German composer Johann Sebastian Bach created more than 1000 pieces of music in his lifetime. He lived in the Baroque era and in his work summarized everything that was characteristic of the music of his time. Bach wrote in every genre available in the 18th century, with the exception of opera. Today, the works of this master of polyphony and virtuoso organist are listened to in a variety of situations - they are so diverse. You can find ingenuous humor and deep sorrow in his music, philosophical reflections and intense drama.
Johann Sebastian Bach was born in 1685, he was the eighth and youngest child in the family. The father of the great composer Johann Ambrosius Bach was also a musician: the Bach family has been known for its musicality since the beginning of the 16th century. At that time, the creators of music enjoyed special honor in Saxony and Thuringia, they were supported by the authorities, aristocrats and representatives of the church.
Bach lost both parents by the age of 10, and his older brother, who worked as an organist, took up his upbringing. Johann Sebastian studied at the gymnasium, and at the same time received from his brother the skills of playing the organ and clavier. At the age of 15, Bach entered a vocal school and began to write his first works. After leaving school, he was briefly a court musician for the Duke of Weimar, and then became an organist in a church in the city of Arnstadt. It was then that the composer wrote a large number of organ works.
Soon, Bach began to have problems with the authorities: he expressed dissatisfaction with the level of training of the singers in the choir, and then completely left for another city for several months in order to get acquainted with the playing of the authoritative Danish-German organist Dietrich Buxtehude. Bach left for Mühlhausen, where he was invited to the same position - an organist in the church. In 1707, the composer married his cousin, who bore him seven children, three of whom died in infancy, and two later became famous composers.
In Mühlhausen, Bach worked for only a year, and then moved to Weimar, where he became court organist and organizer of concerts. By this time, he already enjoyed great recognition and received a high salary. It was in Weimar that the composer's talent reached its peak - for about 10 years he was continuously composing works for clavier, organ and orchestra.
By 1717, Bach had achieved all possible heights in Weimar and began to look for another job. At first, the old employer did not want to let him go, and even put him under arrest for a month. However, Bach soon left him and went to the city of Köthen. If earlier his music was largely composed for worship, then here, due to the special requirements of the employer, the composer began to write mainly secular works.
In 1720, Bach's wife suddenly died, but a year and a half later he married a young singer again.
In 1723, Johann Sebastian Bach became the cantor of the choir at the Church of St. Thomas in Leipzig, and then was appointed the "music director" of all the Churches that worked in the city. Bach continued to write music until his death - even having lost his sight, he dictated it to his son-in-law. The great composer died in 1750, now his remains are buried in the very Church of St. Thomas in Leipzig, where he worked for 27 years.
(1685-1750)
Johann Sebastian Bach - the great German composer XVIII century. More than two hundred and fifty years have passed since the death of Bach, and interest in his music is growing. During his lifetime, the composer did not receive the recognition he deserved.
Interest in Bach's music arose almost a hundred years after his death: in 1829, under the baton of the German composer Mendelssohn, Bach's greatest work, The Matthew Passion, was publicly performed. For the first time - in Germany - the complete collection of Bach's works was published. And musicians all over the world play Bach's music, marveling at its beauty and inspiration, mastery and perfection. "Not a stream! - The sea should be his name, ”said about Bach great Beethoven.
Bach's ancestors have long been famous for their musicality. It is known that the composer's great-great-grandfather, a baker by profession, played the zither. Flutists, trumpeters, organists, violinists came out of the Bach family. In the end, every musician in Germany began to be called Bach and every Bach a musician. Johann Sebastian Bach was born in 1685 in the small German town of Eisenach. He received his first violin skills from his father, a violinist and city musician. The boy had an excellent voice (soprano) and sang in the choir of the city school. No one doubted his future profession: little Bach was to become a musician. For nine years, the child was left an orphan. His tutor was an older brother who served as a church organist in the city of Ohrdruf. The brother assigned the boy to the gymnasium and continued to teach music. But he was an insensitive musician. Classes were monotonous and boring. For an inquisitive ten-year-old boy, this was excruciating. Therefore, he strove for self-education. Having learned that his brother kept a notebook with works by famous composers in a locked cabinet, the boy secretly took out this notebook at night and copied notes with moonlight. This tedious work lasted six months, it severely damaged the vision of the future composer. And what was the grief of the child when his brother caught him one day doing this and took away the already transcribed notes.
At the age of fifteen, Johann Sebastian decided to start an independent life and moved to Lüneburg. In 1703 he graduated from the gymnasium and received the right to enter the university. But Bach did not have to use this right, since it was necessary to earn a livelihood.
During his life, Bach moved from city to city several times, changing jobs. Almost every time the reason turned out to be the same - unsatisfactory working conditions, a humiliating, dependent position. But no matter how unfavorable the situation, he never left the desire for new knowledge, for improvement. With tireless energy, he constantly studied music, not only German, but also Italian and French composers. Bach did not miss the opportunity to personally meet outstanding musicians, to study the manner of their performance. Once, having no money for a trip, young Bach went to another city on foot to listen to the famous organist Buxtehude play.
