History Music / JohannSebastianBach

* GodIsLoveSongs: Being a devout Lutheran who was mostly employed by churches, he wrote a lot of religious pieces for church performance, among them the ''Johannes Passion'', ''Matthäus Passion'', the Mass in B Minor and, most spectacularly, over 300 sacred cantatas, of which about 200 survive. These include many of his most famous pieces, such as "Jesu Bleibet Meine Freude" (given English words as "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring"), which is a chorale from cantata BWV 147 ''Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben''. This trope is averted inasmuch as Bach's cantatas aren't ''disguised'' as secular works; they're completely up-front about their religious content -- sample titles (translated) include ''Christ lay in Death's bonds'', ''God's time is the best time of all'' and ''Praise the Lord, the mighty king of honour''. But then again, they're very often performed in secular concert halls where you wouldn't expect much religious content.

** Bach's devout Lutheran faith clearly inspires his cantatas, chorales, and service music. He was also a master of counterpoint, which can be found in virtually all of his compositions even though it was falling out of fashion in his day for the more spare Early Classical style. And [[TheLastOfTheseIsNotLikeTheOthers his fondness for]] [[MustHaveCaffeine drinking coffee]] inspired the humorous "Coffee Cantata," ''Music/SchweigtStillePlaudertNicht''.

* The six Brandenburg Concertos, BWV 1046–1051, used widely in period dramas and various other works. The second, with its high, treacherous trumpet part (played in Bach's day [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEJ-xcblCMo on a valveless instrument]], no less) is the first piece of Earth music aliens will hear should they manage to acquire and decipher one of the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voyager_golden_record Voyager golden records]]. Some suggested having ''only'' Bach on the record; Creator/CarlSagan said "that would just be showing off."

German composer and virtuoso organist (21 March 1685 – 28 July 1750) whose works represent the culmination of the BaroqueMusic era and whose death is generally considered to mark the point of transition into the Classical era. Bach, [[Music/WolfgangAmadeusMozart Mozart]], and [[Music/LudwigVanBeethoven Beethoven]] are seen as the three main contenders for "Most Sublime Music in Western History," and not without reason.

Bach was the most prominent member of an extended family of musicians. It was often said of he, his wife, and his children that they could form an orchestra by themselves. Between his first and second wives, he fathered ''[[MassiveNumberedSiblings twenty children]]''.[[note]]Seven with his first wife Maria Barbara; after her death he remarried and had another thirteen with Anna Magdalena. Sadly, only nine of them survived to adulthood[[/note]] Four of Bach's sons – Wilhelm Friedemann, Carl Philipp Emanuel, Johann Christoph Friedrich, and Johann Christian – grew up to become notable composers in their own right. In Bach's [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bach_family full family tree]] there were over fifty professional musicians, thereby making it at least a family business if not an outright dynasty. (Then there's Music/PDQBach, who... [[{{Parody}} doesn't really count]].)

* The six Brandenburg Concertos, BWV 1046–1051, used widely in period dramas and various other works. The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMSwVf_69Hc&t=1m26s harpsichord solo from the fifth concerto]] could quite reasonably be considered the great-great-great-grandfather of metal. The second, with its high, treacherous trumpet part (played in Bach's day [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEJ-xcblCMo on a valveless instrument]], no less) is the first piece of Earth music aliens will hear should they manage to acquire and decipher one of the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voyager_golden_record Voyager golden records]]. Some suggested having ''only'' Bach on the record; Creator/CarlSagan said "that would just be showing off."

Though today he is considered [[SincerestFormOfFlattery one of the most influential composers]] in history, in his lifetime Bach was better known as an organist than a composer; particularly towards the end of his career, his work was deemed outdated by his contemporaries. He did maintain CultClassic status among professional composers, who studied his work for its technique – including such admirers as Music/WolfgangAmadeusMozart and Music/LudwigVanBeethoven – but among the musical public he was generally not seen as one of the great composers until his works were re-popularized by composer Music/FelixMendelssohn in the early 1800s, and has since been VindicatedByHistory as one of the greatest musical artists of human history. No better evidence of that can be of the UsefulNotes/{{Voyager Golden Record}}s on both deep space probes, Voyagers 1 and 2, which has three pieces by him, intended to be an introduction to any intelligent alien civilization who can figure out how to play it.

