Facts about Bach

1. 07

   Bach's handwriting was so precise and elegant that his manuscript scores remain among the finest examples of musical notation calligraphy from the Baroque era.

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2. 06

   Approximately 170 church cantatas by Bach were lost after his death in 1750 because they were considered unmarketable and were recycled as waste paper by his heirs.

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3. 05

   Severe eye surgery in 1750 left Bach nearly completely blind during his final years, yet he continued composing music until his death at age 65.

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4. 04

   The Art of Fugue, Bach's final masterwork left incomplete at his death in 1750, comprises 14 fugues and 4 canons all built from a single musical theme.

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5. 03

   Over 1,000 compositions flowed from Bach's pen across his 65-year lifetime, including 295 church cantatas, 48 preludes and fugues, and numerous suites and concertos.

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6. 02

   Twenty of Johann Sebastian Bach's twenty children became notable composers themselves, including Wilhelm Friedemann, Carl Philipp Emanuel, and Johann Christian Bach.

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7. 01

   In 1747, Frederick the Great of Prussia invited Johann Sebastian Bach to Potsdam, where the 62-year-old composer improvised a fugue on the king's theme for flute.

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