The composer also steadily defended his attitude to creativity, his views on music. Contrary to the admiration of court society for foreign music, Bach studied and widely used German folk songs and dances in his works with special love. Having perfectly known the music of composers from other countries, he did not blindly imitate them. Extensive and deep knowledge helped him improve and polish his composing skills.
Sebastian Bach's talent was not limited to this area. He was the best organ and harpsichord player among his contemporaries. And if, as a composer, Bach did not receive recognition during his lifetime, then in improvisations behind the organ his skill was unsurpassed. This was forced to admit even his rivals.
It is said that Bach was invited to Dresden to take part in a competition with the then famous French organist and harpsichordist Louis Marchand. The day before, a preliminary acquaintance of the musicians took place, both of them played the harpsichord. That same night, Marchand hurriedly left, thus recognizing the undeniable superiority of Bach. On another occasion, in the city of Kassel, Bach amazed his listeners by performing a solo on the organ pedal. Such success did not turn Bach's head; he always remained a very modest and hardworking person. When asked how he achieved such perfection, the composer replied: "I had to work hard, whoever is as hard will achieve the same."
From 1708 Bach settled in Weimar. Here he served as court musician and city organist. During the Weimar period, the composer created his best organ works. Among them are the famous Toccata and Fugue in D minor, the famous Passacaglia in C minor. These works are significant and deep in content, grandiose in their scope.
In 1717 Bach and his family moved to Köthen. At the court of the Prince of Köthen, where he was invited, there was no organ. Bach wrote mainly clavier and orchestral music. The composer's duties included directing a small orchestra, accompanying the prince's singing, and entertaining him by playing the harpsichord. Easily coping with his duties, Bach devoted all his free time to creativity. The works for the clavier created at that time represent the second pinnacle in his work after organ compositions. Two-part and three-part inventions were written in Köthen (Bach called three-part inventions "sinfonias"). The composer intended these pieces to study with his eldest son Wilhelm Friedemann. Pedagogical goals guided Bach in the creation of suites - "French" and "English". In Köthen, Bach also completed 24 preludes and fugues, which made up the first volume of a great work called The Well-Tempered Clavier. In the same period, the famous "Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue" in D minor was also written.
In our time, Bach's inventions and suites have become obligatory pieces in the programs of music schools, and the preludes and fugues of the Well-Tempered Clavier - in schools and conservatories. Intended by the composer for a pedagogical purpose, these works are also of interest to a mature musician. Therefore, Bach's pieces for the clavier, starting with relatively easy inventions and ending with the most complex Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue, can be heard at concerts and on the radio, performed by the world's best pianists.
From Köthen in 1723, Bach moved to Leipzig, where he remained until the end of his life. Here he took the position of cantor (choir leader) of the singing school at the Church of St. Thomas. Bach was obliged to serve the main churches of the city with the help of the school and be responsible for the state and quality of church music. He had to accept difficult conditions for himself. Along with the duties of a teacher, educator and composer, there were also such instructions: "Do not leave the city without the permission of Mr. Burgomaster." As before, his creative possibilities were limited. Bach had to compose such music for the church that "would not be too long, and also ... opera-like, but that would arouse reverence in the listeners." But Bach, as always, sacrificing a lot, never gave up the main thing - his artistic convictions. Throughout his life, he created works that are striking in their deep content and inner richness.
So it was this time. In Leipzig, Bach created his best vocal and instrumental compositions: most of the cantatas (in total, Bach wrote about 250 cantatas), the Passion according to John, the Passion according to Matthew, Mass in B minor. "Passion", or "passions" according to John and Matthew is a story about the suffering and death of Jesus Christ in the description of the evangelists John and Matthew. The Mass is close in content to the Passion. In the past, both the mass and the "passion" were choral chants in the Catholic Church. In Bach, these works go far beyond the scope of the church service. The Mass and Passion by Bach are monumental works of a concert character. Soloists, choir, orchestra, organ participate in their performance. In terms of their artistic significance, the cantatas, the Passion and the Mass represent the third, most high peak composer's work.
The church authorities were clearly dissatisfied with Bach's music. As in previous years, she was found too bright, colorful, humane. Indeed, Bach's music did not answer, but rather contradicted the strict church atmosphere, the mood of detachment from everything earthly. Along with major vocal and instrumental works, Bach continued to write music for the clavier. Almost at the same time as the Mass, the famous "Italian Concerto" was written. Bach later completed the second volume of The Well-Tempered Clavier, which included 24 new preludes and fugues.
In addition to the enormous creative work and service in the church school, Bach took an active part in the activities of the "Music College" of the city. It was a society of music lovers, which arranged concerts of secular, not church music for the inhabitants of the city. With great success, Bach performed in concerts of the "Musical Collegium" as a soloist and conductor. Especially for the concerts of the society, he wrote many orchestral, clavier and vocal works of a secular nature. But the main work of Bach - the head of the school of choristers - brought him nothing but grief and trouble. The funds allocated by the church for the school were negligible, and the singing boys were starving and poorly dressed. The level of their musical abilities was also low. Singers were often recruited, regardless of the opinion of Bach. The school orchestra was more than modest: four trumpets and four violins!
