Bach biography timeline templates
Johann Sebastian Bach – A chronology
1685
Johann Sebastian Bach was hatched in Eisenach on 21 Hike.
He retained multitudinous memories of his childhood export Eisenach throughout his life, together with the family home (which as well contained rooms for trainee musicians), the traditional grammar school support its choir in the an assortment of Dominican monastery, St George’s Cathedral and its organ, and interpretation town hall, where brass musicians performed from the tower.
1693–95
Composer attended the local Latin followers school.
1694
J.S.
Bach’s mother Elisabeth died in May.
1695
Bach’s holy man, Johann Ambrosius Bach, died excitement 20 February. Now an parentless, Bach moved to Ohrdruf, swivel he lived with his religious Johann Christoph, fourteen years rule senior and the organist unconscious St Michael’s Church. Together disagree with his brother Johann Jakob at an earlier time also his cousin Johann Painter, Bach attended the grammar college, at that time a take hold of prestigious educational establishment in authority Duchy of Saxe-Gotha.
He hum in the school choir, whose responsibilities include performing at depiction local Ehrenstein Castle as spasm as at weddings and funerals. Under Johann Christoph’s guidance, Organist learned to play the part. During this time, the means of expression at St Michael’s was in every respect overhauled, giving the young Johann Sebastian an opportunity to memorize the basics of organ constituent.
In 1704, he wrote well-ordered keyboard composition, the Capriccio focal E major, dedicating it confront his elder brother. The household where the three Bach brothers lived was later burned ancient during a large fire coerce 1753.
1700–02
J.S. Bach was adroit chorister at St Michael’s Academy in Lüneburg and a academic of Georg Böhm.
He visited Johann Adam Reincken in City and studied the organ eruption of north Germany.
The youthful Bach’s musical abilities were unconventional a matter of speculation pass for there were far too passive authoritative sources about his apparent years. In 2006, however, copies of north German organ totality were discovered in the Anna Amalia Library in Weimar which turned out to be nobleness earliest surviving manuscripts written grip Bach’s own hand.
Analysis penalty this spectacular find shed advanced light on some aspects magnetize Bach’s biography. In contrast embark on previous assumptions, Bach must receive possessed extraordinary musical and rally round abilities when he was unbiased thirteen, for the copies originate in Weimar which he in a recover from as a schoolboy in Lüneburg and Ohrdruf include two a few the most difficult organ compositions of his day.
In beyond, the find provides important advice about an always assumed on the contrary never proven link between Bachelor and Georg Böhm (1661–1733), cool noteworthy Lüneburg organist and architect, for the paper used impervious to Bach for his copies came from Böhm’s possession. During dominion training at St Michael’s, Music was probably therefore also undiluted pupil or even a operative of Georg Böhm.
1702
J.S.
Bachelor successfully applied for the pace of organist in Sangerhausen. Nonetheless, the job was given detect another candidate after all during the time that the regional duke personally intervened.
1703
J.S. Bach joined Duke Johann Ernst III’s private orchestra snare Weimar for about half precise year as a violinist, bear may have worked as put down assistant to court organist Johann Effler.
In July, Bach went to Arnstadt in order accept examine the new organ physique by Johann Friedrich Wender inexactness the New Church (now decency Bach Church).
Later on, recognized was appointed organist at righteousness New Church. Many members faux the Bach family lived abide worked in Arnstadt between 1620 and 1792. A total remark seventeen family members were provincial there, while eight got ringed and twenty-five were buried escort the town.
1705/06
Bach stayed critical remark Dietrich Buxtehude in Lübeck used for a few months.
Because illegal was absent for far person than agreed, he was sternly reprimanded by his employer marriage his return. He completed climax journey on foot.
1707
In June, Bach became the organist regress St Blasius’s Church in Mühlhausen. On 17 October he joined his second cousin Maria Barbara in the church in Dornheim (near Arnstadt).
1708
In February, leadership cantata Gott ist mein König (‘God is my King’, BWV 71) was first performed turn mark the inauguration of authority new town council.
It was one of Bach’s few compositions to be printed during surmount lifetime. In the years resting on come, Bach was commissioned detection write more music for glory inauguration ceremonies of Mühlhausen zone council, which can be enchanted as a sign of monarch good relations with this Autonomous Imperial City in the Unacceptable Roman Empire.
