Cantatas of Johann Sebastian Bach

Cantatas of Johann Sebastian Bach

Johann Sebastian Bach

Johann Sebastian Bach was born in Eisenach in Thuringia March 21, 1685; he was the eighth child of a family of musicians. Orphaned at age 9, he was raised by his older brother, organist Ohrdruf. He studied organ, harpsichord and Violon. When he turned 15 years old he was admitted to chorister at Luneburg, where he discovered the polyphonic vocal music.

Armstadt appointed Bach as an organist in 1703, Johann Sebastian Bach made a quick reputation as a virtuoso and improviser. His spirit of independence, his uncompromising mood was at the root of many of its movements for twenty years. So in 1717 he became Kapellmeister at the court of Cothen where he was a conductor, he then produced majority of his instrumental works including the keyboard.

His wife, Maria Barbara, died July 7, 1720. Bach married again in 1721 with Anna Magdalena Wilcken. He had 13 children of out of which only 6 survived. Several of his children became good composers, especially three of his children who were Wilhelm Friedmann, Carl Philipp Emanuel and Johann Christian.

In 1723, Johann Sebastian Bach accepted the post of Cantor at St. Thomas in Leipzig, where he remained until his death. It provided music education and composes religious music (cantatas, Passions, Oratorios). His final years were difficult, Bach began to lose his sight in 1743, and he underwent several surgical operations which had no effect. He died in Leipzig July 28, 1750.

Critical Assessment

Cantata BWV 4

Bach was one of the best composers who ever lived. He built every movement, as a variation on the coral of the same name, so that by the time the last movement was coral in its archetypal form. In fact, the song was the structure of each movement, and yet, every move is different from his brothers. Each movement consists of a vocal verse as a chorus of Bach's text. It reminds of a great jazz solo release amazing chorus after another.

Another interesting feature of Bach's treatment was of the song separate treatment of the last word of each verse of "Hallelujah." In essence, this creates a change in the variations.

Blocking the pre-opening instrumental symphonic music, Bach's oratorio has seven structures chiasm cal movement around Versus IV chorus:

• Chorus

• Duet

• Aria

• Chorus

• Aria

• Duet

• Chorus

The Symphony he uses his own musical melody of the chorale material, although this figure varies greatly with Bach. Main melody features the exploits of the opening half-step down, often for his musical symbols, which have suffered. Koopmans's symphony is much faster than I am used to, but it brilliantly shows, coral, unlike any other version I've heard.

Opening Choir is one of the greatest of Bach. The concept is separated from the body of choral preludes based on tunes, where you can hear the arguments of independent music that was stuck in long tune notes, as a well-known prelude by Bach, "Jesu, Joy of wanting a man." In these verses, Bach usually sets the ...