All petitions for help to the school, submitted by Bach to the city authorities, were ignored. The cantor was responsible for everything.
The only consolation was still creativity, family. The grown sons - Wilhelm Friedemann, Philip Emmanuel, Johann Christian - turned out to be talented musicians. Even during the life of their father, they became famous composers. Great musicality was distinguished by Anna Magdalena Bach, the second wife of the composer. She had an excellent ear and a beautiful, strong soprano voice. sang well and eldest daughter Bach. For his family, Bach composed vocal and instrumental ensembles.
The last years of the composer's life were overshadowed by a serious eye disease. After an unsuccessful operation, Bach became blind. But even then he continued to compose, dictating his works for recording. Bach's death remained almost unnoticed by the musical community. He was soon forgotten. The fate of Bach's wife and youngest daughter was sad. Anna Magdalena died ten years later in a poor house. Youngest daughter Regina eked out a miserable existence. In the last years of her difficult life, Beethoven helped her.
EXAM WORK ON MUSICAL LITERATURE TOPIC:
WORKS OF JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH
Completed by: Akimova Anastasia Yurievna
Head: Khmelenko Inna Dmitrievna
1998 - 1999 academic year year.
G. Surgut
1. Baby and youth. Initial period creative formation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 -
2. Family. Childhood. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 -
3. The beginning of the creative path. Lüneburg. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
4. Weimar, Arnstadt, Mühlhausen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 -
5. Weimar again. Bach in secular service. Introduction to world musical art. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 -
6. Bach performer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 -
7. Köthen. Creation of fundamental compositions of secular chamber music. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 -
8. Departure from Köthen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 -
9. Leipzig period. School of St. Thomas. Bach-cantor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 -
10. Artistic and creative activity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 -
11. Children of Johann Sebastian. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .eleven -
12. Bach the teacher. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 -
13. Latest works. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 -
14. Characteristics of creativity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 -
15. Analysis of musical works. Keyboard creativity. . . . . . .15 -
16. Well-Tempered Clavier. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 -
17. Prelude and Fugue in C Minor from the first volume of The Well-Tempered Clavier. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19 -
18. Major works. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 -
19. List of used literature. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21-
Life path.
Childhood and youthful years. The initial period of creative formation.
Johann Sebastian Bach was born on March 31, 1685 in Eisenach, a small provincial town in Thuringia, in one of the most beautiful German regions, in places that have long been associated with music. The birthplace of Luther, the arena of the revolutionary activity of Thomas Müntzer, Thuringia has never been the center of the most fierce battles of the rebellious peasants and plebeians with the feudal lords. After the Thirty Years' War, devastated and impoverished, it turned into a deaf and sleepy province. And yet, echoes and memories of long-gone glorious events undoubtedly lived among the people. But it took a lot of time and a mighty genius for the resurrected images of the past, as well as visions of the distant future, to acquire artistic expression in the art of Johann Sebastian Bach.
Family, childhood.
Johann Sebastian has always been proud to belong to a famous musical family. The musicians were his grandfather, great-grandfather, father, father's brothers, their children, as well as Johann Sebastian's brothers. His own sons later became outstanding musicians. During the 17th and 18th centuries, so many organists, composers, violinists, flutists, bandmasters, trumpeters from the Bach family settled in Thuringia that the word "Bach" itself was almost synonymous with the word "musician". None of this tribe of musicians achieved either fame or loud fame, although the Bach family chronicle lists more than fifty persons who influenced the development of German music.
From generation to generation, skills and craftsmanship were passed on, creative forces were strengthened, and, finally, in the great representative of this dynasty of musicians, Johann Sebastian, they reached their highest peak.
For the profession of a musician, already traditional for the male line of the Bach family, Johann Sebastian was prepared with early years. The boy's first teacher was his father, a violinist and city musician in Eisenach. At school, Johann Sebastian sang in a choir, usually made up of the poorest students. lower grades; for a small fee, they performed at various holidays, and at funerals and weddings they sang spiritual chants.
At the age of nine, Johann Sebastian was left an orphan and was taken in by his older brother Johann Christoph. The latter - at one time a student of the largest German organist - composer I. Pachelbel - held the position of organist and school teacher in Ohrdruf. Under the guidance of his brother, Johann Sebastian continued his musical studies. But the ingeniously gifted nature could hardly be content with the pedantic, school-craft lessons of Johann Christoph. He turned out to be a dry, insensitive musician. For an inquisitive, musical boy, this was excruciating. Therefore, as a ten-year-old child, he strove for self-education. Having learned that his brother had a notebook with works by famous composers in his closet, the boy secretly took out this notebook at night and rewrote the notes in the moonlight. This tedious work lasted six months, it severely damaged the vision of the future composer. And what was the grief of the child when his brother caught him one day doing this and took away the already transcribed notes. Here, for the first time, the strengths of Johann Sebastian's character appeared for the first time: perseverance, purposefulness, perseverance in work.
An early desire for personal freedom prompted the fifteen-year-old youth to leave his brother's house and seek the means of an independent existence.