[[quoteright:305:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/johann_sebastian_bach.jpg]]

Bach was the most prominent member of an extended family of musicians. It was often said of he, his wife, and his children that he could form an orchestra with them all. Between his first and second wives, Bach fathered ''[[MassiveNumberedSiblings twenty children]]''.[[note]]Seven with his first wife Maria Barbara; after her death he remarried and had another thirteen with Anna Magdalena. Sadly, only nine of them survived to adulthood[[/note]] Four of his sons – Carl Philipp Emanuel, Johann Christian, Wilhelm Friedemann, and Johann Christoph Friedrich – grew up to become notable composers in their own right. In Bach's [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bach_family full family tree]] there were over fifty professional musicians, making it at least a family business if not an outright dynasty. (Then there's Music/PDQBach, who... [[{{Parody}} doesn't really count]].)

Though today he is considered [[SincerestFormOfFlattery one of the most influential composers]] in history, in his lifetime he was better known as an organist than a composer; particularly towards the end of his career, his work was deemed outdated by his contemporaries. He did maintain CultClassic status among professional composers who studied his work for technique, including such admirers as Music/WolfgangAmadeusMozart and Music/LudwigVanBeethoven. But among the musical public he was generally not seen as one of the great composers until his works were re-popularized by composer Music/FelixMendelssohn in the early 1800s, and has since been VindicatedByHistory as one of the greatest musical artists of human history. No better evidence of that can be of the UsefulNotes/{{Voyager Golden Record}}s on both deep space probes, Voyagers 1 and 2, which has three pieces by him, intended to be an introduction to any intelligent alien civilization who can figure out how to play it.

Bach was the most prominent member of an extended family of musicians. It was often said of he, his wife, and his children that he could form an orchestra with them all. Between his first and second wives, Bach fathered ''[[MassiveNumberedSiblings twenty children]]''.[[note]]Seven with his first wife Maria Barbara; after her death he remarried and had another thirteen with Anna Magdalena. Sadly, only nine of them survived to adulthood[[/note]] Four of his sons-- Carl Philipp Emanuel, Johann Christian, Wilhelm Friedemann, and Johann Christoph Friedrich-- grew up to become notable composers in their own right. In Bach's [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bach_family full family tree]] there were over fifty professional musicians, making it at least a family business if not an outright dynasty. (Then there's Music/PDQBach, who... [[{{Parody}} doesn't really count]].)

Bach was the most prominent member of an extended family of musicians. It was often said of he, his wife, and his children that he could form an orchestra with them all. Between his first and second wives, Bach fathered ''[[MassiveNumberedSiblings twenty children]]''.[[note]]Seven with his first wife Maria Barbara; after her death he remarried and had another thirteen with Anna Magdalena. Sadly, only nine of them survived to adulthood[[/note]] Four of his sons-- Carl Philipp Emanuel, Johann Christian, Wilhelm Friedemann, and Johann Christoph Friedrich-- grew up to be notable composers in their own right. In Bach's [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bach_family full family tree]] there were over fifty professional musicians, making it at least a family business if not an outright dynasty. (Then there's Music/PDQBach, who... [[{{Parody}} doesn't really count]].)

