirely solo cantatas - for example, a touching cantata for bass and orchestra No. 82 I've had enough (Ich habe genug) or brilliant cantata for soprano and orchestra No. 51 Let every breath praise the Lord (Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen).

Several secular Bach cantatas have also survived: they were composed on the occasion of birthdays, name days, wedding ceremonies of dignitaries and other solemn occasions. The comic Coffee Cantata (Schweigt stille, plaudert nicht) No. 211 is known, in the text of which the Germans' obsession with an overseas drink is ridiculed. In this work, as in the Peasant Cantata No. 217, Bach's style approaches that of the comic opera of his era.

Motets.

6 Bach motets on German texts have come down to us. They enjoyed particular fame and for a long period after the death of the composer were the only of his vocal-instrumental compositions that were still performed. Like the cantata, the motet uses biblical and choral texts, but does not feature arias or duets; orchestral accompaniment is optional (if available, it simply duplicates the choral parts). Among the compositions of this genre, one can mention the motets Jesus is my joy (Jesu meine Freude) and Sing to the Lord (Singet dem Herrn). Magnificat and Christmas Oratorio. Among the major vocal and instrumental works by Bach, two Christmas cycles attract special attention. The Magnificat for a five-voice choir, soloists and orchestra was written in 1723, the second edition - in 1730. The entire text, except for the final Gloria, is the Song of the Mother of God, My soul magnifies the Lord (Luke 1:46–55) in Latin translation (Vulgate). The Magnificat is one of Bach's most complete compositions: its laconic parts are clearly grouped into three sections, each of which begins with an aria and ends with an ensemble; powerful choral parts - Magnificat and Gloria serve as a frame. Despite the brevity of the parts, each has its own emotional aspect. The Christmas Oratorio (Weihnachtsoratorium), which appeared in 1734, consists of 6 cantatas intended for performance on Christmas Eve, two days of Christmas, January 1, the following Sunday and the feast of the Epiphany. The texts are taken from the gospels (Luke, Matthew) and Protestant hymns. The narrator - the Evangelist (tenor) - recites the gospel narrative in recitatives, while the replicas of the characters in the Christmas story are given to soloists or choral groups. The narrative is interrupted by lyrical episodes - arias and chorales, which should serve as an instruction for the flock. 11 of the 64 numbers of the oratorio were originally composed by Bach for secular cantatas, but then they were excellently adapted to spiritual texts.

Passions.

Of the 5 cycles of passions known from Bach's biography, only two have come down to us: the Passion for John (Johannespassion), on which the composer began working in 1723, and the Passion for Matthew (Matthuspassion), completed in 1729. (Passion for Luke, published in the Complete Works, apparently belong to a different author.) Each of the passions consists of two parts: one sounds before the sermon, the other after it. Each cycle has a storyteller - an Evangelist; parts of specific participants in the drama, including Christ, are performed by solo singers; the chorus depicts the reaction of the crowd to what is happening, and the inserted recitatives, arias and chorales depict the response of the community to the unfolding drama. However, the Passion according to John and the Passion according to Matthew differ markedly from each other. In the first cycle, the image of a raging crowd is more clearly given, it is opposed by the Savior, from whom emanates sublime peace and detachment from the world. The Passion according to Matthew radiates love and tenderness. Here there is no impassable abyss between the divine and the human: the Lord draws closer to humanity through His suffering, and humanity suffers with Him. If in the Passion according to John the part of Christ consists of recitatives with organ accompaniment, then in the Passion according to Matthew it is surrounded, like a nimbus, by the soulful sound of a string quartet. The Matthew Passion is the highest achievement in Bach's music written for the Protestant Church. A very large performing ensemble is used here, including two orchestras, two mixed choirs with soloists and a boys' choir, which performs the chorale melody in the number that opens the passion. The introductory choir is the most compositionally difficult section of the composition: two choirs oppose each other - excited questions and sad answers are heard against the background of orchestral figurations depicting streams of tears. Above this element of boundless human sorrow, a crystal clear and serene chorale melody hovers, evoking thoughts of human weakness and divine power. The chorale melodies are performed here with exceptional skill: one of Bach's favorite themes, O Haupt voll Blut und Wunden, appears at least five times with different text, and each time it is harmonized differently, depending on the content of this episode.

