The concerto closes with a flashy third movement, in which one violin seems to chase the other, just a fraction of a step behind all the way through, making for a thrilling and energetic finale.
Both collections contain a prelude and accompanying fugue, written in all 24 major and minor keys of the Western music scale. Bach wrote two choral oratorios based on the Passion, or final period, of the life of Jesus in Christianity. Another piece attributed to Bach is the slightly terrifying Toccata and Fugue in D minor. Composed for the organ , the piece opens with a spine-tingling flourish at the top of the keyboard, which descends from its lofty heights into a cascade of furious, virtuosic organ writing that never fails to stun.
In the B Minor Mass, Bach set the Christian liturgy in one of the most enduring sacred choral works in classical music history. It calls for the violinist to play dramatic spread chords from the very beginning — but in such a way as to make them feel suspended, and achingly tense. Apparently at his own initiative, Bach attended St. Bach had four composer sons. He is now generally regarded as one of the greatest composers of all time.
His uncles were all professional musicians, whose posts included church organists, court chamber musicians, and composers. One uncle, Johann Christoph Bach —93 , introduced him to the organ, and an older second cousin, Johann Ludwig Bach — , was a well-known composer and violinist.
Bach, aged 10, moved in with his oldest brother, Johann Christoph Bach — , the organist at St. He received valuable teaching from his brother, who instructed him on the clavichord. Also during this time, he was taught theology, Latin, Greek, French, and Italian at the local gymnasium.
At the age of 14, Bach, along with his older school friend Georg Erdmann, was awarded a choral scholarship to study at the prestigious St. Although it is not known for certain, the trip was likely taken mostly on foot. His two years there were critical in exposing him to a wider facet of European culture. He came into contact with sons of aristocrats from northern Germany sent to the highly selective school to prepare for careers in other disciplines.
In January , shortly after graduating from St. His role there is unclear, but likely included menial, non-musical duties. During his seven-month tenure at Weimar, his reputation as a keyboardist spread so much that he was invited to inspect the new organ, and give the inaugural recital, at St. In August , he became the organist at St. Despite strong family connections and a musically enthusiastic employer, tension built up between Bach and the authorities after several years in the post.
Bach was dissatisfied with the standard of singers in the choir, while his employer was upset by his unauthorized absence from Arnstadt; Bach was gone for several months in —06, to visit the great organist and composer Dieterich Buxtehude and his Abendmusiken atSt. The visit to Buxtehude involved a kilometer mi journey each way, reportedly on foot. In , Bach was offered a post as organist at St. BWV on this portrait was dedicated to the Society. Other late works by Bach may also have a connection with the music theory based Society.
One of those works was The Art of Fugue , which consists of 18 complex fugues and canons based on a simple theme. The Art of Fugue was only published posthumously in Consisting mainly of recycled movements from cantatas written over a thirty-five year period, it allowed Bach to survey his vocal pieces one last time and pick select movements for further revision and refinement.
On 28 July Bach died at the age of Modern historians speculate that the cause of death was a stroke complicated by pneumonia. In , it was published by Lorenz Christoph Mizler in the musical periodical Musikalische Bibliothek. He was originally buried at Old St.
His grave went unmarked for nearly years. In , his remains were located and moved to a vault in St. Thomas Church. Later research has called into question whether the remains in the grave are actually those of Bach. Initially he was remembered more as a virtuoso player of the organ and as a teacher. During the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century, Bach was recognized by several prominent composers for his keyboard work.
During the 20th century, the process of recognizing the musical as well as the pedagogic value of some of the works continued, perhaps most notably in the promotion of the cello suites by Pablo Casals, the first major performer to record these suites.
Another development has been the growth of the historically informed performance movement, which attempts to take into account the aesthetic criteria and performance practice of the period in which the music was conceived. Examples include the playing of keyboard works on harpsichord rather than modern grand piano and the use of small choirs or single voices instead of the larger forces favored by nineteenth- and early twentieth-century performers.
During the 20th century, many streets in Germany were named and statues were erected in honor of Bach. Bach was best known during his lifetime as an organist, organ consultant, and composer of organ works in both the traditional German free genres—such as preludes, fantasias, and toccatas—and stricter forms, such as chorale preludes and fugues.
At a young age, he established a reputation for his great creativity and ability to integrate foreign styles into his organ works. Around this time, Bach copied the works of numerous French and Italian composers to gain insights into their compositional languages, and later arranged violin concertos by Vivaldi and others for organ and harpsichord. During his most productive period —14 he composed about a dozen pairs of preludes and fugues, five toccatas and fugues, and the Little Organ Book , an unfinished collection of forty-six short chorale preludes that demonstrates compositional techniques in the setting of chorale tunes.
Bach was extensively engaged later in his life in consulting on organ projects, testing newly built organs, and dedicating organs in afternoon recitals.
Bach wrote for single instruments, duets, and small ensembles. Many of his solo works, such as his six sonatas and partitas for violin BWV — , six cello suites BWV — , and partita for solo flute BWV , are widely considered among the most profound works in the repertoire.
Bach composed a suite and several other works which have been claimed since for the solo lute, but there is no evidence that he wrote for this instrument. He wrote trio sonatas; solo sonatas accompanied by continuo for the flute and for the viola da gamba; and a large number of canons and ricercars, mostly with unspecified instrumentation.
These works are examples of the concerto grosso genre. They vanished for years from the repertoire, only to be rediscovered and subsequently celebrated when the great Catalan cellist Pablo Casals began to play them, proving that they were not, as previously thought by some, merely studies. The suites have daunted players and delighted audiences ever since. They turn the cello into a veritable orchestra, and range from the gloriously affirmative No.
The listener never desires accompaniment with any of these pieces, as the violin is placed in the spotlight so compellingly. Featuring two violinists with a simple string-and-harpsichord accompaniment, it is particularly beloved for its rhapsodic slow movement shamelessly plundered by myriad film directors for moments of high emotion , in which the two soloists entwine confidingly, sounding more like singers than instrumentalists.
This contrasts with the energetic outer movements in which the two players brilliantly spark off each other. Discover more of our composer best works. Do you want to be the first to hear the latest news from the classical world? Follow uDiscover Classical on Facebook and Twitter.
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