The early life of Sebastian Bach made him have a strong interest in music. For instance, he could stay long in church in Ohrdruf learning the organ and harpsichord and watching music composition by German organist composers such as Jacob Froberger, Johann Caspar Kerll and Pachelbel among others. He also attended a grammar school to study Greek, Latin and theology. He demonstrated his interest in music especially when he stole a musical manuscript from the German composers (Franklin, 2017). When he did so, his brother had to come in and punish him. He really liked music and wanted to learn more every day. In fact, many of his educators had high opinion of him and his abilities. For instance, their choir cantor, Elias Herda, saw Bach as a highly capable and discipline person who can get to greater heights in music.
The most outstanding quality Bach had was his excellent soprano voice. The voice he had allowed him get numerous opportunities in the music industry. For instance, he got the opportunity to be part of the wealthy Michaelis monastery in Luneburg. Due to this, he not only got a place to stay but also a rare opportunity to grow his musical knowledge and skills. He was received well in Luneburg after a long journey on foot because he had a good voice (Leaver, 2017). He formed part of the Mettenchor choir and had very many opportunities to sing. Bach took part in choral and orchestral performances. The choir was organized and full of highly qualified singers.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Moreover, Bach got the opportunity to study freely in a good library of music in the grammar school. The library offered him a decent place to spend his free time and grow his musical skills and knowledge. He wanted to master music and become one of the best music composers in the world. He had the opportunity to meet other renowned musicians such as Georg Bohn who was a student of Jan Adams Reinken. They influenced the way Bach looked at music. They gave him encouragements to further learn music because they saw great talent in him.
When he was almost eighteenth, he decided to search for employment. He got a job in a small town of Arnstadt. He had a large organ and his responsibility was to provide music to his congregation. He was also given opportunities to learn from great organists such as Dietrich Buxtehude in Lubeck. However, things got worse when he returned. He played music that the church did not like because of the surprising variations and unnecessary ornaments that made the melody worse and confused the congregation (Loewe, 2014). The church council did not like this but decided to give him more time because they knew and appreciated his talent. Due to this, Bach decided to move out of the town to St Blasius Church in Muhlhausen.
When he got to the town to take up his role, he had to pay high house rent. The reason for this is that the town had been destroyed by fire and it was difficult to find a decent house to live. He married Cousin Maria Barbara in Dornheim. The conflict between the orthodox Lutherans and pietists made him move to Weimar to work for the Duke of Weimar at his court chambers. He met and worked with very influential people. However, he later went to Cothen to work as a Capellmeister in the court of Anhalt-Cothen.
Bach went to Leipzig on May 22, 1723. He worked as a director of music and choir in the town. The coming of Bach into Leipzig was viewed by many as a good thing to happen to the music industry in the town. The people showed great respect and adoration to Bach and his talent. The Bach family at that time made up of his wife and four children age eight, nine, twelve and fourteen years of age (Peters, 2017). On May 31, 1723, they marked the inaugural ceremony for the new Capellmeister with the traditional speeches and anthems, putting an end to six unsettled months for the city in filling the post. The best recorded perfgormance of Bach in Leipzig is a cantata known as ‘Trauerode, BWV 198.
Bach was too much into music that he spent his last years revising great chorale fantasies like BWV 651-668. However, he realized he could not do much during his old age. The works that are attributed to Bach are many and include ‘The Well-Tempered clavier’, ‘Air on the G String’, ‘Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, BWV 565’, ‘Mass in B Minor’, ‘St Matthew Passion’, ‘Brandenburg Concertos’, ‘Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring’ ‘Ave Maria’ and ‘Musical Offering BWV 1079’ among others. The most outstanding feature of most of his works was that they were highly religious. He served mostly in religious settings and was himself a devoted Christian. In fact, he found it difficult to work in settings where Christian songs and values were not emphasized (Bach, n.d.). Due to this, Bach has grown to be a highly respected composer. The music he composed are very excellent especially because Bach was a devoted music composer who learned and practiced every skill he came across (Leaver, 2017). Nevertheless, he never missed his lowest moments. For instance, he was at times rejected for trying new ideas on his music. The people often felt like the move spoilt the music and made him look as a musical amateur.
Bach proved to be a highly unique and industrious musician. For instance, he chose to have his last days of his life in a darkened room (Franklin, 2017). He was editing his greatest chorale fantasias BWV 651-668. When he was doing this, his friend and helper Altnikol was present with him. The most interesting thing is that Altnikol was his dedicated student and loved being around Bach. Altnikol was also his son-in-law.
When revising, he ended up composing his last chorale fantasia that was based on the chorale "Before Thy Throne O Lord I Stand". Moreover, he was deeply engaged working on a fugue with the subject B-A-C-H (B in German notation is B flat, while H in German notation = B natural). There were many people who had asked him why he had not exploited this theme before. As a result, he was working to meet the demands of the people and also fulfill his musical dreams. Though he saw possibility to work on this theme, he reluctantly explained that it was not very necessary to work on it. In fact, he felt it was arrogant to do so.
The move to work on the theme was not successful as he died soon after starting to work on the theme. Nevertheless, he had achieved a lot as a musician (Bach, n.d.). He had many students and music to his name. There were many people who referred to him as a mentor and guide. The most outstanding thing, according to critics, is that Bach died in Christ. He died when serving God and thus illustrating further his determination to use music to praise God.
Conclusion
Sebastian Bach had a successful musical career. He got the best education and mentorship from highly experienced musicians. He got chances to work in different places. The fact he had a good voice and the desire to prosper in music gave him an edge over other musicians. There are many of his music that can be heard today (Franklin, 2017). He died in the evening of July 28, 1950. He was buried in the cemetery of St John’s without a tombstone. Due to this, his grave was fast forgotten. However, his music and contributions to the music industry remains to today. He showed musicians that it is possible for any individual to do well in the industry if they have the desire and the right mindset towards music. His hard work, even at old age is an evidence that Bach loved music and wanted to achieve more in the field. I find the life and contributions of Bach to the music industry an inspiration me. I like the way Bach avoided trouble by changing jobs. He did all he can never to offend anybody.
References
Bach, S. (n.d). Baroque Composers and Musicians: Johann Sebastian Bach. Retrieved on November 10, 2017 from
http://www.baroquemusic.org/biojsbach.html
Franklin, D.O. (2017). Reading Bach’s Notation: A Guide to the Temporal Structures of the 1733 Missa. Bach, 48 (1), 76-92.
Leaver, R. (2017). Bach Cantata: In print and Recordings. Bach, 48 (1), 93-114.
Loewe, A. (2014). Johann Sebastian Bach’s St John Passion (BWV 245). Series: Studies in the History of Christian Traditions, 168 (1), 1-20.
Peters, M. (2017). Johann Sebastian Bach’s Christmas Oratorio/Music, Theology, Culture. Bach, 48 (1), 125-130.
