All Topics  
Johann Christian Bach

 
Johann Christian Bach

   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link






 

Johann Christian Bach



 
 
Johann Christian Bach (September 5, 1735 – January 1, 1782) was a composer
Composer

A composer is a person who creates music, usually in the medium of musical notation, for interpretation and performance. The level of distinction between composers and other musicians varies, which affects issues such as copyright and the deference given to individual interpretations of a particular piece of music....
 of the Classical era, the eleventh and youngest son of Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach

Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer and organ whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque music period and brought it to its ultimate maturity....
. He is sometimes referred to as 'the London Bach' or 'the English Bach', due to his time spent living in the British capital.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Johann Christian Bach'
Start a new discussion about 'Johann Christian Bach'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


Johann Christian Bach
Johann Christian Bach (September 5, 1735 – January 1, 1782) was a composer
Composer

A composer is a person who creates music, usually in the medium of musical notation, for interpretation and performance. The level of distinction between composers and other musicians varies, which affects issues such as copyright and the deference given to individual interpretations of a particular piece of music....
 of the Classical era, the eleventh and youngest son of Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach

Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer and organ whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque music period and brought it to its ultimate maturity....
. He is sometimes referred to as 'the London Bach' or 'the English Bach', due to his time spent living in the British capital. He is noted for influencing the concerto style of Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Mozart showed prodigious ability from his earliest childhood in Salzburg. Already competent on keyboard and violin, he composed from the age of five and performed before European royalty; at seventeen he was engaged as a court musician in Salzburg, but grew restless and traveled in search of a better position, always...
.

Johann Christian Bach was born to Johann Sebastian
Johann Sebastian Bach

Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer and organ whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque music period and brought it to its ultimate maturity....
 and Anna Magdalena Bach
Anna Magdalena Bach

Anna Magdalena Bach was the second wife of Johann Sebastian Bach....
 in Leipzig, Germany. His distinguished father was already 50 at the time of his birth, which would perhaps contribute to the sharp differences between his music and that of his father. Even so, his father first instructed him in music until he died. After his father's death, when Johann Christian was 15, he worked with his second oldest brother Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach

Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach was a Germany musician and composer, the second of five sons of Johann Sebastian Bach and Maria Barbara Bach. He was one of the founders of the Classical music era style, composing in the Galante music and Classical periods....
, considered at the time to be the most musically gifted of Bach's sons.

He enjoyed a promising career, first as a composer then as a performer playing alongside Carl Friedrich Abel, the notable player of the viola da gamba. He composed cantatas, chamber music, keyboard and orchestral works, operas and symphonies.

Bach lived in Italy for many years starting in 1756, studying with Padre Martini in Bologna
Bologna

Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna in northern Italy, in the Po Valley , between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, exactly between the Reno River and the S?vena River....
. He became organist at the Milan cathedral in 1760. During his time in Italy he converted from Lutheranism
Lutheranism

Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the teachings of the sixteenth-century Germans Reformer Martin Luther....
 to Catholicism
Roman Catholic Church

The Roman Catholic Church, officially known as the Catholic Church is the world's largest Christianity Ecclesia , representing over half of all Christians and one-sixth of the world population....
. In 1762, Bach travelled to London to première three operas at King's Theatre
Her Majesty's Theatre

Her Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre, located in the Haymarket, in the City of Westminster. The present building was designed by Charles J....
, including Orione on 19 February 1763. This established his reputation in England, and he became music master to Queen Charlotte.

He met soprano Cecilia Grassi in 1766 and married her shortly thereafter. Although she was eleven years younger than Bach, they had no children.

Johann Christian Bach died in London on New Year's Day, 1782.

Posthumous evaluation


Although Bach's fame declined in the decades following his death, his music still showed up on concert programmes in London with some regularity, often coupled with works by Haydn. In the 19th century, scholarly work on the life and music of Johann Christian's father began, but this often led to the exaltation of J. S. Bach's music at the expense of that of his sons; Phillip Spitta claimed towards the end of his J. S. Bach biography that "it is especially in Bach's sons that we may mark the decay of that power which had culminated [in Sebastian] after several centuries of growth" (Spitta, Vol. 3, p. 278), and J.S.'s first biographer, Johann Nikolaus Forkel, said specifically of Christian that "The original spirit of Bach is . . . not to be found in any of his works" (New Bach Reader, p. 458). It was not until the 20th century that scholars and the musical world began to realize that Bach's sons could legitimately compose in a different style than their father without their musical idioms being inferior or debased, and composers like Johann Christian began to receive renewed appreciation.

