Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750) was a German composer, organist and harpsichordist. He lived and worked in various German cities as both a church and a court musician. Bach is one of the greatest representatives of music of the Baroque period. His musical output is marked by incorporation of all the genres of his time (with the exception of opera and ballet). The composer combined the traditions of German culture, most notably, that of the Protestant chorale, with the achievements of the Austrian, Italian and French musical styles. An unsurpassed master of polyphony, he combines this manner with homophonic writing.
The leading genre in the legacy of Bach is the cantata, the dramaturgical principles of which were likewise applied to his masses and Passions. The “Hohe Messe” and the “St. Matthew Passion” became the culmination of several centuries of history of these genres. The most prominent position in the composer’s instrumental heritage is held by his music for organ. He revised and renewed the genres of the toccata, the fantasia, the passacaglia and the chorale prelude. Being a virtuoso performer, one of the greatest specialists in keyboard instruments, Bach wrote a vast amount of music for clavier. A central position is held by the two-volume “Well-Tempered Clavier”, a cycle of 48 Preludes and Fugues, combined into two books, each one containing 24 Preludes and Fugues. This presents the first artistic application in the history of music of the 12-note equal-tempered scale, which was developed at the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries, based on the division of the octave into 12 equal semitones. Bach is the composer of one of the first clavier concertos, the “Italian Concerto” (without orchestra), which asserted the significance of the clavier as an instrument for concertos.
Bach’s compositions for violin, cello, flute, oboe, chamber ensembles and orchestra – sonatas, suites, partitas and concertos – signify an expansion of expressive and technical means of the instruments and a universal quality of their rendition.
Only a small amount of Bach’s compositions had been published during his lifetime. The genuine scale of this genius, who exerted a great influence on the art of the successive decades, began to be perceived by musicians and music lovers only half a century after his death.
His musical output includes compositions for soloists, chorus and orchestra, including “St. John Passion,” “St. Matthew Passion,” the Mass in B minor and the cantatas; compositions for orchestra – 6 Brandenburg Concertos, concertos for solo instruments and orchestra; works for chamber ensemble; works for organ, including 6 organ concertos, Prelude and Fugue, Fantasy and Fugue, Toccata and Fugue and Chorale Preludes; works for clavier including 6 French Suites, 6 English Suites, 6 Partitas, “The Well-Tempered Clavier,” the “Italian Concerto,” the “Goldberg Variations;” works for other instruments, including those for violin (3 sonatas and 3 partitas) and cellos (6 suites); sacred songs and arias.
