Long-Forgotten Johann Sebastian Bach Pieces Played for First-Ever Performance in Three Centuries

Historical organ composition
Bach is thought to have written the two organ pieces early in his career

Recently identified musical pieces by the musical genius Bach have been unveiled and played in the central European country for the first time in 320 years.

Germany's Cultural Affairs Minister the government representative called the discovery of the two pieces a "important event for the musical community".

They first caught the attention of Peter Wollny in 1992 when he was documenting historical musical documents at the Belgian royal collection.

The organ works - the D minor Chaconne and G minor Chaconne - were dating unknown and unsigned. The researcher spent the following three decades working to confirm the identity of the pieces.

Historic Performance

They were presented at the historic Leipzig church in the eastern German municipality, where the composer is buried and where he was employed as a church musician for twenty-seven years.

The compositions were executed by Dutch organist the renowned organist, who said he was privileged to be able to perform them for the first time in 320 years.

He said the pieces were "exceptionally well-crafted" and would be "a valuable resource for organists today, as they are also appropriate for more compact instruments".

Musical Importance

They are thought to have been written at the beginning of Bach's professional life, when he was working as an music instructor in the community of Arnstadt in central Germany.

Mr Wollny, who is now the director of the Bach Archive in the city, said they displayed several qualities particular to the composer.

"In terms of style, the compositions also feature elements that can be identified in the composer's creations from that era, but not in those of different artists," he said.

They are believed to have been recorded in the early eighteenth century by a student of Bach, the historical figure.

At a revealing of the works, Mr Wollny said he was "99.99% sure that Bach had created the two pieces" and they have now been incorporated into the official catalogue of his musical output.

Connected Subjects:
  • Europe
  • Germany
  • Orchestral works
  • Music
Larry Hale
Larry Hale

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