Tales of the Fugue and Other Baroque Music: A Look at J.S. Bach and F. Handel

The Baroque Period was an important time in musical history. Two men, Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frideric Handel, will always be remembered as the masters of music during this time period. Although both composers share many similarities to one another, there are also a multitude of differences that makes them both unique.

Johann Sebastian Bach was an influential composer and musician during the Baroque Period. He was born March 5th, 1685 in Germany to musical parents. In fact, he came from an entire line of musicians that usually made a living somehow with music. At age nine, he became an orphan and moved in with his oldest brother. He began his musical journey when his brother gave him his first keyboard lesson. Eventually Bach left his brother's home for Luneberg. It was here that Bach began singing and playing the organ. After her left Luneberg, he finally landed his first "real" job when we moved to Arnstadt in 1703. In Arnstadt Bach flawlessy and obsessively played the organ, winning him twice as much pay than other organists. Bach then went on to several other places, but for some reason he always stayed in the general vicinity of which he was born. In Mulhausen, in 1706, Bach won a coveted organist position for the city, and in turn began composing vocal church music. His very first "cantatas" turned out to be exceptional. When he tired of Mulhausen, he moved to Weimer, where he had much success. While there, he again took to his favorite instrument, the organ, and began composing masterpieces. He began writing several cantatas, all of which were brilliant. In fact, he wrote almost all of his eighteen organ compostions while in Weimer. Eventually Bach left for a few other places, then ended up in Leipzig, where was a director of music for St. Thomas Church. He lived out the rest of his life here. Some is his most famous works include "The Brandenberg Concerti", "The Art of Fugue", and "St. Mathew Passion". Ironically, most of Bach's work was not famous until 75 years after he died.