His full name is Johann Sebastian Bach, and he is well known for his German music compositions. Bach was born in Germany in 1685 and died in 1750 at the age of 65. Bach was many things apart from being a musician; he was an organist, organ building expert, and lastly, a well-renowned harpsichordist. Most of his achievements are those of music creation. For example, he was the creator of Mass in B Minor, Brandenburg Concertos, and The Well-Tempered Clavier, among others.
Eight interesting facts about j.s. bach
1. Married his cousin
Maria Barbara Bach was the first wife of Bach, with whom they had seven children together. Maria was Buch’s cousin. Two of his sons with Maria followed his music footsteps and composed music just like Bach.
2. Lost his parents at 10
His parents were Maria Elisabeth and Johann Ambrosius. His father was in the music industry, where he worked as a director of the town musicians. The Bach name was well associated with music, and that gave them a name back then. At the age of 9, Bach lost his mother, and nine months later, his father followed, leaving him an orphan at the age of 10.
3. Married twice
Bach married his first wife Maria in the year 1707 to 1720. His wife died while he was away with Prince Leopold. He was not able to bury or say goodbye to his wife because he was away for two months when she died. In 1921 however, Bach married his second wife, Anna Magdalena, with whom he sired most of the children with.
4. Fathered 20 children
With his first wife, Maria, Batch had seven children. His second wife, Anna, had thirteen children, but only ten children survived to be adults. From his first marriage, four children survived, while six made it in his second marriage.
5. Had eye surgery that made him blind
Bach had poor vision which made him decide to get eye surgery. Surgeon John Taylor operated on the musician twice in 1750. The first operation brought back his eyesight, but the reoccurrence of the problem led to another surgery that made him blind permanently. He died four months later within the same year.
6. Jailed for quitting his job
He worked as the chamber musician for the Duke of Saxe-Weimar’s court. He worked so hard with the hope that he would be promoted with time. Unfortunately, after five years of serving the Duke, Batch did not get the promotion. He was frustrated and decided to leave his work. The Duke, however, punished Buch by putting him in jail for four weeks.
7. Was a choir leader
As a musician, Bach was able to teach music lessons to congregations and individuals. In 1723, he led choirs in two of Leipzig’s churches.
8. Conductor of Court Orchestra
Upon his release, Bach became a court conductor where Prince Leopold used to play. The court was known as the famous court Orchestra.
Conclusion
J.S. Bach played a major role in the creation of classical music, which started with the creation of most of his baroque music. Despite his death, we live to remember him through his music.
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