Johann Christian Bach is of some historical interest as the first composer who preferred the piano to older keyboard instruments such as the harpsichord. Johann Christian’s early music shows the influence of his older brother Carl Philipp Emanuel, while his middle period in Italy shows the influence of Sammartini.

Contrasting styles of J. S. Bach and J. C. Bach

Johann Christian Bach's father died when Johann Christian was only fifteen, perhaps one reason why it is difficult to find points of similarity between the music of Johann Sebastian Bach and that of Johann Christian. By contrast, the piano sonatas of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, Johann Christian's much older brother, tend to invoke certain elements of the father at times, especially as regards the use of counterpoint
Counterpoint

In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more Register that are independent in contour and rhythm, and interdependent in harmony....
. (C.P.E. was 36 by the time J.S. died.)

Johann Christian's music departs completely from the styles of the elder Bachs in being highly melodic. He composed in the galant
Galant

In music, Galant was a term referring to a style, principally occurring in the third quarter of the 18th century, which featured a return to Classical music era simplicity after the complexity of the late Baroque music era....
 style incorporating balanced phrases, emphasis on melody and accompaniment, without too much contrapuntal
Counterpoint

In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more Register that are independent in contour and rhythm, and interdependent in harmony....
 complexity. The galant movement opposed the intricate lines of Baroque
Baroque

In the the arts, the Baroque was a Western cultural Epoch , starting roughly at the beginning of the 17th century in Rome, Italy. It was exemplified by drama and grandeur in Baroque sculpture, Baroque painting, literature, Baroque dance, and Baroque music....
 music, and instead placed importance on fluid melodies in periodic phrases. It preceded the classical style, which fused the galant aesthetics with a renewed interest in counterpoint
Counterpoint

In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more Register that are independent in contour and rhythm, and interdependent in harmony....
.

J. C. Bach and the symphony

The symphonies
Symphony

A symphony is a musical composition, often extended and usually for orchestra. "Symphony" does not imply a specific form. Many symphonies are tonality works in four movement with the first in sonata form, and this is often described by music theorists as the structure of a "Classical period " symphony, although even some symphonies by the ac...
 in the Work List for J. C. Bach in the New Grove Bach Family listed ninety-one works. A little more than half of these, 48 works, are considered authentic, while the remaining 43 are doubtful.

By comparison, the composer sometimes called "the Father of the Symphony," Joseph Haydn
Joseph Haydn

Joseph Haydn was an Austrians composer. He was one of the most prominent composers of the classical music era, and is called by some the "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet"....
, wrote slightly over 100 symphonies. Most of these are not fully comparable to Johann Christian Bach's symphonies, because many of Johann Christian's works in this category are closer to the Italian sinfonia
Sinfonia

Sinfonia is the Italian word for symphony . In music Sinfonia has however some specific meanings and connotations, that are understood when the word sinfonia is used outside the realm of Latin-based languages:...
 than to the late classical symphony in its most fully developed state as found in the later works in this category by Haydn and Mozart.

Using comparative duration as a rough means of comparison, consider that a standard recording of one of Bach's finest symphonies, Op. 6 no. 6 in g minor, has a total time of 13 minutes and 7 seconds (as performed by Hanover Band
Hanover Band

The Hanover Band founded by Caroline Brown in 1980 is a United Kingdom Historically informed performance orchestra, widely acclaimed as one of the leading period-instrument orchestras in the world....
 directed by Anthony Halstead
Anthony Halstead

Anthony Halstead is a leading figure in Historically informed performance. First known as a virtuoso on the natural horn, he has gradually moved into the role of conducting and has directed the Academy of Ancient Music, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, and most notably Hanover Band....
), while Haydn's "Surprise" Symphony
Symphony No. 94 (Haydn)

The Symphony No. 94 in G major is the second of the twelve so-called London symphonies written by Joseph Haydn. It is usually called by its nickname, the Surprise Symphony, although in German it is more often referred to as the Symphony "mit dem Paukenschlag" ....
 in a typical recording (by Ádám Fischer
Ádám Fischer

?d?m Fischer is a Hungarian Conducting of Jewish family origin. He is the general music director of the Austro-Hungarian Haydn Orchestra, with which he has recorded the complete Haydn symphonies for the Nimbus label, the first digital recording of the cycle....
 conducting the Austro-Hungarian Haydn Orchestra) lasts 23 minutes and 43 seconds.

