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| The name J.S. Bach is
almost synonymous in modern day with mastery of
baroque music composition. He is widely (or
universally) recognized as one of three giants of
the artform (along with Mozart and Beethoven).
Additionally, he was master of the church organ,
harpsichord, and an accomplished violinist. |
| Although quite
multitalented, musical composition was the
driving force of his life. Ironically, maybe
tragically, he achieved virtually no success or
professional recognition as a composer in his own
lifetime. Of the nearly one thousand musical
compositions currently listed in the Bach musical
catalog (BWV) only a dozen of these were
published in his lifetime. Furthermore, some of
those were printed at Bach's own expense. |
| In 1721 he
composed Six Concerts for Different
Instruments. The work was sent as a sample
(employment application) to Christian Ludwig, the
margrave of Brandenburg. Bach received no reply
back, and never got the job. The compositions
fortunately were stored, finally being published
in 1850, a full 100 years after Bach's death. As
a stunning example of the immense futility Bach
must have felt, these towering works now well
known as the Brandenburg Concertos
propelled Bach into baroque music immortality
postmortem, and the margrave of Brandenburg into
mists of history. Today there are 73 different
recordings of the famous work commercially
available. |
| There is much
debate over the lack of interest in his Bach's
music during his life. However, the consensus
is that many musicians at time time
considered his music technically challenging.
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| J. S. Bach began his
auspicious career in music at the age of fifteen
as an organ mechanic and tuner, moving from town
to town. He was quickly regarded as a talented
technician, and all through his life continued to
service his large collection of musical
instruments. |
| As noted Bach had no
ability to support himself through publishing,
(as opposed to his comtemporary Georg Handel,
considered a superstar) Bach resorted to a
variety of commercial enterprises to support his
large family. Some of the minor activities
involved selling music books and instruments, but
by far his greatest efforts were aimed at Music
on Demand. |
| This business involved
composing sometimes vastly complicated pieces of
music (for weddings, funerals etc.) on a few days
notice. With the burden of 20 children to
support, Bach seemed quite sufficiently
motivated. Indeed, it has been estimated that an
experienced music handwriter would need 40 years
to copy his life's work. |
| From a purely technical
prospective, Bach is considered to be the master
of the fugue. Fugues were very popular formats
for Baroque music, involving a sort of dialog
between instruments. |
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