The beginning of the creative path.
Lüneburg.
In 1700, Johann Sebastian moved to the city of Lüneburg.
Here, in Lüneburg, in 1703 Bach finished school; He studied well and received a diploma that gave him the right to enter the university. But he failed to exercise this right. Faced with the need to provide for his own life, Bach had to direct all his attention and strength to the improvement of composing and performing skills - the only real source of existence for him.
On artistic development Bach was not influenced by his childhood teachers. He himself found everywhere and extracted from everywhere the best and necessary for his musical education. Life musical art served him in his past and present composer school. The study of the richest heritage, the creative comprehension of contemporary music polished and honed Bach's musical thoughts and writing, helped to reveal oneself, to realize one's own creative individuality. Even frequent service changes had their positive sides, as they made it possible to learn new artistic phenomena. In this regard, Lüneburg, as then Arnstadt or Weimar, are significant stages in the composer's long creative path.
The extensive library of the Lüneburg school contained many manuscript compositions by ancient German and Italian musicians, and Bach immersed himself in their study. Freed from the pedantic guardianship of his older brother, he repeatedly went from Lüneburg to Hamburg to study with the famous organist Reinken while listening. In those years, the Hamburg opera, led by the Kaiser, was in its prime. It must be assumed that, being there, Bach did not pass by a new art for him. According to Romain Rolland, Kaiser's influence was reflected in some aspects of Bach's musical speech.
In Lüneburg itself, since 1692, at the church of St. John worked one of the famous German composers, Reinken's student Georg Böhm (1661 - 1733). Communication and intimacy with great artist- at least important factor in the formation young musician.
Thus, in an atmosphere of rich and lively traditions, Bach comprehended art and craftsmanship.
With Lüneburg the years of apprenticeship and early youth ended; a new phase began in the laborious life of the composer.
Weimar, Arnstadt, Mühlhausen.
In April 1703, Bach, as a violinist, entered the service of a small princely chapel in Weimar. But he did not stay there long. Not satisfied with his work and dependent position, he willingly accepted an invitation to the post of organist of the New Church in the city of Arnstadt and moved there in 1704.
The service of the organist of the New Church was simple: it required the ability to prelude on the organ, learn cult works with the choir, and accompany the choir during worship. In these modest duties, which any musician-artisan could cope with, Bach brought youthful zeal, creative ardor and imagination, unusual for the official standards of the Protestant church. The courage of musical searches served as the reason for the clash between the composer and his superiors.
In Arnstadt, for the first time, Bach had to deal with inert church officials, with narrow-minded German burghers. His life in this city was immediately complicated by a petty, disgusting war raised by philistinism against a daring genius who disturbed his sleepy peace. Mutual dissatisfaction grew, and with it Bach's cooling off towards his official work. All the more powerful was the need for refreshing new artistic experiences. So the idea arose of traveling to the city of Lübeck, where the famous German composer Dietrich Buxtehude gave concerts on the organ. In the autumn of 1705, taking advantage of the granted leave, Bach, for lack of funds for a carriage, went to Lübeck on foot. Buxtehude's concerts, his work, and the high skill of the performer shocked the young musician. With all his being, he absorbed the dramatically bright, virtuoso art of the greatest master of organ music of that time. Fascinated, he forgot about his official service and instead of the prescribed twenty-eight-day vacation, he stayed in Lübeck for about four months.
In Arnstadt, Bach's return was far from welcome. Using a convenient pretext, the church authorities subjected their organist to a humiliating interrogation, inflicted a formal trial on him with a long list of misconduct: Bach introduces many strange variations into the chorales, mixes many alien sounds into the chorale and thereby confuses the community; earlier, the organist Bach, during his service, was fond of playing the organ and played too long, but now, after the remark made, he fell into the other extreme and began to play too short, etc.
Bach was born in the German town of Eisenach in 1685. His parents were professional musicians, so the boy was interested in music since childhood. But in 1675, Johann Sebastian's parents die, and they are left alone with their brother. Johann Kristoff, the brother of the future composer, tried to earn at least some money, and spent all his free time teaching the boy to play the organ.
When Bach turns 15, he goes to Lüneburg and enters a vocal school. There he played musical instruments all day long, learned famous works, tried to come up with something of his own. During his studies, he traveled to different cities, met famous composers who shared their experience with young musician. This motivated Bach to get creative and write his first piece of music.
In 1700 he began writing organ music. It is impossible not to note the fact that Johann Sebastian was constantly next to his brother and helped him at the beginning of his musical career.
They begin to learn about him, and after graduating from the vocal school, he was invited to the position of court musician. Bach, of course, agreed, since he did not have a good and constant income. After working for several years at court, the composer realizes that he cannot depend on other people, so he changes jobs. In the summer of 1704, he accepts the position of organist in the church. At this time, Bach begins to write a lot, people learn about him and come to listen with pleasure.
After 3 years, Johann Sebastian changes jobs, agrees to the same position, but in another church, where he is offered decent pay. In the same year, he again decides to change workplace and goes to Mühlhausen, where he works as a court organist with a high salary.