Mass in B minor.

In addition to 4 short masses, consisting of two parts - Kyrie and Gloria, Bach also created a complete cycle of the Catholic Mass (its ordinary - that is, permanent, unchanging parts of the service), the Mass in B minor (usually called the High Mass). It was apparently composed between 1724 and 1733 and consists of 4 sections: the first, including parts of Kyrie and Gloria, is designated by Bach as the "Mass" proper; the second, the Credo, is called the "Nicene Creed"; the third is Sanctus; the fourth included the remaining parts - Osanna, Benedictus, Agnus Dei and Dona nobis pacem. The Mass in B minor is a sublime and majestic composition; it contains such masterpieces of compositional skill as the piercingly mournful Crucifixus - thirteen variations on a constant bass (like a passacaglia) and Credo - a grandiose fugue on a theme of Gregorian chant. In the last part of the cycle, Dona nobis, which is a prayer for peace, Bach uses the same music as in the choir Gratias agimus tibi (We thank you), and this can have a symbolic meaning: Bach clearly expresses the belief that a true believer does not has needs to ask the Lord for peace, but must thank the Creator for this gift.

The colossal scale of the Mass in B minor does not allow it to be used for church services. This work should be performed in a concert hall, which, under the influence of the awe-inspiring grandeur of this music, turns into a temple open to any listener capable of religious experience.

Compositions for organ.

Bach wrote music for organ all his life. His last composition was an organ chorale to the melody Before Your throne I appear (Vor deinem Thron tret "ich hiemit), dictated by a blind composer to his student. Here we can name only a few of Bach's many magnificent organ works: the well-known brilliantly virtuoso toccata and fugue in D minor was composed in Arnstadt (its numerous orchestral arrangements are also popular); the grandiose passacaglia in C minor, a cycle of 12 variations on a theme that constantly takes place in the bass and the final fugue, appeared in Weimar; "large" preludes and fugues in C minor, C major, E minor and B minor - works Leipzig period(between 1730 and 1740). Choral arrangements deserve special attention. 46 of them (designated for different holidays of the church year) are presented in a collection called the Organ Booklet (Orgelbchlein): it appeared at the end of the Weimar period (possibly during a stay in prison). In each of these arrangements, Bach embodies the inner content, the mood of the text in the freely developed three lower voices, while the chorale theme resounds in the upper, soprano voice. In 1739 he published 21 choral arrangements in a collection called the Third Part of Clavier Exercises (also known as the German Organ Mass). Here, the spiritual hymns follow in the order corresponding to the Lutheran catechism, and each chorale is presented in two versions - difficult for connoisseurs and simple for lovers. Between 1747 and 1750, Bach prepared for publication another 18 "large" organ choral arrangements (the so-called Schübler chorales), which are characterized by somewhat less complex counterpoint and the refinement of melodic ornamentation. Among them, the cycle of choral variations Adorn yourself, blessed soul (Schmcke dich, o liebe Seele), in which the composer builds a magnificent sarabande from the initial motive of the hymn, stands out.

Keyboard compositions.

