Description

A comprehensive and fascinating study of the overall creative output of Johann Sebastian Bach, capturing the essence of his art. In this companion volume to his Pulitzer Prize-finalist biography, Johann Sebastian Bach: The Learned Musician, leading Bachscholar Christoph Wolff contextualizes his famous subject by delving deeply into the composer s rich collection of music. Emerging from this complex and massive oeuvre, Bach s Musical Universe is a focused discussion of a meaningful selection of compositions- from the famous Well-Tempered Clavier, violin and cello solos, and Brandenburg Concertos to the St. Matthew Passion, Art of Fugue, and B- Minor Mass. Unlike any study undertaken before, this book details Bach s creative process across the various instrumental and vocal genres, and centers on what the composer himself judiciously presented in carefully designed benchmark collections and individual works- all consequential to Bach s musical art. Tracing Bach s evolution as a composer, Wolff compellingly illuminates the ideals and legacy of this giant of classical music in a new, refreshing light for everyone, from the amateur to the virtuoso–