Johann Sebastian Bach is a famous German composer, one of the brightest representatives of the Baroque era in music. He became famous as a skilled writer and masterly performer of organ music. In addition, the musician was also a talented teacher and led concert groups.
Briefly about the composer
During his lifetime, Johann Sebastian did not receive recognition, and only after almost a century began to show interest in his works. Perhaps, nothing of the music of the Baroque period is now enjoying such popularity as the works of Bach. A list of the years of these works should be compiled taking into account the main stages of the author's work. Subsequently, the work of the master entered the golden fund of timeless classics and is still popular, firmly entering the repertoire of concert performances.
The beginning of creativity
Bach, whose list of works is the subject of an interesting review, was born in a musical family: his father, older brother and sister were musicians. From childhood, the future composer showed an amazing talent for learning to play the violin. Even in his youth, he was seriously carried away by the works of famous composers, did not miss the chance to listen to famous masters, constantly studied, replenishing his knowledge.
Very soon, he showed himself to be a talented organist. He perfectly mastered playing this instrument, so the musicians even began to turn to him for advice. Bach, whose list of works can be opened by mentioning the works for organ, imitated the famous composers of his time, but at the same time supplemented the scores with folk melodies, trying to give it a national sound.
The first works of the composer were chorales, hymns and preludes for organ. These works are distinguished by a solemn, majestic character. However, Bach's works, the list of which was constantly updated, were diverse in their processing: his early toccata and fugue have a colorful, dramatic sound.
Weimar period (1708-1717)
The heyday of the composer's creative career began at a new place in his work, when he received the court position of organist and musician under one of the German dukes. Here, for the author, the optimal conditions for creativity were formed: he was free to choose the subject and worked with a very good orchestra.
It was during this period that he created his famous cycle of fugues, which made up the first volume of his famous work, The Well-Tempered Clavier. None of the musicians of the time was such a virtuoso of organ art as Bach was. The list of works by the composer was constantly expanding: he worked a lot, composing choral preludes and reworking the concerts of Italian composers. Nine years later, Johann leaves the place of old work and goes in search of a new one.
In Kothen
The patron of the composer was the prince, who loved music and appreciated the talent of the composer. He gave him the position of bandmaster and gave him greater freedom of action. Bach's works, the list of which was replenished with works of a secular nature, received approval and recognition. He composed clavier music, suites on French and English themes, more than two dozen preludes, as well as fugues. The creation of the famous Brandenburg concerts dates back to the same time. These days they are usually performed by chamber orchestras.
He also composed several concerts. Bach, whose list of works at that time often consisted of works of an entertaining nature, created sonatas and solo performances for violin and flute, which looked like funny songs. Despite this, in his concerts, each instrument received an independent sound.
Religious music
At that time, Johann Sebastian Bach was already one of the most famous composers in Germany. Works, the list of which now included religious music, grew rapidly. The author wrote several masses on Gospel stories, which are considered one of the best in the composer's work. As the musical director of the city’s churches, he created a cycle of cantatas for worship based on Protestant choirs. Separately, mention should be made of “Mass in B Minor,” in which the author partially used excerpts from his best cantatas.
Secular melodies
However, secular, entertaining compositions continued to occupy a prominent place in his work: Johann Sebastian Bach assigned them special significance. The works, the list of which quickly increased due to melodies composed especially for the author’s music assembly, were included in the treasury of the world repertoire. They are admired to this day. Bach, whose list of works was constantly updated with a wide variety of works, at that time created his famous “Coffee Cantata”, as well as a series of concerts for cello and harpsichord.
In the late 1740s, the composer wrote a new cycle, consisting of trios, ricercars and canons, which he presented to the king under the title “Musical Offering”. At the same time, he composed a series of fugues in which his art of creating polyphony was especially vividly manifested. This work did not see the light during the life of the author and was published after his death by the sons of the composer.
Features of works
The most famous works of Bach, the list of which was presented above, reflect the characteristic features of his melodies. The composer is deservedly recognized as a master of polyphony: his fugues, sonatas amaze with rich sound, drama, color and variety of sounds. During his lifetime, he was considered an unsurpassed master of organ playing. Then none of the composers could compare with him in this form of art.
Another feature of Bach’s work is that he worked in all famous musical genres of the 18th century, with the exception of opera. However, her motives are still present in a number of his choral works. The author skillfully combined the achievements of northern and southern composers in Western Europe. A great influence on him had the work of German, Italian and French musicians.
Bach skillfully combined their melodies, often reworking the works of other composers. Often he edited his own works, which later became the so-called covers, independent and original. He also successfully composed clavier compositions. Many of them became a kind of guide for writing and performing polyphonic music: Bach's experience introduced students to the technique and more advanced techniques for working with musical instruments (clavier exercises).
The meaning of the composer's works
There is a fairly common point of view that after the death of Bach was forgotten. However, this is not so: his organ music and chorales continued to sound in churches and have not lost their significance to this day. But the fact is that the Baroque era was replaced by classicism, which focused not on polyphony, but on harmony. Therefore, indeed, many young composers began to consider Johann Sebastian's music obsolete.
But such famous authors as Beethoven and Mozart often admired the work of their great predecessor. Both studied at his work, which had a great influence on their work. Today, the composer's works are an integral part of concert performances, and the same work may sound in different versions, since not all Johann's scores contain complete information about instrumentation. Bach's works, a list in Russian of which was presented in the article, is only a short list of the works of this outstanding composer and music teacher.