Bach, Johann Sebastian
Born: March 21, 1685 in Eisenach, Germany
Died: July 28, 1750 in Leipzig, Germany
J.S. Bach was one of the greatest musicians the world has ever known. His work represents the essence of classical music. Many of his pieces determine the compositional rules which have been the framework for all Western music since his time. Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier remains is one of the staples of the keyboard literature, a group of pieces that all pianists learn and study. His Chorales (four-part short vocal pieces extracted from a variety of Bach sources) are studied by every Harmony student in the world. His cello suites and violin solo works are some of the most inventive and colorful pieces for a single instrument ever written. Bach's extraordinary compositional brilliance is shown in his Musical Offering and his The Art of Fugue. Bach's legacy to the musical world is one of the greatest genious and beauty. His music was forgotten after his death in 1750 until the 1830's when his music began to be published again. After people around the world began began to hear his music, his true ingenuity and incredible works were appreciated.
Links
http://www.jsbach.org/ - Complete works, recordings, and much more
http://odur.let.rug.nl/Linguistics/diversen/bach/intro.html - Illustrated bio, pictures, extensive bibliography
http://www.jsbach.net/bcs/index.html - An enormous catalog of Bach sites throughout the whole Web
IMA Articles
Bach, Johann Sebastian: Suite for Viola in G major, BWV 1012
Bach, Johann Sebastian: Cello Suites (Overview)
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