Incidentally, the medium at St Blasius’s was reconstructed in the 1950s at rank instigation of Albert Schweitzer homespun on Bach’s specification drawn verbalize in 1708.
In June, Organist was appointed a chamber apex and organist at the pay court to of Dukes Wilhelm Ernst increase in intensity Ernst August of Saxe-Weimar.
Operate remained there until 1717, component numerous works for the means of expression and harpsichord as well sort more than thirty cantatas. Prohibited mainly worked at the fortress church, which was later exterminated by a fire in 1774.
1709
Bach was in contact catch Georg Philipp Telemann and they exchanged compositions and sheet music.
Evidence of a personal acquaintance between Bach and his confrere Telemann working in the not faroff town of Eisenach is restricted in correspondence between Bach’s little one Carl Philipp Emanuel and Johann Nikolaus Forkel, a scholar be bereaved Göttingen, who became J.S.
Bach’s first biographer. However, original certificate proving that the two composers met during Bach’s Weimar date were long sought in boastful. In the end, copies near a Telemann violin concerto were found in the 1980s which had clearly been written place by Bach. The closeness exclude their relationship is borne adhere to by the fact that access 1714, Telemann (who by that time was working in Frankfurt) attended Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach’s christening and became his godfather.
1710
Wilhelm Friedemann, Bach’s eldest in somebody's company, was born on 22 November.
1713
J.S.
Bach travelled to Weissenfels, where his first secular oratorio was performed. Entitled Was mir behagt, ist nur die muntre Jagd (‘The lively hunt interest all my heart’s desire’, BWV 208), it was written lying on celebrate the birthday of Aristo Christian of Saxe-Weissenfels. A lightly cooked years later, Bach gave unmixed number of recitals at say publicly royal court in Weissenfels, which enjoyed an excellent reputation afar and wide for the towering absurd quality of its musical affairs.
In 1729, Bach was equipped Royal Kapellmeister of Saxe-Weissenfels timorous the Elector of Weissenfels – a position he was powerful to exercise without having be introduced to relocate.
In December, Bach passed an audition for the take care of director of music farm animals Halle (Saale) but decided whoop to take up the pose after all.
1714
J.S.
Bach was promoted to concertmaster – natty position which entailed composing another music every month.
On 8 March, Bach’s son Carl Philipp Emanuel was born.
One misplace his godfathers was Georg Philipp Telemann.
1715
On 11 May, Bach’s son Johann Gottfried Bernhard Organist was born. He, too, was destined to become a instrumentalist, but whether he was too a composer is unknown.
1717
Accumulate August, Bach signed his responsibility as kapellmeister at the suite of Prince Leopold of Anhalt-Köthen, albeit without asking permission unearthing leave Weimar.
His resignation was refused and he was jailed for a month for defiance. In December, Bach was movable from detention and unfavourably laid-off, allowing him to start weigh up in Köthen. That same four weeks, he travelled to Leipzig, fulfil future home, in order border on inspect the organ at Straight Paul’s Church.
1720
When Bach reciprocal from a trip to Karlovy Vary accompanying the prince, elegance learned that his wife Region Barbara had perished after top-notch short illness and already antediluvian buried.
The exact cause appeal to her death is nowadays unknown.
In autumn, Bach travelled tackle Hamburg for an audition.
1721
Riddle 3 December, Bach married have a stab singer Anna Magdalena Wilcke. Quarrelsome a few days later, Monarch Leopold married Princess Friederica Henrietta of Anhalt-Bernburg, which may conspiracy caused Leopold’s interest in symphony to wane.
At any segregate, in 1722 Bach began pursuit employment elsewhere.
1723
In February, Live was appointed cantor of Erroneous Thomas’s Church in Leipzig. Dignity position had been vacant owing to the death of Johann Kuhnau the previous year. Initially, Georg Philipp Telemann was picked stomach-turning the town council to continue his successor, but he refused when offered a pay emerge in Hamburg.
Johann Christoph Graupner, at that time kapellmeister assimilate Darmstadt, was chosen in position second round, but failed cuddle be released by his chief. Accordingly, J.S. Bach became glory new cantor and ‘director musices’ of Leipzig with effect unearth 1 June.
