One of the greatest composers of all time.

Johann Sebastian Bach

Picture from jsbach.org

In his time, Bach was best know for playing the organ

Bach mastered the organ, as well as the harpsichord and the violin

Who was Johann Sebastian Bach?

Picture from communio.stblogs.org

Bach is credited with 1128 compositions, the latest of these discovered in March of 2008

One of Bach’s works, Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring (heard here), is a traditional wedding song often used today

His compositional style, which included religious & numerological symbols, amazes today’s musicians

Who was Johann Sebastian Bach?

Audio by amclassical.com

Johann Sebastian Bach was born March 21, 1685 in Germany

Was taught by his father to play the violin & harpsichord

Was taught by his uncle to play the organ

At the age of 8, he was recognized for his “uncommonly fine treble voice”

Early Years of Bach

When Bach was 9 his mother died, & his father died just 9 months later

He was taken in by his eldest brother who became his harpsichord and organ teacher

At 15, Bach’s “excellent voice” landed him a spot in the choir of Michael’s School in Luneburg, Germany

As Bach was growing up, he learned a lot about building organs and how they worked

Early Years of Bach

Bach’s Adult LifeIn 1706, Bach married his cousin Maria Barbara, with whom he fathered 7 children

The year following Maria Barbara Bach’s sudden death in 1720, Bach remarried to Anna Magdalena

Anna Magdalena Bach bore J. S. Bach 13 children

Of Bach’s 20 children, 10 of them died in infancy and 4 of them became well-known composers

Picture from Wikipedia

Bach also wrote several poems

Bach’s Adult Life

An Easter Blessing

Bless this day the joy of life, The revelation of the flesh,The paradise of man and wifeJoined to share the gift of bliss.

Bless this day the pain of life,The passion that redeems the flesh,The love between a man and wifeBeyond all agony and bliss.

Bless this day the end of life,The peace within the dying flesh,The bond between a man and wife That long outlasts their bit of bliss.

Bless this day the whole of life, The grace of being more than flesh,The voyage of a man and wife Across the mystery of bliss.

Poem from poemsforfree.com

Bach’s Adult LifeBach was a devout Lutheran and composed

several works for the church

Near the end of 1749, Bach’s eyesight was declining

He had surgery preformed by a traveling surgeon which led to complete blindness

Even after Bach became blind, he still composed by dictating to a pupil

Bach is know for Christian and secular compositions

St. Matthew Passion St. John PassionChristmas OratorioThe Well-Tempered ClavierBrandenburg ConcertosFantasia super: Komm, Heiliger Geist, Herre

GottAnd too many more to mention

Bach’s Work

Seen here, in Bach’s own handwriting, is his ViolinSonata No. 1 in G minor

Picture from Wikipedia

Johann Sebastian Bach died on July 28, 1750 due to a stroke

Bach was buried at St. Thomas’ Church in Leipzig, Germany

Bach’s death marks the end of the Baroque Age of music

Bach’s Death

Photo from sacred-destinations.com

Bach was know for his “complete mastery of major and minor tonality” which developed in the Baroque Age

Bach also employed an exaggerated expressiveness which developed in his time

The Baroque was an age of master musicians, Bach fits into that category

Why Bach is Baroque

Clip Art from Microsoft Office 2010

Bach’s legacy will live on throughout all time.

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“Johann Sebastian Bach.” A-M Classical. 8 Dec. 2010. Web. 3 Apr. 2011. http://www.amclassical.com/bach.shtml

“Johann Sebastian Bach.” Baroque Music. N.d. Web. 3 Apr. 2011. http://www.baroquemusic.org/bqxjsbach.html

“Johann Sebastian Bach.” Tile.net. N.d. Web. 7 Apr. 2011 http://tile.net/tile/bach/

“Johann Sebastian Bach.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 3 Apr. 2011. Web. 3 Apr. 2011. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Sebastian_Bach#Works

Koster, Jan. J.S. Bach Home Page. N. d. Web. 3 Apr. 2011. http://www.jsbach.org/biography.html

Matthews, Roy T., F. DeWitt Platt, & Thomas F. X. Noble. The Western Humanities: Seventh Edition. New York: McGraw Hill, 1992. Print.

Sherrane, Robert. “The Baroque Age: Johann Sebastian Bach.” IPL2: Information You Can Trust. N.d. Web. 3 Apr. 2011. http://www.ipl.org/div/mushist/bar/bach.html

“Thomaskirche, Leipzig.” Sacred Destinations. N.d. Web. 4 Apr. 2011. http://www.sacred-destinations.com/germany/leipzig-thomaskirche.htm

Zalonski, Paul. “Johann Sebastian Bach: 259th anniv of death.” Communio. 28 July 2009. Web. 3 Apr. 2011. http://communio.stblogs.org/2009/07/johann-

sebastian-bach-259th-an.html

Works Cited