Johann Sebastian Bach 600

As German family of musicians and composers, the Bachs achieved the height of their fame in the 17th and 18th centuries. Seven Bach generations achieved greater or lesser prominence in music from 1580 to about 1800. Of the group, Johann Sebastian Bach has been acclaimed as one of the giants of musical history.

Johann Sebastian Bach was born in Eisenach, Germany, on March 21, 1685. Or-phaned when he was ten, he was cared for by his eldest brother. In 1700 he became part of a select choir of poor boys at the school of the Michaelskirche, Luneburg. He held various musical posts, including that of organist at Arnstadt (170307), at Muhlhausen (1707-08), and at Weimar (1708-17). He was kapellmeister (music director) at Kothen from 1717 to 1723.

As an organist and choirmaster for Lutheran churches near his birthplace, Bach devoted his life to composing music for the church services. His incredible output marks the summit of the polyphonic, or contrapuntal, style.

Amazingly versatile and productive, he wrote magnificent music for the organ, for choral groups, for clavier and harpsichord, for orchestra, and for small groups of instru-ments. Bach was the master of the technique known as the fugue. In this, voices or in-strumental parts enter at different points, each imitating the first. After entering, however, each part is varied. The result is a very complex counterpoint.

Bach perfected the chorale-prelude, a contrapuntal composition based upon a cho-rale, or hymn tune, of the Lutheran church. Chorales were also used in Bach's cantatas--large works for a chorus of singers and accompanying instruments. Other compositions by Bach include a number of suites, whose various movements consist of dance rhythms of the 16th to 18th centuries--the allemande, courante, saraband, and gigue.

One of Bach's most famous works is `The Well-Tempered Clavier,' a collection of preludes and fugues (the prelude is a freer form than the fugue). It was written to show the advantages of the even-tempered method of tuning keyboard instruments. Also well known are the six `Brandenburg Concertos'.

Johann Sebastian Bach, 1685-1750 was famous as a master of the organ and other instruments during his lifetime. Johann Sebastian Bach's music was neglected after his death until the early 1800s. His works brought to a climax the baroque period during which many new forms and styles were developed. The "English Bach," Johann Christian Bach as a young man became a fashionable composer who deeply influenced English mu-sical life. In 1764, while he was serving as master of music to King George III, he and Carl Friedrich Abel started a popular series of concerts.

The youngest son of Johann Sebastian, Johann Christian Bach was born in Leipzig on Sept. 5, 1735. He received musical training from his half brother, Carl Philipp Emanuel. Johann Christian moved to Italy when he was 20. He studied in Bologna, converted to Roman Catholicism, and was named organist of the Milan Cathedral in 1760. Johann Christian died in London on Jan. 1, 1782.

Bach wrote literally thousands of compositions, many for use in churches or in in-struction. Combining elements of the Lutheran chorale, the French and Italian orchestral styles, and baroque organ music, Bach produced the `Brandenburg' concertos (1721) for orchestra, `The Well-Tempered Clavier' (1722-44) for keyboard, the `St. John' (1723) and `St. Matthew' (1729) passions, nearly 200 cantatas, the `Mass in B Minor' (completed about 1738), and hundreds of others.

Married twice, Bach fathered 20 children. In 1723 he accepted the posts of cantor of the Thomaskirche school and director of church music for the city of Leipzig, Germany. He died in Leipzig on July 28, 1750.