The date of 21 March is commonly celebrated as the first day of the calendar spring, in schools it is associated with Truant’s Day, and in literary circles – with International Poetry Day. For lovers of baroque music, it is also an important day, because on 21 March one of the most important composers of the era was born – Johann Sebastian Bach. Today marks the 340th anniversary of the birth of the Leipzig cantor and teacher at the St. Thomas’ School. Wanting to celebrate this occasion, we have planned the publication of the entry Bach, Johann Sebastian by Elżbieta Dziębowska in the online Encyclopaedia of Music.
We currently associate Bach as a brilliant composer of organ and harpsichord pieces (Die Kunst der Fuge, Goldberg Variations, Das wohltemperierte Klavier), as well as countless cantatas and other vocal-instrumental works (passions, Mass in B minor). In his time, the author of the Toccata and Fugue in D minor was known primarily as an excellent organist and a rebellious court conductor and cantor (his relations with his employers in Arnstadt, Leipzig and Weimar were terminated in stormy circumstances; his second stay at the Weimar court even ended with Bach spending several weeks in prison). It was not until the 19th century that the composer’s work was rediscovered – the performance of the St. Matthew Passion conducted by F. Mendelssohn in Berlin on 11 and 21 March 1829 gained symbolic significance in this respect. Over time, Bach’s works became a test of the skills of subsequent interpreters, and are also the subject of endless analyses by researchers as evidence of their author’s extraordinary artistry.
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- Baptismal certificate of J.S. Bach, manuscript from 23.03.1685 from the registry book of the Georgenkirche in Eisenach.
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- Fragment of the musical notation of the cantata “Gott ist mein König” BWV 71 by J.S. Bach from 1708, published by T.D. Brückner.
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- Lithograph by A. Kneisel made around 1830, presenting a portrait of J.S. Bach from the “Kunst der Fuge” edition.
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- J.S. Bach playing for Frederick II, graphic based on a painting by R. Eichstaedt (late 19th century).
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- Division of the choir of the St. Thomas school into four choirs in order to serve five city churches.