It is clear that the listener of J. C. Bach's symphonies should come to these works with different expectations from the ones he or she brings to those of Haydn or Mozart. Concert halls today are frequently filled with the music of Haydn, and comparatively rarely with that of J. C. Bach, which probably has less to do with their relative quality (since the music of the latter is clearly accomplished and worthy of being heard) than with their relative historical positions regarding the classical symphony. But J. C. Bach's music is more and more being recognized for its high quality and significance. The Halstead recording mentioned above is part of a complete survey of this composer's orchestral works on 22 CDs for the record label CPO, and the complete works of J. C. Bach have now been published in The Collected Works of Johann Christian Bach
Collected Works of Johann Christian Bach

The Collected Works of Johann Christian Bach is a 48 volume edition of the music of Johann Christian Bach published by Garland Publishing from 1984 to 1999....
.

Legacy


A full account of J. C. Bach’s career is given in the fourth volume of Charles Burney
Charles Burney

Charles Burney was an England music history and father of author Frances Burney....
's History of Music.

There are two others named Johann Christian Bach in the Bach family tree, but neither were composers.

Mozart esteemed J.C. Bach's music highly and arranged three sonatas from the latter's Op. 5 into keyboard concertos
Piano Concertos K. 107 (Mozart)

The Piano Concertos, K. 107 are three keyboard concertos by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, based on sonatas by Johann Christian Bach. These sonatas are from Christian Bach's Op....
.

Patrick O'Brian
Patrick O'Brian

Patrick O'Brian, Order of the British Empire was an England novelist and translation, best known for his Aubrey?Maturin series of novels set in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars and centered on the friendship of English Naval Captain Jack Aubrey and the Irish–Catalan physician Stephen Maturin....
 mentions both J.C. Bach and J. S. Bach in his novel The Ionian Mission
The Ionian Mission

The Ionian Mission, is a historical novel by naval author Patrick O'Brian in the continuing series about Jack Aubrey and sea surgeon and friend Stephen Maturin....
, in which Jack Aubrey
Jack Aubrey

Rear Admiral Sir John Aubrey, Order of the Bath, Member of Parliament, Justice of the Peace, Fellow of the Royal Society, is a fictional character in the Aubrey?Maturin series of novels by Patrick O'Brian....
 brings his friend Stephen Maturin
Stephen Maturin

Stephen Maturin is a fictional character in the Aubrey-Maturin series of novels by Patrick O'Brian. The series portrays his career as a physician, naturalist and spy in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars, and the long pursuit of his beloved Diana Villiers....
 pieces of music composed by the elder Bach which the two men play together.

Work List


Keyboard Works
W A1 \ Keyboard Sonata Op. 5 No.1 in B flat major
W A2 \ Keyboard Sonata Op. 5 No.2 in D major
W A3 \ Keyboard Sonata Op. 5 No.3 in G major
W A4 \ Keyboard Sonata Op. 5 No.4 in E flat major
W A5 \ Keyboard Sonata Op. 5 No.5 in E major
W A6 \ Keyboard Sonata Op. 5 No.6 in C major
W A7 \ Keyboard Sonata Op. 17 No.1 in G major
W A8a \ Keyboard Sonata Op. 17 No.2 in C minor
W A8b \ Keyboard Sonata in C minor
W A9a \ Keyboard Sonata Op. 17 No.3 in E flat major
W A9b \ Keyboard Sonata in E flat major
W A10a \ Keyboard Sonata Op. 17 No.4 in G major
W A10b \ Keyboard Sonata in G major "A New Lesson"
W A11 \ Keyboard Sonata Op. 17 No.5 in A major
W A12 \ Keyboard Sonata Op. 17 No.6 in B flat major
W A13 \ Keyboard Sonata in A minor
W A14 \ Keyboard Sonata in A flat major
W A15 \ Toccata for keyboard in B flat major
W A16 \ Keyboard Sonata in B flat major
W A17 \ Keyboard Sonata (lost)
W A18 \ Sonata for keyboard 4-hands Op. 15 No.6 in C major
W A19 \ Sonata for keyboard 4-hands Op. 18 No.5 in A major
W A20 \ Sonata for keyboard 4-hands Op. 18 No.6 in F major
W A21 \ Sonata for 2 keyboards Op. 15 No.5 in G major
W A22 \ March for keyboard in F major
W A23 \ Polonaise for keyboard in B flat major
W A24 \ Minuet for keyboard in C minor
W A25 \ Minuet for keyboard in C major
W A26 \ Polonaise for keyboard in E flat major
W A27 \ Aria for keyboard in A minor
W A28 \ Minuet for keyboard in D minor
W A29 \ Minuet and trio for keyboard in G minor
W A30 \ Minuet and trio for keyboard in C major
W A31 \ Minuet for keyboard in C major

