Johann Christian Bach

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Synopsis

German composer, organist, and teacher

  • Born in Leipzig, Germany on September 5 1735
  • Received his early education from his father J. S. Bach and Johann Elias Bach
  • 1749-50 was secretary to J.S. Bach
  • 1750 after his father's death, he went to Berlin to study composition and harpsichord with his brother Carl Philipp Emanuel.
  • 1755 he moved to Milan, Italy
  • There he studied with Padre Martini in counterpoint
  • 1760 Became second organist at the Milan Cathedral
  • December 1760 he premeired his Opera Seria Artaserse
  • He wrote more operas and sometimes neglecting his organist duties
  • 1762 He moved to London, England
  • He enjoyed the acquaintance of the royal family and patronage from aristocracy
  • Wrote very successful operas in London
  • 1763 appointed music master to the queen
  • 1764 shared lodging with Carl Friedrich Abel, a composer who had studied with JS Bach
  • They collaborated together on concerts that became known as the Bach-Abel concerts
  • 1764 Leopold Mozart came to London, and young Mozart played in court and admired JC Bach
  • They also played duets together
  • 1766 He is central to the development of the piano in London
  • He was in much demand as a teacher, composer and teacher
  • 1770 he was persuaded to play an organ concerto but was hissed at by the audience, possibly because of his deteriorating keyboard skills
  • 1772 he traveled to Mannheim to premiere his opera Temistocle which became a huge success
  • Died in London, England on January 1, 1782. Mozart said of his death, "a loss to the musical world"

His style of composing was softened from severe German to a softer Italian style, which he carried with him the rest of his life.

For details, see the Wikipedia article on Johann Christian Bach.

List of Organ Works

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Background and General Perspectives on Performing Johann Christian Bach Organ Works

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Registration and Organs

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See the footnote in the "Notes" section at the bottom of the page[1]

Fingering and Pedaling

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Articulation and Phrasing

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Ornamentation

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Tempo and Meter

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Scores and Editions

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Recordings

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Free Online

J.C. Bach - W YA50 - Fugue on BACH for organ in F major, performed by Franz Haselbock

Pay to Listen

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Other Resources

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Notes

  1. This footnote was entered in the "Registration and Organs" section

This space is for automatic insertion of footnotes. To enter a footnote from anywhere in the article, start by typing the tag <ref> and then enter the text, and type the tag </ref> to end the footnote. The footnote will then appear in this "Notes" section automatically.