The composer's family life improved only in 1707, when he married his cousin. As a result of this union, the couple had 6 children. But, unfortunately, three of them died at the age of one. At this time, Bach devotes himself entirely to work, constantly writes, is engaged in creativity, leaving the upbringing of children to his wife. Maria Barbare, wife of the composer, dies after 20 years of marriage. The widower was left with three children, but a year later he married another woman - Anna Wilhelm, who was famous singer. New spouse gave the composer another 10 children.
Beginning in 1717 creative career Johann Sebastian. He was invited to one of the dukes for permanent service, where his salary was constantly increasing. During this period of his life, Bach wrote many suites, toccatas, fugues and preludes.
In 1723, Bach was appointed music teacher at the court school, and became a cantor in the church of St. Thomas. Composer's career has rastered up and a year later, he is already in the position of director of the Leipzig School of Music.
Throughout his life, Johann Sebastian Bach visited different cities and countries, tried himself as a court musician, teacher, cantor, head of the music board, director music school. He wrote more than 500 suites, 200 toccatas and fugues, numbers for cello and organ.
Beginning in 1745, Bach began to notice that he was having problems with his eyesight. The composer's condition was noticeably deteriorating, but this did not prevent the famous musician and virtuoso from doing what he loved. And a year later, Johann Sebastian was completely blind. This affected him greatly, as it was impossible to write music. In 1750, he dies, leaving his brilliant works to the whole world and going down in history as brilliant composer classical music.
5, 6 grade for children
Bach biography for children
JS Bach is a world-famous composer from Germany, a wonderful organist, an excellent music teacher and a true polyphonic master. The work of this great man has collected more than 1000 of the greatest works of various genres.
A great event took place in the city of Eisenach, he was born on March 21, 1685 future musician, a true master of his craft. Little Bach had a love for the art of music in his blood, since almost all of his ancestors were musicians.
When the boy was only 10 years old, his parents died, and his elder brother Johann Christopher took up the upbringing of the child.
The brother began to teach the future celebrity to play such wonderful instruments as: organ and clavier.
In Lüneburg, at the age of 15, Bach studied at the vocal school named after St. Michael. It is here that he becomes intimately acquainted with the greatest creativity many modern and very famous musicians, thanks to which it happens comprehensive development. The musician created his first organ work from 1700 to 1703, and it was from this that his high-profile biography of the great musician began.
Immediately, after the guy finished his studies at school, he goes to serve to Duke Ernst, where he teaches the children of the nobles in music. He was dissatisfied with his job and therefore quickly changed it. In 1704, Johann occupied a new position in the New Church, located in Arndstadt. Here he holds the position of organist.
In 1707, the great man continues to work as a musician in the church, but besides this, he begins to actively engage in creativity. The authorities are satisfied with his work, for which they reward the musician.
Bach's latest work is everything famous compilation titled "The Art of the Fugue", which included 14 fugues and 4 canons.
On July 28, 1750, the great musician died, but his masterpiece works still live on.
creativity briefly
Interesting Facts and dates from life
Johann Sebastian Bach(German Johann Sebastian Bach; March 21, 1685, Eisenach, Saxe-Eisenach - July 28, 1750 [new style], Leipzig, Saxony, Holy Roman Empire) - German composer, virtuoso organist, bandmaster, music teacher.
Bach is the author of more than 1000 pieces of music in all significant genres of his time (except opera). Bach's creative heritage is interpreted as a generalization of the musical art of the Baroque. A staunch Protestant, Bach wrote a lot of sacred music. His Matthew Passion, Mass in h-moll, cantatas, instrumental adaptations of Protestant chorales are recognized masterpieces of world musical classics. Bach is known as Great master polyphony, baroque polyphony flourished in his work.
Childhood
Johann Sebastian Bach was the youngest, eighth child in the family of musician Johann Ambrosius Bach and Elisabeth Lemmerhirt. The Bach family has been known for its musicality since the beginning of the 16th century: many of Johann Sebastian's ancestors and relatives were professional musicians. During this period, the Church, local authorities and the aristocracy supported 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 died. The boy was taken in by his older brother, Johann Christoph, who served as an organist in nearby Ohrdruf. Johann Sebastian entered the gymnasium, his brother taught him to play the organ and clavier. While studying in Ohrdruf under the guidance of his brother, Bach became acquainted with the work of contemporary South German composers - Pachelbel, Froberger and others. It is also possible that he became acquainted with the works of composers from Northern Germany and France.
At the age of 15, Bach moved to Lüneburg, where 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) 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 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 1703, Bach took up the post of organist of the church of St. Boniface in Arnstadt. He had to work three days a week, and the salary was relatively high. In addition, the tool was supported in good condition and was set to new system, expanding 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 50 km to listen to 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 in the church of St. Blaise in Mühlhausen, major 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. Two of the survivors - Wilhelm Friedemann and Carl Philipp Emmanuel - later became 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 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 the son of his employer, Crown Duke Johann Ernst, a composer and musician. In 1713, the crown duke returned from a trip abroad and brought with him a large number of notes, which he showed to Johann Sebastian. In Italian music, the crown duke (and, as can be seen from some works, Bach himself) was attracted by the alternation of solo (playing one instrument) and tutti (playing the whole orchestra).