Most of Bach's clavier compositions were created by him in adulthood and owe their appearance to his deep interest in musical education. These pieces were written primarily to teach their own sons and other gifted students, but under Bach's hand the exercises turn into musical gems. In this sense, a true masterpiece of ingenuity are 15 two-voice inventions and the same number of three-voice sinfonia inventions that demonstrate different types contrapuntal writing and different types of melody corresponding to certain images. Bach's most famous clavier work is the Well-Tempered Clavier (Das Wohltemperierte Clavier), a cycle containing 48 preludes and fugues, two for each major and minor key. The expression "well-tempered" refers to the new principle of tuning keyboard instruments, in which the octave is divided into 12 equal parts in the acoustic sense - semitones. The success of the first volume of this collection (24 preludes and fugues in all keys) prompted the composer to create a second volume of the same kind. Bach also wrote cycles of clavier pieces composed according to the models of popular dances of that era - 6 English and 6 French suites; 6 more partitas were published between 1726 and 1731 under the title Clavier Exercises (Clavierbung). The second part of the Exercises includes another partita and a brilliant Italian concerto, which combines the stylistic features of the clavier genres and the genre of the concerto for clavier and orchestra. The series of Clavier Exercises is completed by the Goldberg Variations that appeared in 1742 - the Aria and thirty variations written for Bach's student I.G. Goldberg. More precisely, the cycle was written for one of Bach's admirers, Count Kaiserling, the Russian ambassador in Dresden: Kaiserling was seriously ill, suffered from insomnia and often asked Goldberg to play Bach's plays for him at night.

Compositions for violin and cello solo. In his 3 partitas and 3 sonatas for solo violin Great master polyphony sets itself the almost impossible task of writing a four-voice fugue for a solo string instrument, ignoring all the technical limitations imposed by the very nature of the instrument. The pinnacle of Bach's greatness, the wonderful fruit of his inspiration, is the famous chaconne (from Partita No. 2), a cycle of variations for violin, which Bach's biographer F. Spitt characterizes as "the triumph of spirit over matter." Equally magnificent are the 6 suites for cello solo.

Orchestral compositions.

Among orchestral music Bach's concertos for violin and string orchestra and the Double Concerto for two violins and orchestra should be singled out. In addition, Bach creates new form- clavier concerto, using the solo violin part of previously written violin concertos: it is played on the clavier with the right hand, while the left hand accompanies and doubles the bass voice.

The six Brandenburg Concertos are of a different type. The second, third and fourth follow the Italian concerto grosso form, in which a small group of solo ("concert") instruments "compete" with a full orchestra. In the fifth concerto there is a long cadenza for solo clavier, and this work is, in fact, the first clavier concerto in history. In the first, third and sixth concertos, the orchestra is divided into several well-balanced groups that oppose one another, with thematic material moving from group to group and solo instruments only occasionally seizing the initiative. Although there are many polyphonic tricks in the Brandenburg Concertos, they are easily perceived by an unprepared listener. These works radiate joy, and it seems that they reflect the fun and luxury of the princely court, in which Bach then worked. Inspiring melody, bright colors, technical brilliance of the concertos make them a unique achievement even for Bach.

Equally brilliant and virtuosic are the 4 orchestral suites; each of them includes a French-style overture (slow introduction - fast fugue - slow conclusion) and a string of charming dance parts. Suite No. 2 in B minor for flute and string orchestra contains such a virtuoso solo part that it could well be called a flute concerto.

In the last years of his life, Bach reached the highest peaks of contrapuntal skill. After the Musical Offering, written for the Prussian king, in which all possible types of canonical variations are presented, the composer began work on the Art of the Fugue cycle (Die Kunst der Fuge), which remained unfinished. Here Bach uses various types of fugue, up to the grand quadruple (it breaks off at bar 239). It is not known exactly what tool the cycle was intended for; in different editions, this music is addressed to the clavier, organ, string quartet or orchestra: in all versions, the Art of Fugue sounds excellent and captivates listeners with the grandeur of the idea, solemnity and amazing skill with which Bach solves the most complex polyphonic problems.

Exploring the heritage of Bach.