Chamber Music
W B1 \ Piece for harp (lost)
W B2 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 10 No.1 in B flat major
W B3 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 10 No.2 in C major
W B4 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 10 No.3 in G major
W B5 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 10 No.4 in A major
W B6a \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 10 No.5 in F major
W B6b \ Sonata for viola da gamba in F major
W B7 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 10 No.6 in D major
W B8 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 15 No.3 in D major
W B9 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 15 No.4 in B flat major
W B10 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 16 No.1 in D major
W B11 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 16 No.2 in G major
W B12 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 16 No.3 in C major
W B13 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 16 No.4 in A major
W B14 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 16 No.5 in D major
W B15a \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 16 No.6 in F major
W B15b \ Sonata for viola da gamba in F major
W B16 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 18 No.1 in C major
W B17 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 18 No.2 in D major
W B18 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 18 No.3 in E flat major
W B19 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin Op. 18 No.4 in G major
W B20 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin No.1 in F major
W B21 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin No.2 in D major
W B22 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin No.3 in G major
W B23 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin No.4 in A major
W B24 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin No.5 in G major
W B25 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin No.6 in D major
W B26 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin No.7 in F major
W B27 \ Sonata for keyboard & violin in A major
W B28 \ Trio Sonata (lost)
W B29 \ Trio Sonata (lost)
W B30 \ Trio Sonata Op. 2 No.5 in D major
W B31 \ Trio Sonata Op. 2 No.2 in A major
W B32 \ Trio Sonata Op. 2 No.6 in C major
W B33 \ Trio Sonata Op. 2 No.4 in G major
W B34 \ Trio Sonata Op. 2 No.3 in E flat major
W B35 \ Trio Sonata Op. 2 No.1 in B flat major
W B36 \ Trio Sonata Op. 8 No.3 in D major
W B37 \ Trio Sonata Op. 8 No.1 in G major
W B38 \ Trio Sonata Op. 8 No.2 in E flat major
W B39 \ Trio Sonata Op. 8 No.5 in B flat major
W B40 \ Trio Sonata Op. 8 No.6 in F major
W B41 \ Trio Sonata Op. 8 No.4 in E major
W B42 \ Trio for 2 violins & cello in B flat major
W B43 \ Keyboard Trio Op. 2 No.1 in F major
W B44 \ Keyboard Trio Op. 2 No.2 in G major
W B45 \ Keyboard Trio Op. 2 No.3 in D major
W B46 \ Keyboard Trio Op. 2 No.4 in C major
W B47a \ Keyboard Trio in A major (Milanese version)
W B47b \ Keyboard Trio Op. 2 No.5 in A major
W B48 \ Keyboard Trio Op. 2 No.6 in E flat major
W B49 \ Keyboard Trio Op. 15 No.1 in C major
W B50 \ Keyboard Trio Op. 15 No.2 in A major
W B51 \ Quartet Op. 8 No.1 in C major
W B52 \ Quartet Op. 8 No.2 in D major
W B53 \ Quartet Op. 8 No.3 in E flat major
W B54 \ Quartet Op. 8 No.4 in F major
W B55 \ Quartet Op. 8 No.5 in G major
W B56 \ Quartet Op. 8 No.6 in B flat major
W B57 \ Flute Quartet in D major
W B58 \ Flute Quartet in C major
W B59 \ Flute Quartet in A major
W B60 \ Quartet in B flat major
W B61 \ Quartet with 2 flutes Op. 19 No.1 in C major
W B62 \ Quartet with 2 flutes Op. 19 No.2 in D major
W B63 \ Quartet with 2 flutes Op. 19 No.3 in G major
W B64 \ Quartet with 2 flutes Op. 19 No.4 in C major
W B65 \ Quartet with 2 oboes (lost)
W B66 \ Keyboard Quartet in G major
W B67 \ Keyboard Quartet (lost)
W B68 \ Keyboard Quartet (lost)
W B69 \ Keyboard Quartet (lost)
W B70 \ Quintet Op. 11 No.1 in C major
W B71 \ Quintet Op. 11 No.2 in G major
W B72 \ Quintet Op. 11 No.3 in F major
W B73 \ Quintet Op. 11 No.4 in E flat major
W B74 \ Quintet Op. 11 No.5 in A major
W B75 \ Quintet Op. 11 No.6 in D major
W B76 \ Keyboard Quintet Op. 22 No.1 in D major
W B77 \ Keyboard Quintet Op. 22 No.2 in F major
W B78 \ Sextet for winds, strings & keyboard in C major
W B79 \ Military Quintet No.1 in E flat major
W B80 \ Military Quintet No.2 in E flat major
W B81 \ Military Quintet No.3 in B flat major
W B82 \ Military Quintet No.4 in E flat major
W B83 \ March of the regiment "Prinz von Ernst" in E flat major
W B84 \ March of the regiment "Brauschweig" in E flat major
W B85 \ March of the regiment "Württemberg" in E flat major
W B86 \ March in E flat major "zu Pferde"
W B87 \ March in E flat major "zu Fuß"
W B88 \ March "vom ersten Bataillon Garde-Regiments in Hannover"
W B89 \ March "vom zweiten Bataillon Garde-Regiments in Hannover"
W B90 \ March in E flat major
W B91 \ March in E flat major
W B92 \ March in E flat major
W B93 \ March in B flat major
W BInc1 \ Sonata for guitar & violin in C major
W BInc2 \ Trio for 2 flutes & cello in G major
W BInc3 \ Trio for harp, violin & cello in B flat major
W BInc4 \ Keyboard Quartet in A major
W BInc5 \ String Quintet in B flat major
W BInc6 \ Divertimento (lost)
W BInc7 \ Symphony for winds No.1 in E flat major
W BInc8 \ Symphony for winds No.2 in B flat major
W BInc9 \ Symphony for winds No.3 in E flat major
W BInc10 \ Symphony for winds No.4 in B flat major
W BInc11 \ Symphony for winds No.5 in E flat major
W BInc12 \ Symphony for winds No.6 in B flat major