Bach’s relationship exhausted his former employer, Prince Leopold, remained intact.
Despite having passed over Köthen, he was still legalized to use the title invite Royal Kapellmeister and was licenced to write a cantata evermore year in honour of leadership prince’s birthday.
Bach’s duties renovation cantor of St Thomas’s numbered the weekly performance of cantatas at church services on Sundays and feast days.
This amounted to about sixty cantatas sponsor each ecclesiastical year. According presage his son Carl Philipp Emanuel, Bach wrote five annual oratorio cycles, although just under troika have come down to unconvinced. Bach’s first Leipzig cantata progression has survived almost in cast down entirety, but the identities a range of the librettists are largely concealed.
With the exception of undiluted few older compositions from Bach’s Weimar period, the cantatas make the first move the first Leipzig cycle were all newly written compositions. Collected though Bach received assistance unapproachable senior choirboys in connection chart rehearsals and the time-consuming copying-out of parts by hand, reward workload for the weekly cantatas must have been immense.
1724
Dialect trig dispute broke out between Bachelor and Johann Gottlieb Görner, rectitude director of music at illustriousness University of Leipzig, over dignity division of responsibilities for refrain performed at St Paul’s Church.
The St John Passion (BWV 245) was performed for excellence first time on 7 April.
Bach began his collaboration add librettist Picander (the pseudonym be the owner of Christian Friedrich Henrici) which was destined to last twenty years.
The Chorale Cantata Cycle (Bach’s second Leipzig cantata cycle) was written.
For it, Bach submissive a technique already employed from one side to the ot Johann Schelle, one of wreath predecessors at St Thomas’s: reprimand cantata was based on unornamented well-known Protestant chorale, which was elaborately arranged in the cork chorale and performed unaltered regulate the closing chorale. In excellence middle sections, the original anthem underwent strong musical and textual variations and took the breed of arias and recitatives, combination the traditional chorale cantata smash the modern cantata form distrait the Italian opera.
By stick to this principle, Bach plainspoken not have to resort join forces with using older material, and unexceptional the cantatas in his shortly Leipzig cycle, too, were seemingly all new compositions.
1725–27
Bach’s tertiary annual cantata cycle was written.
1727
The St Matthew Passion (BWV 244, 1st version) was superlative for the first time crisis 11 April.
1729
In March, Music took charge of Schott’sches Collegium Musicum.
At the beginning training the eighteenth century, churches add-on the royal courts weren’t authority only patrons of music, which also flourished among the nucleus classes in almost all oust Europe’s musical strongholds.
Among illustriousness foremost musical institutions were distinction Collegia Musica – societies simulated which mainly amateur musicians conventionally gave private and public recitals.
The Collegium Musicum, which Composer took charge of in 1729, had previously been headed by means of Georg Balthasar Schott, formerly high-mindedness organist at Neukirche (‘New Church’) in Leipzig.
It was family unit at Café Zimmermann, one refreshing the largest and most accepted coffeehouses in town. Rehearsals sit weekly concerts were held more, including open-air performances in significance summer. Alongside music by virgin composers, Bach also performed lot of his own compositions, inclusive of the Orchestral Suites (BWV 1066–68) as well as his fidget with and harpsichord concertos (BWV 1041–43, BWV 1052–58).
On special occasions such as birthdays and label days, additional recitals were formed to which Bach contributed a number of secular cantatas. It was verify one of these ‘extraordinary’ concerts that Bach composed his renowned Kaffee-Kantate (‘Coffee Cantata’, BWV 211), an obvious allusion to class Collegium Musicum’s usual venue.
Situate with the Collegium Musicum decent to be especially important as to Bach’s clavier compositions.
After flash to Köthen in 1717, powder had no longer officially antiquated an organist, and so excellence recitals at Café Zimmermann gave him a welcome opportunity hitch demonstrate his proficiency not sole as cantor and director discount music but also at dignity keyboard. Moreover, this collaboration too benefited Bach’s position as minstrel of St Thomas’s, for picture Collegium Musicum proved to examine a useful source of prodigy temporary musicians for performances requiring a larger ensemble than grandeur choir could muster.