Bach's creations remained almost in complete oblivion for half a century. Only in a narrow circle of students of the great cantor, the memory of him was preserved, and even from time to time examples of his contrapuntal researches were given in textbooks. During this time, not a single work by Bach was published, except for the four-voice chorales published by the composer's son Philip Emanuel. The story told by F. Rochlitz is very indicative in this sense: when Mozart visited Leipzig in 1789, the Bach motet Sing to the Lord (Singet dem Herrn) was performed for him in Thomasschul: “Mozart knew Bach more by hearsay than by his compositions... the chorus sang a few measures as he jumped; a few more bars - and he cried out: what is this? And from that moment on, everything turned into a rumor. When the singing ended, he exclaimed in delight: one can really learn from this! He was told that the school... kept the complete collection of Bach's motets. There were no scores for these works, so he demanded to bring the painted parts. In silence, those present watched with pleasure, with what enthusiasm Mozart laid out these voices around him - on his knees, on the nearest chairs. Forgetting everything in the world, he did not get up until he carefully looked through everything that was available from the works of Bach. He begged himself for a copy of the motet and treasured it very much. The situation changed by 1800, when, under the influence of the then spreading romanticism, they began to pay closer attention to the history of German art. In 1802, the first biography of Bach was published; its author, I.N. Forkel, managed to obtain valuable information about Bach from his sons. Thanks to this book, many music lovers got an idea of ​​the scope and significance of Bach's work. German and Swiss musicians began to study Bach's music; in England, the organist S. Wesley (1766–1837), nephew of the religious leader John Wesley, became a pioneer in this field. The instrumental compositions were the first to be appreciated. The statement of the great Goethe about Bach's organ music is very eloquent evidence of the mood of that time: "Bach's music is a conversation eternal harmony with itself, it is like the Divine thought before the creation of the world. After the historical performance of the Passion according to Matthew conducted by F. Mendelssohn (this happened in Berlin in 1829, exactly on the hundredth anniversary of the first performance of the Passion), the composer's vocal works began to sound. In 1850, the Bach Society was founded with the aim of publishing the complete works of Bach. It took half a century to complete this task. The new Bach Society was created immediately after the dissolution of the old one: its task was to spread the heritage of Bach with the help of publications for a wide range musicians and amateurs, as well as the organization of high-quality performances of his compositions, including at special Bach festivals. Bach's work was popularized, of course, not only in Germany. In 1900, the Bach Festivals were organized in the USA (in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania), and their founder I.F. Walle did a lot to recognize the genius of Bach in America. Similar festivals were also held in California (Carmel), Florida (Rollins College), and at a fairly high level.

An important role in the scientific understanding of Bach's heritage was played by the monumental work of the above-mentioned F. Spitta; it still retains its value. The next stage marked the publication in 1905 of A. Schweitzer's book: the author proposed a new method for analyzing the composer's musical language - by identifying symbolic, as well as "pictorial", "picturesque" motifs in it. Schweitzer's ideas had a profound effect on modern researchers, emphasizing the important role of symbolism in Bach's music. In the 20th century An important contribution to Bach studies was also made by the Englishman C.S. Terry, who introduced many new biographical materials into scientific use, translated the most important Bach texts into English, and published a serious study on the composer's orchestral writing. Peru A. Schering (Germany) owns a fundamental work that illuminates the musical life of Leipzig and the role that Bach played in it. Serious studies have appeared on the reflection of the ideas of Protestantism in the composer's work. One of the outstanding Bach scholars, F. Smend, managed to find some of Bach's secular cantatas, which were considered lost. The researchers also actively engaged in other musicians from the Bach family, first of all, his sons, and then his ancestors.

After the Complete Works were completed in 1900, it turned out that there were many gaps and errors in it. In 1950, the Bach Institute was founded in Göttingen and Leipzig with the aim of reviewing all available materials and creating a new Complete Collection. By 1967, approximately half of the proposed 84 volumes of Bach's New Collected Works (Neue Bach-Ausgabe) had been published.