Orchestral Works
W C1 \ Symphony Op. 3 No.1 in D major
W C2 \ Symphony Op. 3 No.2 in C major
W C3 \ Symphony Op. 3 No.3 in E flat major
W C4 \ Symphony Op. 3 No.4 in B flat major
W C5 \ Symphony Op. 3 No.5 in F major
W C6 \ Symphony Op. 3 No.6 in G major
W C7a \ Symphony Op. 6 No.1 in G major
W C7b \ Symphony in G major
W C8 \ Symphony Op. 6 No.2 in D major
W C9 \ Symphony Op. 6 No.3 in E flat major
W C10 \ Symphony Op. 6 No.4 in B flat major
W C11 \ Symphony Op. 6 No.5 in E flat major
W C12 \ Symphony Op. 6 No.6 in G minor
W C13 \ Symphony Op. 8 No.2 in G major
W C14 \ Symphony Op. 8 No.3 in D major
W C15 \ Symphony Op. 8 No.4 in F major
W C16a \ Symphony in C major (Venier No.46)
W C16b \ Symphony in C major
W C17a \ Symphony in B flat major
W C17b \ Symphony Op. 9 No.1 in B flat major
W C18a \ Symphony in E flat major
W C18b \ Symphony Op. 9 No.2 in E flat major
W C19 \ Symphonie périodique in E flat major
W C20 \ Symphony Op. 12 No.1 (lost)
W C21 \ Symphony Op. 12 No.2 (lost)
W C22 \ Symphony Op. 12 No.3 (lost)
W C23 \ Symphony Op. 12 No.4 (lost)
W C24 \ Symphony Op. 12 No.5 (lost)
W C25 \ Symphony Op. 12 No.6 (lost)
W C26 \ Symphony Op. 18 No.1 in E flat major
W C27 \ Symphony Op. 18 No.4 in D major
W C28 \ Symphony Op. 18 No.5 in E major
W C29 \ Symphony a 6 (lost)
W C30 \ Overture a 6 (lost)
W C31 \ Symphony for double orchestra (lost)
W C32 \ Concertante for 2 violins & cello in G major
W C33 \ Concertante for 2 violins & oboe in E flat major
W C34 \ Concertante for violin & cello in A major
W C35 \ Concertante for 2 violins in D major
W C36a \ Concertante for 2 violins & cello in C major
W C36b \ Concertante for 2 violins & cello in C major
W C37 \ Concertante for flute, oboe & bassoon in E flat major
W C38 \ Concertante for oboe & bassoon in F major
W C39 \ Concertante for 2 flutes, 2 violins & cello in D major
W C40 \ Concertante for 2 oboes, 2 horns & string quintet in E flat major
W C41 \ Concertante for flute, 2 clarinets, 2 horns & bassoon in E flat major
W C42 \ Concertante for 2 violins & cello in E flat major
W C43 \ Concertante for flute, oboe, violin & cello in C major
W C44 \ Concertante for flute, 2 violins & cello in E major
W C45 \ Concertante for oboe & string trio in G major (lost)
W C46 \ Concertante for violin & cello in B flat major
W C47 \ Concertante for oboe, violin & 2 cellos (lost)
W C48 \ Concertante for piano, oboe, violin & cello in B flat major
W C49 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 1 No.1 in B flat major
W C50 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 1 No.2 in A major
W C51 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 1 No.3 in F major
W C52 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 1 No.4 in G major
W C53 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 1 No.5 in C major
W C54 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 1 No.6 in D major
W C55 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 7 No.1 in C major
W C56 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 7 No.2 in F major
W C57 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 7 No.3 in D major
W C58 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 7 No.4 in B flat major
W C59 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 7 No.5 in E flat major
W C60a \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 7 No.6 in G major
W C60b \ Keyboard Concerto in G major
W C61 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 14 in E flat major
W C62 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 13 No.1 in C major
W C63 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 13 No.2 in D major
W C64 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 13 No.3 in F major
W C65 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 13 No.4 in B flat major
W C66 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 13 No.5 in G major
W C67 \ Keyboard Concerto Op. 13 No.6 in E flat major
W C68 \ Harpsichord Concerto No.1 in B flat major
W C69 \ Harpsichord Concerto No.2 in F minor
W C70 \ Harpsichord Concerto No.3 in D minor
W C71 \ Harpsichord Concerto No.4 in E major
W C72 \ Harpsichord Concerto No.5 in G major
W C73 \ Harpsichord Concerto No.6 in F minor
W C74 \ Concerto "nach Tartinis Manier" (lost)
W C75 \ Piano Concerto in E flat major
W C76 \ Violin Concerto in C major
W C77 \ Cello Concerto
W C78 \ Flute Concerto in G major
W C79 \ Flute Concerto in D major
W C80 \ Oboe Concerto No.1 in F major
W C81 \ Oboe Concerto No.2 in F major
W C82 \ Bassoon Concerto in E flat major
W C83 \ Bassoon Concerto in B flat major
W C84 \ Minuet for Her Majesty's Birthday in F major
W C85 \ Minuet for Her Majesty's Birthday in C major
W CInc1 \ Symphony in B flat major
W CInc2 \ Symphony in D major
W CInc3 \ Symphony in E flat major
W CInc4 \ Symphony in F major
W CInc5 \ Concertante for flute, 2 violins & cello in G major
W CInc6 \ Harpsichord Concerto in E major
W CInc7 \ Violin Concerto (lost)
W CInc8 \ Flute Concerto in D major (lost)
W CInc9 \ A Favorite Minuet in E flat major

