Biography
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), born in Eisenach into a vast musical dynasty, is the defining figure of the late Baroque and arguably the most comprehensive mind in the history of Western music. Bach served as church musician and Kapellmeister in successive positions at Arnstadt, Mühlhausen, Weimar, Köthen, and—from 1723 until his death—at the Thomaskirche in Leipzig. His works span every genre of his time except opera: the St Matthew and St John Passions, the B minor Mass, over 200 cantatas, the Well-Tempered Clavier, The Art of Fugue, the Brandenburg Concertos, and the Goldberg Variations. Bach's counterpoint, harmonic depth, and integration of sacred purpose with formal rigour established the foundational vocabulary of Western classical music. Bach died in Leipzig after a stroke following eye surgery. His reputation faded after his death but was decisively revived by Mendelssohn's 1829 performance of the St Matthew Passion in Berlin.
On Stagelog
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