SONS OF BACH

Wilhelm Friedemann Bach (1710–1784). Four of Bach's sons were exceptionally musically gifted. The eldest of them, Wilhelm Friedemann, an outstanding organist, as a virtuoso was not inferior to his father. For 13 years, Wilhelm Friedemann served as organist at St. Sophia in Dresden; in 1746 he became cantor in Halle and held this position for 18 years. Then he left Halle and subsequently changed his place of residence frequently, supporting his existence by lessons. Friedemann left about two dozen church cantatas and quite a lot of instrumental music, including 8 concertos, 9 symphonies, compositions of various genres for organ and clavier, and chamber ensembles. His graceful polonaises for clavier and sonatas for two flutes deserve special mention. As a composer, Friedemann was strongly influenced by his father and teacher; he also tried to find a compromise between the Baroque style and the expressive language of the new era. The result was very individual style, which in some respects anticipates the subsequent development of musical art. However, to many contemporaries, Friedemann's writings seemed too complicated.

Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714–1788). The second son of Johann Sebastian achieved great success both in his personal life and in his professional life. He is usually called the "Berlin" or "Hamburg" Bach, since he first served for 24 years as a court harpsichordist for the Prussian king Frederick II, and then took the honorary position of cantor in Hamburg. This, apparently, the brightest representative of sentimentalism in music, gravitated towards the expression of strong feelings, not constrained by rules. Philippe Emanuel brought drama and emotional richness to instrumental genres (especially clavier ones), which had previously been found only in vocal music, and had a decisive influence on the artistic ideals of J. Haydn. Even Beethoven learned from the compositions of Philippe Emanuel. Philippe Emanuel had a reputation as an outstanding teacher, and his textbook Experience in the right way to play the clavier (Versuch ber die wahre Art das Clavier zu spielen) became an important stage in the development of modern pianistic technique. The influence of Philippe Emanuel's work on the musicians of his era was facilitated by the wide distribution of his compositions, most of which were published during the composer's lifetime. Although the main place in his work was occupied by clavier music, he also worked in various vocal and instrumental genres, with the only exception being opera. The vast legacy of Philippe Emanuel includes 19 symphonies, 50 piano concertos, 9 concertos for other instruments, about 400 compositions for solo clavier, 60 duets, 65 trios, quartets and quintets, 290 songs, about fifty choirs, as well as cantatas and oratorios.

Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach (1732–1795), son of Johann Sebastian from his second marriage, served in the same position all his life - concertmaster and director of music (kapellmeister) at the court in Bückeburg. He was an excellent harpsichordist and successfully composed and published many of his compositions. Among them are 12 clavier sonatas, approximately 17 duets and trios for various instruments, 12 string (or flute) quartets, a sextet, a septet, 6 clavier concertos, 14 symphonies, 55 songs and 13 larger vocal compositions. The early work of Johann Christoph is marked by the influence of Italian music that reigned at the Bückeburg court; later, the composer's style acquires features that bring him closer to the style of the great contemporary of Johann Christoph - J. Haydn.

Johann Christian Bach (1735–1782). The younger son of Johann Sebastian is usually called the "Milanese" or "London" Bach. After the death of his father, 15-year-old Johann Christian continued his studies in Berlin, with Philip's half-brother Emanuel, and made great strides in playing the clavier. But he was especially attracted to opera, and he went to Italy - the classical country of opera, where he soon got a job as an organist in the Milan Cathedral and achieved recognition as an opera composer. His fame spread beyond the borders of Italy, and in 1761 he was invited to the English court. There he spent the rest of his life composing operas and teaching music and singing to the queen and representatives of aristocratic families, as well as conducting concert cycles with great success.