Oratorios
W D1 \ Gioas, re di Giuda
W DInc1 \ Chorus for Piccinni's The Death of Abel (lost)
W DInc2 \ Choruses for Pergolesi's Stabat Mater (lost)

Liturgical Works
W E1 \ Kyrie in D major (lost)
W E2 \ Kyrie in D major
W E3 \ Gloria in D major
W E4 \ Gloria in G major
W E5 \ Credo in C major
W E6 \ Invitatorium in F major
W E7 \ Lectio del officio per gli morti I
W E8 \ Lectio del officio per gli morti II
W E9 \ Lectio del officio per gli morti III
W E10 \ Miserere in B flat major
W E11 \ Ingresso e Kyrie della Messa de Morti in C minor
W E12 \ Dies Irae in C minor
W E13 \ Domine ad adjuvandum in D major
W E14 \ Domine ad adjuvandum in G major
W E15 \ Dixit Dominus in D major
W E16 \ Confitebor tibi Domine in E flat major
W E17 \ Beatus vir in F major
W E18 \ Laudate pueri in E major
W E19 \ Laudate pueri in G major
W E20 \ Magnificat a 8 in C major (unfinished)
W E21 \ Magnificat a 8 in C major
W E22 \ Magnificat a 4 in C major
W E23 \ Salve Regina in E flat major
W E24 \ Salve Regina in F major
W E25 \ Tantum ergo in F major
W E26 \ Tantum ergo in G major
W E27 \ Te Deum a 8 in D major (incomplete)
W E28 \ Te Deum a 4 in D major

Sacred Works
W F1 \ Pater Noster a 8 (lost)
W F2 \ Attendite mortales in A minor
W F3 \ Larvae tremendae in D major
W F4a \ Si nocte tenebrosa in G minor "for Raaf"
W F4b \ Si nocte tenebrosa in G minor "for Pompili"
W F5 \ Let the solemn organs blow in D major
W FInc1 \ Motet a 2 (lost)
W FInc2 \ Motet a 3 (lost)

Operas & Incidental Music
W G1 \ Artaserse
W G2 \ Catone in Utica
W G3 \ Alessandro nell'Indie
W G4 \ Orione, ossia Diana vendicata
W G5 \ Zanaïda
W G6 \ Adriano in Siria
W G7 \ Carattaco
W G8 \ Temistocle
Temistocle

Temistocle is an opera seria in three acts by the Germany composer Johann Christian Bach. The Italian language text is an extensive revision of the libretto by Metastasio, by Mattia Verazi, court poet and private secretary to the Charles Theodore, Elector of Bavaria....