In Weimar, Bach had the opportunity to play and compose organ works, as well as use the services of the ducal orchestra. While serving in Weimar, Bach began work on the Organ Booklet, a collection of organ chorale preludes, possibly for the instruction of Wilhelm Friedemann. 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.
Köthen (1717-1723)
After some time, Bach again went in search of 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 on December 2 he released him "with an expression of disgrace."
Palace and gardens in Köthen, engraving from a book "Topography" Matthäus Merian, 1650
At the end of 1717, 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. Also during this period, the Well-Tempered Clavier (the first volume of the cycle) and the Brandenburg Concertos were written.
Violin Sonata in G minor(BWV 1001), Bach manuscript
On July 7, 1720, while Bach and the prince were abroad in Karlsbad, his wife Maria Barbara died suddenly at the age of 35, leaving four young children. J.S. Bach learned about her funeral upon his return to Köthen. He actually expressed his feelings in connection with the death of his wife in a musical form in the chaconne from the partita in D minor for solo violin, which later became one of his most recognizable works.
The following year, 1721, Bach met Anna Magdalena Wilke, a young twenty-year-old highly gifted singer (soprano) who sang at the ducal court. They married on December 3, 1721, and subsequently had 13 children (of which 7 died in childhood).
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 the choir of St. Thomas, 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. 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 got the job music director"(German Musikdirektor) of all the churches of the city: his duties included the selection of performers, monitoring their training and choosing music for performance. While working in Leipzig, the composer repeatedly came into conflict with the city administration.
The first six years of his life in Leipzig turned out to be very productive: Bach composed up to 5 annual cycles of cantatas (two of them, in all likelihood, were lost). Most of these works were written 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.
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 of boys, 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 it normal work in the church there was a performance of composers' motets Venetian school, as well as some Germans, for example, 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 head of the College of Music ( Collegium Musicum) - a secular ensemble that has existed since 1701, when it was founded by Bach's old friend Georg Philipp Telemann. At that time, in many large German cities, gifted and active university students created similar ensembles. Such associations played an 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 dated between the 1730s and 1750s were composed specifically for performance in Zimmermann's coffee shop. Among such works are, for example, "Coffee Cantata" and, possibly, clavier pieces from collections "Clavier-Übung", as well as many concertos for cello and harpsichord.
During the same period, Bach wrote parts Kyrie And Gloria the famous Mass in B minor (the rest of the Mass was written much later). 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 musical theme and asked me to compose something on it right away. Bach was a master of improvisation and immediately performed a three-voice fugue. Later, he composed a whole cycle of variations on this theme and sent it as a gift to the king. The cycle consisted of ricercars, canons and trios based on 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 most likely written long before his death (according to modern research- until 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 erroneously called latest work Bach - it actually 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.
Grave of Johann Sebastian Bach in St. Thomas Church, Leipzig, Germany. August 9, 2011.
During his life, Bach wrote more than 1000 works. In Leipzig, Bach maintained friendly relations with university professors. 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, 50 km from Leipzig, never met Bach, although Bach tried to meet him twice in his life - in 1719 and 1729. The fates of these two composers, however, were 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 mid-nineteenth 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, has 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 thorough 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 more than a thousand pieces of music in almost all genres known at that time. Bach did not work only in the genre of opera.
Today, each of the famous works has been assigned a BWV number (short for Bach Werke Verzeichnis- catalog of Bach's works). Bach wrote music for different 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 lifetime, Bach was best known as a first-class organist, teacher and composer of organ music. He worked both in the "free" genres traditional for that time, such as prelude, fantasy, toccata, passacaglia, and in more strict forms- choral prelude and fugue. In his works for organ, Bach skillfully combined the features of different musical styles whom he met throughout his life. The composer was influenced by both the music of North German composers (Georg Böhm, whom Bach met in Lüneburg, and Dietrich Buxtehude in Lübeck) and the music of South German composers. In addition, Bach copied the works of French and Italian composers in order to better understand their technique; he later transcribed several of Vivaldi's violin concertos for organ. During the most fruitful period for organ music (1708-1714), Johann Sebastian not only wrote many pairs of preludes, toccatas and fugues, but also "Orgelbüchlein" - a collection of 46 preludes, which demonstrated various methods and techniques instrumental processing of Protestant chorales. After leaving Weimar, Bach wrote less for the organ; however, many famous works were written after Weimar, including 6 trio sonatas, the third part of 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, conducted an examination of new organs and was well versed in the features of their tuning.
Clavier creativity
Bach also wrote numerous 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. The most famous:
- The Well-Tempered Clavier, in two volumes, written in 1722 and 1744, is a collection containing 24 preludes and fugues in each volume, one for each key used. 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. The Well-Tempered Clavier laid the foundation for a cycle of parts that sound in all keys. It is also a unique example of a "cycle within a cycle" - each prelude and fugue are thematically and figuratively linked to each other and form a single cycle that is always performed together.