The glory of Christian, at times surpassing the fame of his brother Philip Emanuel, was not so durable. The tragedy for Christian was a weakness of character: he could not stand the test of success and quite early stopped in his artistic development. He continued to work in the old style, not paying attention to the new trends in art; and so it happened that the minion of London's high society gradually eclipsed the new luminaries in the musical sky. Christian died at the age of 47 a disappointed man. And yet his influence on the music of the 18th century. was significant. Christian gave lessons to the nine-year-old Mozart. In essence, Christian Bach gave Mozart no less than Philip Emanuel gave Haydn. Thus, two of Bach's sons actively contributed to the birth of the Viennese classic style.

There is a lot of beauty, liveliness, invention in Christian’s music, and although his compositions belong to the “light”, entertaining style, they still attract with warmth, tenderness, distinguishing Christian from the mass of fashionable authors of that era. He worked in all genres, with equal success - in vocal and instrumental. His legacy includes about 90 symphonies and other works for orchestra, 35 concertos, 120 chamber instrumental works, more than 35 clavier sonatas, 70 opuses of church music, 90 songs, arias, cantatas and 11 operas.

Biography

Johann Sebastian Bach (born March 21, 1685 Eisenach, Germany - died July 28, 1750 Leipzig, Germany) was a German composer and organist, representative of the Baroque era. One of the greatest composers in the history of music.

During his life, Bach wrote more than 1000 works. All significant genres of that time are represented in his work, except for opera; he summarized the achievements of the 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.

Johann Sebastian Bach was the sixth child of the 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 the musicians, especially in Thuringia and Saxony. Bach's father lived and worked in Eisenach. At that time, the city had about 6,000 inhabitants. The work of Johann Ambrosius included organizing secular concerts and performing church music.

When Johann Sebastian was 9 years old, his mother died, and a year later, his father, having managed to marry again shortly before that. 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 was very fond of music and did not miss the opportunity to study it or study new works. The following story is known to illustrate Bach's passion for music. Johann Christoph kept a notebook with notes of famous composers of that time in his closet, but, despite the requests of Johann Sebastian, he did not let him get acquainted with it. Once, young Bach managed to extract a notebook from his brother’s always locked cabinet, and for six months on moonlit nights he copied its contents for himself. When the work was already completed, the brother found 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 possibly took part in it himself.

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

In January 1703, after finishing his studies, he received the position of court musician from the Weimar Duke Johann Ernst. It is not known exactly what his duties were, but, most likely, this position was not related to performing activities. For seven months of service in Weimar, the fame of him as a performer spread. Bach was invited to the post of superintendent of the organ in the church of St. Boniface in Arnstadt, located 180 km from Weimar. The Bach family had long-standing ties with 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 to a new system that expanded the possibilities of the composer and performer. During this period, Bach created many organ works, including the famous Toccata in D minor.

Family ties and a music-loving employer could not prevent the tension between Johann Sebastian and the authorities that arose a few years later. Bach was dissatisfied with the level of training of the singers in the choir. In addition, in 1705-1706, Bach arbitrarily went to Lübeck for several months, where he got acquainted with the game of Buxtehude, which caused dissatisfaction with the authorities. In addition, the authorities charged Bach with "strange choral accompaniment" that embarrassed the community, and inability to manage the choir; The latter accusation appears to have been justified. The first biographer of Bach Forkel writes that Johann Sebastian walked more than 40 km on foot to listen to the outstanding composer, but today some researchers question this fact.

In 1706, Bach decides to change jobs. He was offered a more profitable and high position as 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 level of the choristers was better. Four months later, on October 17, 1707, Johann Sebastian married his cousin Maria Barbara of Arnstadt. They subsequently had seven children, three of whom died in childhood. Three of the survivors - Wilhelm Friedemann, Johann Christian and Carl Philipp Emmanuel - went on to become well-known composers.

The city and church authorities of Mühlhausen were pleased with the new employee. They approved without hesitation his plan for the restoration of the church organ, which required great expense, and for the publication of the festive cantata "The Lord is my king", BWV 71 (it was the only cantata printed during Bach's lifetime), written for the inauguration of the new consul, he was given a large reward.