W G9 \ Lucio Silla
W G10 \ La clemenza di Scipione
W G11 \ Cantata a tre voci
W G12 \ Galatea (lost)
W G13 \ Cantata (lost)
W G14 \ Serenata (lost)
W G15 \ Endimione
W G16 \ La tempesta
W G17 \ O Venere vezzosa
W G18 \ Amor vincitore
W G19 \ Cefalo e Procri
W G20 \ Rinaldo ed Armida (lost)
W G21 \ Demofoonte
W G22 \ La Giulia
W G23 \ Gli Uccelatori
W G24 \ Il tutore e la pupilla
W G25 \ Astarto, re di Tiro
W G26 \ La cascina
W G27 \ La calamita de' cuori
W G28 \ L'Olimpiade
W G29 \ Orfeo ed Euridice (London, 1770)
W G30 \ Aria (lost)
W G31 \ Aria (lost)
W G32 \ Aria (lost)
W G33 \ Aria cantabile (lost)
W G34 \ Vo solcando un mar crudele in D major
W G35 \ Sventurata in van mi lagno in E flat major
W G36a \ Perchè si ingrata, oh Dio! in E flat major
W G36b \ Ah che gli stessi numi...Cara ti lascio
W G37 \ A si barbaro colpo...Morte, vieni
W G38 \ Scena di Berenice (lost)
W G39 \ Amadis de Gaule
Amadis de Gaule (J.C. Bach)

'Amadis de Gaule' or 'Amadis des Gaules' is a France opera in three acts by the Germany composer Johann Christian Bach. The libretto is a revision by Alphonse-Denis-Marie de Vismes du Valgay of Amadis by Philippe Quinault, originally set by Jean-Baptiste Lully in 1684 which in turn was based on the Knight-errant romance Amad...

W G40 \ Omphale (lost)
W G41 \ Happy Morn, auspicious rise
W G42 \ The Fairy Favour (lost)
W G43 \ The Maid of the Mill
W G44 \ The Summer's Tale
W G45 \ The Genius of Nonesense (lost)
W GInc1 \ Cantata (lost)
W GInc2 \ Emira
W GInc3 \ Gli equivoci
W GInc4 \ Qualor da un galantuomo in B flat major
W GInc5 \ Coeurs sensibles in B flat major
W GInc6 \ Ode on the arrival of Queen Charlotte
W GInc7 \ Menalcas
W GInc8 \ Pharnaces (lost)
W GInc9 \ Amintas (lost)