- 15 two-part and 15 three-part inventions are small works arranged in order of increasing key characters. They were intended (and are used to this day) for learning to play the keyboard instruments.
- English suites and French suites. Each collection contains 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.
- The first and second parts of the collection "Clavier-Übung" (lit. "exercises for the clavier"). The first part (1731) included six partitas, the second (1735) - Overture in french style(BWV 831) and the Italian Concerto (BWV 971).
- The Goldberg Variations (published in 1741 as the fourth movement of Clavier-Übung) is 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.
Orchestral and chamber music
Bach wrote music both for individual instruments and for ensembles. His works for solo instruments - 3 sonatas and 3 partitas for solo violin, BWV 1001-1006, 6 suites for cello, BWV 1007-1012, and a partita for solo flute, BWV 1013 - are considered by many to be among the composer's most profound creations. 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 wrote many works for orchestra and solo instruments. One of the most famous is 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. These six concertos are written in the concerto grosso genre. Bach's orchestral masterpieces include two violin concertos (BWV 1041 and 1042), a concerto for 2 violins in D minor BWV 1043, the so-called "triple" concerto in A minor (for flute, violin, harpsichord, strings and basso continuo) BWV 1044 and concertos for claviers and chamber orchestra: seven for one clavier (BWV 1052-1058), three for two (BWV 1060-1062), two for three (BWV 1063 and 1064) and one in A minor BWV 1065 for four harpsichords. Nowadays, these orchestral concertos are often performed on the piano, which is why they are sometimes called Bach's "piano" concertos, but we should not forget that there was no piano in Bach's time. In addition to concertos, Bach composed four orchestral suites (BWV 1066-1069), some parts of which are widely popular today, especially the last part of the Second Suite (the so-called "Joke" - an overly literal translation of the genre Scherzo) and Part II of the Third Suite ("Aria").
German postage stamp dedicated to J.S. Bach, 1961, 20 pfennig (Scott 829)
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 religious holiday. In addition, he composed a number of cantatas in Weimar and Mühlhausen. In total, Bach wrote more than 300 cantatas on spiritual themes, of which about 200 have survived to this day. Bach's cantatas vary greatly in form and instrumentation. Some of them are written for one voice, some for a choir; some require for execution large orchestra and some with just a few tools. 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 movements, and is also sometimes included in introductory part in the form of a cantus firmus. Popular church cantatas include "Christ lag in Todesbanden" (BWV 4), "Ein' feste Burg" (BWV 80), "Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme" (BWV 140), and "Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben" ( BWV 147). In addition, Bach also composed a number of secular cantatas, usually timed to coincide with some event, such as a wedding. Popular secular cantatas include "Coffee" (BWV 211) and "Peasant" (BWV 212).
- 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. The Matthew Passion (along with the Mass in h-moll) is Bach's most ambitious work.
- Oratorios and Magnificat. 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 (1730; first edition 1723) are rather extensive and elaborate cantatas and are of a smaller scope than the Christmas Oratorio or Passions.
- Masses. The most famous and significant Mass of Bach is the Mass in B minor (completed in 1749), which is full cycle 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 (which included only Kyrie And Gloria), and also because of the duration of the sound (about 2 hours). In addition to the Mass in B minor, Bach wrote 4 short two-movement masses ( Kyrie And Gloria), as well as separate parts ( Sanctus And Kyrie).
Other vocal works Bach includes several motets, about 180 chorales, songs and arias.
Features of the performance of Bach's works
Today, performers of Bach's music are divided into two camps: those who prefer authentic performance (or "historically oriented performance"), that is, using the instruments and methods of 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; now the harpsichord or the pianoforte is more often used to perform his music. Bach met with I.G. 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 some organ works for pianoforte (chorales and others). Very milestone in pianistic and musicological practice is his popular edition of the Well-Tempered Clavier - perhaps the most widely used edition of this work today.
Numerous "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's 1968 recording of "Switched-On Bach", which used a newly invented synthesizer. Processed the music of Bach and 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 Bach in his 1997 solo album When Bach Wakes Up.
The fate of Bach's music
Contrary to popular myth, Bach was not forgotten after his death. True, this concerned works for the clavier: his compositions were performed and published, used for didactic purposes. Bach's works for organ continued to sound in the church, and organ harmonizations of chorales were in constant use. Bach's cantata-oratorio compositions were rarely heard (although the notes were carefully preserved in the church of St. Thomas), as a rule, at the initiative of Carl Philipp Emmanuel Bach.
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 Bach. They were brought up on the works of Bach from childhood. One day while 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" (word Bach means "stream" in German. Bach's influence can be noted both at the level of ideas, the choice of genres, and in some polyphonic fragments of Beethoven's works.
In 1800, Karl Friedrich Zelter organized the Berlin Singing Academy (German) ( Singakademie), the main purpose of which was precisely the promotion of Bach's singing heritage. 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 oneself.
