| Contents |
Prologue. Bach and the notion of "musical science" -- Springs of musical talent and lifelong influences: Eisenach, 1685-1695. Ambrosius Bach and his family ; In the ambience of home ; Town, court, school, and church -- Laying the foundations: Ohrdruf, 1695-1700. In the care of his older brother ; Sebastian's musical beginnings -- Bypassing a musical apprenticeship: from Luneburg to Weimar, 1700-1703. Choral scholar at St. Michael's in Luneburg ; Bohm, Reinken, and the Celle Court Capelle ; The interim: Thuringian opportunities ; Early musical achievements -- Building a reputation: organist in Arnstadt and Muhlhausen, 1703-1708. At the New Church in Arnstadt ; "First fruits" and the Buxtehude experience ; At the Blasius church in Muhlhausen -- Exploring "every possible artistry": court organist and Cammer Musicus in Weimar, 1708-1714. The first six years at the Ducal court ; Clavier virtuoso and organ expert -- Expanding musical horizons: concertmaster in Weimar, 1714-1717. A career choice ; Mostly music for "The heaven's castle" ; "Musical thinking": the making of a composer ; High and low points -- Pursing "the musical contest for superiority": capellmeister in Cothen, 1717-1723. Princely patronage ; Travels and trials ; A canon of principles, and pushing the limits -- Redefining a venerable office: cantor and music director in Leipzig: the 1720s. A Capellmeister at St. Thomas's ; Mostly cantatas ; "The great passion" and its context -- Musician and scholar: counterpoint of practice and theory. Performer, composer, teacher, scholar ; Music director at the university ; Professorial colleagues and university students ; Materials and metaphysics -- Traversing conventional boundaries: special engagements: the 1730s. At a crossroads ; Director of the collegium musicum and royal court composer ; The Clavier-Ubung project ; At the composer's desk -- A singing bird and carnations for the lady of the house: domestic and professional life. Family and home ; Balancing official duties and private business -- Contemplating past, present, and future: the final decade: the 1740s. Retreat but no rest ; The Art of Fugue, the B-Minor Mass, and a place in history ; The end ; Estate and musical legacy -- Epilogue. Bach and the idea of "musical perfection" -- Appendixes. Chronology ; Places of Bach's activities ; Money and living costs in Bach's time ; The Lutheran church calendar. |