After working at Mühlhausen for about a year, Bach changed jobs again, this time getting a position as 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 high salaries and a well-chosen composition 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, the elder unmarried sister of Maria Barbara moved to the Bahamas, who helped them run the household until her death in 1729. In Weimar, Wilhelm Friedemann and Carl Philipp Emmanuel were born to Bach.

In Weimar, a long period of composing clavier and orchestral works began, in which Bach's talent reached its peak. During this period, Bach absorbs musical influences 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 schemes. Bach studied the works of Italian composers well, creating transcriptions of Vivaldi's concertos for organ or harpsichord. He could borrow the idea of ​​writing arrangements 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 notes, 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 whole 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 Wilhelm Friedemann's teaching. This collection consists of adaptations of Lutheran chants.

By the end of his service in Weimar, Bach was already a well-known organist and harpsichord maker. The episode with Marchand belongs to this time. In 1717, the famous French musician Louis Marchand arrived in Dresden. Dresden concertmaster 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.

After some time, Bach again went in search of a more suitable job. The old owner did not want to let him go, and on November 6, 1717, he even arrested him for constant requests for resignation - but already on December 2 he released him "with an expression of disgrace." Leopold, Duke of Anhalt-Köthen, hired Bach as Kapellmeister. The duke, himself a musician, appreciated Bach's talent, paid him well and provided him with great freedom of action. However, the duke was a Calvinist and did not welcome the use of sophisticated 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 written in the same period.

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

In 1723, the performance of his "Passion according to John" took place in the church of St. Thomas in Leipzig, and on June 1, Bach received the position of cantor of this church while simultaneously acting as a school teacher at the church, replacing Johann Kuhnau in this post. Bach's duties included teaching singing and holding weekly concerts in Leipzig's two main churches, St. Thomas and St. Nicholas. The position of Johann Sebastian also provided for the teaching of Latin, but he was allowed to hire an assistant who did this work for him - therefore Petzold taught Latin for 50 thalers a year. Bach received the position of "music director" of all the churches in the city: his duties included selecting performers, overseeing their training and choosing music to perform. While working in Leipzig, the composer repeatedly entered into conflicts 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 in 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 below the organ; wind instruments and timpani were located on the side gallery to the right of the organ, strings were located to the left. 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 himself had to hire up to 20 musicians to perform orchestral works. The composer himself usually played the organ or harpsichord; if he directed the choir, then that place was filled by the staff organist or one of Bach's eldest sons.

Bach recruited sopranos and altos from among the students, and tenors and basses - not only from school, but 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 for these purposes. Part of his usual work in the church was the performance of motets by composers of the Venetian school, as well as some Germans, such as Schutz; while composing his motets, Bach was guided by the works of these composers.

Zimmermann's Coffee House, where Bach frequently gave concertsWhile composing cantatas for most of the 1720s, Bach amassed an extensive repertoire for performance in Leipzig's main churches. 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 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 ever greater role in public musical life; they were often led by renowned professional musicians. For most of the year, the College of Music held two-hour concerts twice a week at Zimmermann'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 back to the 1730s, 40s, and 50s were composed specifically for performance in Zimmermann's coffee shop. Such works include, for example, the Coffee Cantata and the clavier collection Clavier-Ubung, as well as many concertos for cello and harpsichord.

In the same period, Bach wrote the Kyrie and Gloria parts of the famous Mass in B minor, later adding the remaining parts, the melodies of which are almost entirely borrowed from the composer's best cantatas. Bach soon secured an appointment as court composer; apparently, he had long sought this high post, which was a weighty argument in his disputes with the city authorities. Although the entire Mass was never performed in its entirety during the composer's lifetime, today it is considered by many to be one of the finest 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 compose something on it right there. Bach was a master of improvisation and immediately performed a three-voice 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 the theme dictated by Friedrich. This cycle was called "The Musical Offering".