But the real renaissance of Bach's music began with the performance of the St. Matthew Passion on 11 March 1829 in Berlin, organized by Felix Mendelssohn, a student of Zelter. The performance received a powerful 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 concert was repeated on Bach's birthday. "Passion according to Matthew" was also heard in other cities - in Frankfurt, Dresden, Koenigsberg. 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 Russia early XIX century, as connoisseurs and performers of Bach's music, Field's student Maria Shimanovskaya and Alexander Griboedov stand out.
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 paid their respects to Bach by including the BACH motif (B-flat - la - do - si in German letter 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. From the works of modern composers on the same theme, one can name “Variations on a Theme BACH” by Roman Ledenev. It is worth noting that Bach himself often used the same theme, for example, in Counterpoint XIV from The Art of Fugue.
Composers often used themes from Bach's works. For example, in Brahms's cello sonata in D major, musical quotations from The Art of Fugue are used in the finale.
Many composers have successfully used the genres developed by Bach. For example, Beethoven's variations on a theme by Diabelli, the prototype of which are the Goldberg Variations. The Well-Tempered Clavier was the founder of the genre of the cycle of parts written in all keys. There are many examples of this genre, for example, 24 preludes and fugues by Shostakovich, two cycles of 24 etudes by Chopin, partly Ludus tonalis Paul Hindemith .
The choral prelude “Ich ruf’ zu Dir, Herr Jesu Christ” (BWV 639) from Bach’s Organ Book, performed by Leonid Roizman, is featured in Andrei Tarkovsky’s film Solaris (1972).
Bach's music is among the best creations of mankind recorded on the golden disc of Voyager.
According to The New York Times Johann Sebastian Bach topped the top ten greatest composers of all time.
Bach monuments in Germany
Monument to J.S. Bach at the Church of St. Thomas in Leipzig.
- Monument in Leipzig, erected on April 23, 1843 by Hermann Knaur at the initiative of Felix Mendelssohn according to the drawings of Eduard Bendemann, Ernst Rietschel and Julius Hübner.
- Bronze statue in the square Frauenplan in Eisenach, designed by Adolf von Donndorf, installed on September 28, 1884. First stood on the Market Square near the Church of St. George; April 4, 1938 was moved to Frauenplan with shortened pedestal.
- Monument on Bach Square in Köthen, erected on March 21, 1885. Sculptor - Heinrich Polman
- Bronze statue by Karl Zeffner from the south side of St. Thomas Church in Leipzig - May 17, 1908.
- Bust by Fritz Behn in the Walhalla near Regensburg, 1916.
- Statue by Paul Birr at the entrance to St. George's Church in Eisenach, erected on April 6, 1939.
- Monument to arch. Bruno Eiermann in Weimar, first installed in 1950, then removed for two years and re-opened in 1995 on Democracy Square.
- Relief in Köthen (1952). Sculptor - Robert Propf.
- Monument near the Arnstadt market, erected on March 21, 1985. Author -Bernd Goebel
- Wooden stele by Ed Harrison on Johann Sebastian Bach Square in front of St. Blaise's Church in Mühlhausen - 17 August 2001.
- The monument in Ansbach, designed by Jurgen Görtz, was erected in July 2003.
Films about J.S. Bach
- Bach: The Fight for Freedom(1995, dir. S. Gillard, feature)
- Johann Bach and Anna Magdalena ("Il etait une fois Jean-Sebastien Bach")(2003, dir. Jean-Louis Guillermou, feature)
- Johann Sebastian Bach(series " Famous composers", documentary)
- Johann Sebastian Bach(series "German composers", documentary)
- Johann Sebastian Bach: life and work, in two parts (Culture TV channel, Y. Nagibin, documentary)
- Competition continues(1971, dir. N. Khrobko, teleplay)
- My name is Bach(2003, dir. Dominique de Rivaz, feature)
- Silence before Bach(2007, dir. Pere Portaella, feature)
- Johann Sebastian Bach's Vain Journey to Fame(1980, dir. V. Vikas, feature)
- Possible meeting(1992, dir. V. Dolgachev, S. Satyrenko, teleplay based on play of the same name; Cast: O. Efremov, I. Smoktunovsky, S. Lyubshin)
- Dinner for four(1999, directed by M. Kozakov, television feature; in the role of Bach - Evgeny Steblov).
- Chronicle of Anna Magdalena Bach(1968, dir. Daniel Huyet, Jean-Marie Straub, artistic, G. Leonhardt)
- Bach Cello Suite #6: Six Gestures(1997, dir. Patricia Rozema, feature)
- Friedemann Bach(1941, dir. Traugott Müller, Gustaf Gründgens, feature)
- Anton Ivanovich is angry(1941, dir. Alexander Ivanovsky, feature)
- Great Composers (BBC TV series)- The life and work of J.S. Bach, documentary (English), in 8 parts: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8
- Johann Sebastian Bach(1985, dir. Lothar Bellag, TV series, starring Ulrich Thein) (German)
- Johann Sebastian Bach(episode "Die Geschichte Mitteldeutschlands", season 6, episode 3, dir. Lew Hohmann, documentary) (German)
- The Cantor of St Thomas's(1984, dir. Colin Nears, feature) (English)
- The Joy of Bach(1980, documentary) (English)