Arias & Songs
W H1 \ Mezendore
W H2 \ Der Weise auf dem Lande
W H3 \ So fliehst du mich (lost)
W H4 \ Canzonetta: Io lo so, che il bel sembiante
W H5 \ Canzonetta: Trova un sol, mia bella Clori
W H6 \ Canzonetta: Che ciascun per te sospiri
W H7 \ Canzonetta: Chi mai di questo core
W H8 \ Canzonetta: Ascoltami, o Clori
W H9 \ Canzonetta: Lascia ch'io possa, o Nice
W H10 \ Canzonetta: Parlami pur sincera
W H11 \ Canzonetta: Eccomi alfin disciolto
W H12 \ Canzonetta Op. 4 No.1: Già la notte s'avvicina
W H13 \ Canzonetta Op. 4 No.2: Ah rammenta, o bella Irene
W H14 \ Canzonetta Op. 4 No.3: Pur nel sonno almen talora
W H15 \ Canzonetta Op. 4 No.4: T'intendo si, mio cor
W H16 \ Canzonetta Op. 4 No.5: Che ciascun per te sospiri
W H17 \ Canzonetta Op. 4 No.6: Ascoltami, o Clori
W H18 \ Canzonetta Op. 6 No.1: Torna in quell'onda chiara
W H19 \ Canzonetta Op. 6 No.2: Io lo so, che il bel sembiante
W H20 \ Canzonetta Op. 6 No.3: E pur fra le tempeste
W H21 \ Canzonetta Op. 6 No.4: Trova un sol, mia bella Clori
W H22 \ Canzonetta Op. 6 No.5: Chi mai di questo core
W H23 \ Canzonetta Op. 6 No.6: Se infida tu mi chiami
W H24 \ Vauxhall Song: By my sighs you may discover
W H25 \ Vauxhall Song: Cruel Strephon, will you leave me
W H26 \ Vauxhall Song: Come Colin, pride of rural swains
W H27 \ Vauxhall Song: Ah, why shou'd love with tyrant
W H28 \ Vauxhall Song: In this shady blest retreat
W H29 \ Vauxhall Song: Smiling Venus, Goddess dear
W H30 \ Vauxhall Song: Tender Virgins, shun deceivers
W H31 \ Vauxhall Song: Lovely yet ungrateful swain
W H32 \ Vauxhall Song: When chilling winter hies away (lost)
W H33 \ Vauxhall Song: Midst silent shades and purling streams
W H34 \ Vauxhall Song: Ah seek to know what place detains
W H35 \ Vauxhall Song: Would you a female heart inspire
W H36 \ Vauxhall Song: Cease a while ye winds to blow
W H37 \ Vauxhall Song: See the kind indulgent gales
W H38 \ Vauxhall Song: Oh how blest is the condition
W H39 \ Vauxhall Song: Hither turn thy wand'ring eyes
W H40 \ Vauxhall Finale: Ode to Pleasure (lost)
W H41 \ Vauxhall Finale: Ode to Summer (lost)
W H42 \ Vauxhall Finale: The Pastoral Invitation (lost)
W H43 \ Neptune
W HInc1 \ Song(s) with unknown text(s) (lost)
W HInc2 \ Canzonetta: Se tu m'ami, se sospiri

Miscellaneous Works
W I1 \ Polonaise for keyboard in D minor
W I2 \ Fughettas for organ (lost)
W I3 \ Cadenzas for the concerto Op. 7 No.5 in E flat major

Arrangements of other composers' works
W LA1 \ Concerto for harpsichord solo No.1 in C major
W LA2 \ Concerto for harpsichord solo No.2 in E flat major
W LA3 \ Concerto for harpsichord solo No.3 in C major
W LAInc1 \ Overture in D major
W LG1 \ Orfeo ed Euridice (Naples, 1774)
W LG2 \ Ebben si vada...Io ti lascio in A major
W LG3 \ Mi scordo i torti...Dolci aurette in E flat major
W LG4 \ Sentimi non partir...Al mio bène in E flat major
W LG5 \ Infelice in van...Là nei regni in A major
W LH1 \ The Braes of Ballenden
W LH2 \ The Broom of Cowdenknows
W LH3 \ I'll never leave thee
W LH4 \ Lochaber
W LH5 \ The yellow-hair'd Laddie (lost)
W LHInc1 \ Not on beauty's transient pleasure

Arrangemnts of J.C. Bach's works by other composers
W XC 1 \ Symphony Op. 18 No.6 in D major

Attributed and spurious works
W YA28 \ Sonata for keyboard 4-hands in D major
W YA29 \ Sonata for keyboard 4-hands in G major
W YA30 \ Sonata for keyboard 4-hands in C major
W YA50 \ Fugue on BACH for organ in F major
W YB22 \ Violin Sonata Op. 20 No.2 in D major
W YB43 \ Trio for flute or violin, violin & continuo in B flat major
W YB47 \ Trio for flute, flute or violin & cello in C major
W YC90 \ Keyboard Concerto in E flat major
W YC91 \ Keyboard Concerto in A major
W YLA3 \ Keyboard Sonata in D major

Further reading

  • Ernest Warburton, "Johann Christian Bach," in Christoph Wolff et al., The New Grove Bach Family. NY: Norton, 1983 (ISBN 0-393-30088-9), pp. 315ff.
  • Philipp Spitta, Johann Sebastian Bach, trans. Clara Bell & J. A. Fuller-Maitland, NY: Dover, 1951 (reprint of 1889 ed.).
  • Christoph Wolff, ed., The New Bach Reader, NY: Norton, 1998.
  • Heinz Gärtner, John Christian Bach: Mozart's Friend and Mentor, trans. Reinhard Pauly. Portland, Ore.: Amadeus Press, 1994.
  • Charles Sanford Terry, John Christian Bach. London: Oxford University Press, 1967.
  • Percy M. Young, The Bachs: 1500-1850, London: J.M. Dent & Sons, Ltd., 1970.


External links

  • *, 1780 edition (From the Sibley Music Library Digital Scores Collection)