J.S. Bach Assignment
Date: 12 November 2021
Student: Tatum Thomas (219001981)
Lecturer: Dr Andrew Warburton
, German composer, Johann Sebastian Bach, was instrumental in establishing Western Classical
music principles. His unique music works and compositions influenced composers after him.
Bach intertwined himself with the music, particularly seen in his vocal music works.
In March 1685, Johann Sebastian Bach was born in the small town of Eisenach, Germany.
Music ran in Bach’s blood, almost as if inherited due to a large number of virtuosos in his family
200 years before him. The family name of Bach evolved to mean ‘musician’ to the German folk
in their community. At a point, J.S. Bach became interested in his ancestral history and its link
to music. He discovered that his great-great-grandfather, Veit Bach, was a Lutheran baker who
would play his cittern in tempo to the mill’s grinding sound. His ancestor had experienced
religious persecution and died in the early 17th century. While J.S. Bach’s strong Christian faith
remained and was influential to his style; he had a traumatic childhood that directed his music
playing and compositions.
When Bach was nine years of age, his mother, Elisabeth Lämmerhirt, died. Shortly afterward, his
father, Johann Ambrosius Bach, remarried then died shortly after. Thereafter, young Bach and his
brother, Johann Jacob Bach, moved in with their older brother, Johann Christoph Bach.
Christoph was an organist at Ohrdruf and his first keyboard teacher. J.S. Bach studied,
performed, and copied music during this time. Even though copying music was forbidden due to
the rarity of sheet music and the high value of composers' works, he managed to gain access to
them. He had copied scores at night by candlelight, which some believe is the reason for the
short-sightedness he developed later on. J.S. Bach’s brother was also an organ repairman,
suggesting that young Bach learned about organ building during his time in Ohrdruf.
From 1692 he attended the Lateinschule whose focus was on humanistic and theological
education. During the Easter of 1693, he came 47th in the fifth class but rose to 14th over the
years. By 1695, he was 23rd in the fourth class, but was absent relatively frequently; 103
half-days of absenteeism were probably due to illness and the trauma of his parents’ deaths.
Bach’s brother had started a family and new living arrangements were organised by him and
Elias Herda, Kantor and a master at the Lyceum. Herda attended a school at Lüneburg and
arranged for Sebastian to head north. So, fifteen-year-old Bach, along with a friend, Georg
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Date: 12 November 2021
Student: Tatum Thomas (219001981)
Lecturer: Dr Andrew Warburton
, German composer, Johann Sebastian Bach, was instrumental in establishing Western Classical
music principles. His unique music works and compositions influenced composers after him.
Bach intertwined himself with the music, particularly seen in his vocal music works.
In March 1685, Johann Sebastian Bach was born in the small town of Eisenach, Germany.
Music ran in Bach’s blood, almost as if inherited due to a large number of virtuosos in his family
200 years before him. The family name of Bach evolved to mean ‘musician’ to the German folk
in their community. At a point, J.S. Bach became interested in his ancestral history and its link
to music. He discovered that his great-great-grandfather, Veit Bach, was a Lutheran baker who
would play his cittern in tempo to the mill’s grinding sound. His ancestor had experienced
religious persecution and died in the early 17th century. While J.S. Bach’s strong Christian faith
remained and was influential to his style; he had a traumatic childhood that directed his music
playing and compositions.
When Bach was nine years of age, his mother, Elisabeth Lämmerhirt, died. Shortly afterward, his
father, Johann Ambrosius Bach, remarried then died shortly after. Thereafter, young Bach and his
brother, Johann Jacob Bach, moved in with their older brother, Johann Christoph Bach.
Christoph was an organist at Ohrdruf and his first keyboard teacher. J.S. Bach studied,
performed, and copied music during this time. Even though copying music was forbidden due to
the rarity of sheet music and the high value of composers' works, he managed to gain access to
them. He had copied scores at night by candlelight, which some believe is the reason for the
short-sightedness he developed later on. J.S. Bach’s brother was also an organ repairman,
suggesting that young Bach learned about organ building during his time in Ohrdruf.
From 1692 he attended the Lateinschule whose focus was on humanistic and theological
education. During the Easter of 1693, he came 47th in the fifth class but rose to 14th over the
years. By 1695, he was 23rd in the fourth class, but was absent relatively frequently; 103
half-days of absenteeism were probably due to illness and the trauma of his parents’ deaths.
Bach’s brother had started a family and new living arrangements were organised by him and
Elias Herda, Kantor and a master at the Lyceum. Herda attended a school at Lüneburg and
arranged for Sebastian to head north. So, fifteen-year-old Bach, along with a friend, Georg
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