Music Appreciation: Johann Sebastian Bach
Efthimios Mariakakis
Spring 99
Music Appreciation
Throughout the history of music, many great composers, theorists, and instrumentalists have left indelible marks and influences that people today look back on to admire and aspire to. No exception to this idiom is Johann Sebastian Bach, whose impact on music was unforgettable to say the least. People today look back to his writings and works to both learn and admire.
Bach, who came from a family of over 53 musicians, was nothing short of a virtuoso instrumentalist as well as a masterful composer. Born in Eisenach, Germany, on March 21, 1685, he was the son of a masterful violinist, Johann Ambrosius Bach, who taught his son the basic skills for string playing. Along with this string playing, Bach began to play the organ, which is the instrument he would later on be noted for in history. His instruction on the organ came from the player at Eisenach 's most important church. He instructed the young boy rigorously until his skills surpassed anyone 's expectations for someone of such a young age. Bach suffered early trauma when his parents died in 1695. He went to go live with his older brother, Johann Christoph, who also was a professional organist at Ohrdruf. He continued his younger brother 's education on the organ, as well as introducing him to the harpsichord. The rigorous training on these instruments combined with Bach 's masterful skill paid off for him at an early age (Geiringer).
After several years of studying with his older brother, he received a scholarship to study in Lunenburg, Germany, which is located on the northern tip of the country. As a result, he left his brother 's tutelage and went to go and study there. The teenage years brought Bach to several parts of Germany where he mainly worked as an organist in churches, since that was the skill he had perfected the best from his young training. However, a master of several instruments while still in his teens, Bach first found employment at the
Spring 99
Music Appreciation
Throughout the history of music, many great composers, theorists, and instrumentalists have left indelible marks and influences that people today look back on to admire and aspire to. No exception to this idiom is Johann Sebastian Bach, whose impact on music was unforgettable to say the least. People today look back to his writings and works to both learn and admire.
Bach, who came from a family of over 53 musicians, was nothing short of a virtuoso instrumentalist as well as a masterful composer. Born in Eisenach, Germany, on March 21, 1685, he was the son of a masterful violinist, Johann Ambrosius Bach, who taught his son the basic skills for string playing. Along with this string playing, Bach began to play the organ, which is the instrument he would later on be noted for in history. His instruction on the organ came from the player at Eisenach 's most important church. He instructed the young boy rigorously until his skills surpassed anyone 's expectations for someone of such a young age. Bach suffered early trauma when his parents died in 1695. He went to go live with his older brother, Johann Christoph, who also was a professional organist at Ohrdruf. He continued his younger brother 's education on the organ, as well as introducing him to the harpsichord. The rigorous training on these instruments combined with Bach 's masterful skill paid off for him at an early age (Geiringer).
After several years of studying with his older brother, he received a scholarship to study in Lunenburg, Germany, which is located on the northern tip of the country. As a result, he left his brother 's tutelage and went to go and study there. The teenage years brought Bach to several parts of Germany where he mainly worked as an organist in churches, since that was the skill he had perfected the best from his young training. However, a master of several instruments while still in his teens, Bach first found employment at the
Cited: Bettmann, Otto and Martin Bookspan. Johann Sebastian Bach as His World Knew Him. Carol Publishing Group. Secaucus, New Jersey. 1995. Chiapusso, Jan Geiringer, Karl and Irene Geiringer. The Bach Family, Seven Generations of Creative Genius. Oxford University Press. New York. 1954.