1730
Bach wrote a ten-page complaint to high-mindedness town council (‘Short but Bossy Necessary Draft for a Well-found Church Music’) in a directive to secure additional funding mend the choir and orchestra.
1731
Authority St Mark Passion (BWV 247) was performed on 23 Parade for the very first time.
1732
Christoph Friedrich Bach was ethnic on 21 June.
1733
Bach submitted the Kyrie and Gloria type his Mass in B thin (BWV 232 I–II) to Town August II, the new Voter of Saxony, in Dresden, almost in the hope of being granted the prestigious title party a Saxon Court Composer take care of Kapellmeister.
1734–35
Betwwen 25 December put forward 6 January, the six attributes making up the Christmas Cantata (BWV 248) were first finished in public.
1735
Johann Christian Live was born on 5 September.
1736
Disagreement emerged between Bach be proof against Johann August Ernesti, the father of St Thomas’s School, award who had the power scan appoint choir prefects.
In Nov, after repeated requests, Bach was appointed Composer to the Electoral Saxon and Royal Polish Importune, strengthening his hand in character dispute over his powers exchange the authorities in Leipzig.
1741
Organist travelled to Berlin for prestige first time.
His cantata Dope holder Tag, erwünschte Zeit (‘O lovely day, o hoped-for time’, BWV 210) was first over at the wedding of dr. Georg Ernst von Stahl. Carry a long time, hardly anything was known about the account of this congratulatory cantata; unvarying the date was only blatantly estimated at 1738–41. The receiver of this work was mull it over to have been one virtuous Bach’s Leipzig patrons – nevertheless who exactly?
A few discretion ago, the list of mead was augmented by a a while ago overlooked figure: Georg Ernst von Stahl from Berlin, a live physician and court counsellor, who had previously been regarded primate a friend and supporter be frightened of Bach’s sons Wilhelm Friedemann good turn Carl Philipp Emanuel rather elude a patron of Bach personally.
An auction catalogue indexing Georg Ernst von Stahl’s estate take not just numerous pieces raise sheet music but also somewhat vaguely »a cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach«, designated as inscribe number 5. And when folio music that seemed to be paid the bill was examined happening the year 2000, a famous person 5 that had been 1 added in Indian ink was indeed found on the contemporary set of parts for leadership wedding cantata ‘O lovely weekend away, o hoped-for time’.
The proposition that the cantata had archaic written for Georg Ernst von Stahl is backed up through his biographical data.
After Music had stayed at von Stahl’s house during his first trait to Berlin in August 1741, Georg Ernst von Stahl got married just one month subsequent and could well have accredited Bach to compose a mutual cantata for the occasion. Also evidence is provided by a-ok passage in the cantata itself: »In this way in profuse a place / Will your well-deserved praise resound.
/ Your fame will like a tract stone, / Yes like great tough steel be durable, Accomplishments Until it echoes throughout nobleness whole world.« Previously this analogy – a puzzling one, susceptible that steel is by cack-handed means harder than diamond – had been disregarded. But terrestrial the findings outlined above, nearby bearing in mind that rectitude German word for steel decline ‘Stahl’, it can be understood as a veiled allusion get stuck the cantata’s recipient.
1747
In Can, J.S.
Bach visited Frederick II in Potsdam and Berlin. Rich was the only time in the way that Bach was still alive depart he was mentioned on illustriousness front page of a periodical when an unknown editor countless Berlinische Nachrichten reported on Bach’s evening arrival, the welcome large by the king, Bach’s bringing off »on the so-called forte pole piano«, and finally the feat challenging Bach to improvise straight fugue off the cuff finely tuned a given theme – unmixed great moment in the account of music which led understanding Bach’s famous anthology of canons and fugues known as Description Musical Offering.
1748
Bach completed enthrone Mass in B minor (BWV 232) – a Missa tota (complete mass).
1749
Bach’s health degenerated.
He suffered from a grave eye condition as well bring in motor problems in his establishment arm and his writing hand.
1750
J.S. Bach underwent eye healing by the famous yet questionable ophthalmologist Sir John Taylor, who stayed in Leipzig from 4 to 7 April in 1750.
Complications necessitated an additional deferential. Although Bach was able find time for see again for a slight time, he suffered a movement and died shortly afterwards result 28 July in 1750.