Bach was the most prominent member of an extended family of musicians. It was often said of he, his wife, and his children that he could form an orchestra with them all. Between his first and second wives, Bach fathered ''[[MassiveNumberedSiblings twenty children]]'' [[note]]Seven with his first wife Maria Barbara; after her death he remarried and had another thirteen with Anna Magdalena. Sadly, only nine of them survived to adulthood[[/note]]. Four of his sons-- Carl Philipp Emanuel, Johann Christian, Wilhelm Friedemann, and Johann Christoph Friedrich-- grew up to be notable composers in their own right. In Bach's [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bach_family full family tree]] there were over fifty professional musicians, making it at least a family business if not an outright dynasty. (Then there's Music/PDQBach, who... [[{{Parody}} doesn't really count]].)

[[quoteright:264:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/JohannSebastianBach.jpg]]

!! Bach in popular culture:
* Music/PDQBach owes his artist's name to Bach. [[DirectLineToTheAuthor The story goes]] that P.D.Q. was the 21st and least well-regarded of Bach's 20 children, disowned by the Bach family because his music was too stupid.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Fantasia}}'' starts off with Toccata and Fugue in D minor, which, true to the music's fashion, is a series of abstract images.
** ''WesternAnimation/IlEtaitUneFois... L' Homme'' started off with Toccata and Fugue in D minor as its theme music.
** The basis for the ''VideoGame/{{Gyruss}}'' theme song.
** "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9OFZ9Mh7GA Bach onto This]]" could even count as a {{Homage}}.
** A Franchise/TouhouProject [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nfvo-xyq_zQ music arrange]] for Kanako Yasaka's theme, Suwa Foughten Field, begins with the opening.
** "Golbez, Clad in Darkness" from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIV'' quotes it as well.
** Eurobeat Brony's "Discord" uses the Fugue for its intro.
** The ''VideoGame/{{Civilization}}'' series have J.S. Bach's Cathedral as a Wonder you can build. In ''Civ. II'', [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=621tO6N1nQA the cutscene that plays upon finishing its construction]] features Toccata and Fugue in D minor as background music.
* Music/WendyCarlos made a career out of covering Bach's music in ElectronicMusic, starting off with ''Music/SwitchedOnBach''.
* Apollo 100's song "Joy" is a rock version of "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring."
* Music/TheByrds' song "She Don't Care About Time" has a guitar solo based on "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring".
* Music/{{Muse}}'s "Plug-in Baby" starts off with the opening of Toccata and Fugue in D minor.
* Music/TheKinks' "Wicked Annabella" briefly quotes "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" in a bass fill.
* Sweetbox's ''Everything's Gonna Be Alright'' is based around "Air on the G String", from Bach's Orchestral Suite No.3.
* Live versions of "Heartbreaker" by Music/LedZeppelin often include a snippet of Bach's Bourrée in E minor.
* Similarly, the Music/JethroTull song "Bourrée" opens with Ian Anderson playing Bourrée in E minor on the flute.
* Music/{{Megadeth}}'s "Last Rites", based on Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D minor (BWV 565).
* "Repent Walpurgis" by Music/ProcolHarum contains an excerpt of Prelude No. 1 in C major from Book I of ''The Well-Tempered Clavier''. Music/ProcolHarum's greatest hit was "A Whiter Shade of Pale" - based on the Air from Orchestral Suite No.3.
* Music/SymphonyX samples, among other pieces, Bach's Mass in B Minor in "Divine Wings of Tragedy". Further on the album ''V-The New Mythology Suite'' we also hear excerpts from Bach's Concerto for Harpsichord in D minor (BWV 1052) and the cantata ''Ich habe meine Zuversicht'' (BWV 188).
* Fitting the subject of the song, {{Music/Sakanaction}}'s "Bach no Senritsu o Yoru ni Kiita Sei Desu" ("Because Of Listening To Bach Melodies At Night") includes a short Bach snippet played on the piano.
* Bach has a cameo appearance in ''WebVideo/EpicRapBattlesOfHistory'' during the duel between Music/JustinBieber and Music/LudwigVanBeethoven.
* ''[[Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion The End of Evangelion]]'' features both "Air" and a LonelyPianoPiece version of "Jesu, The Joy Of Man's Desiring" in its soundtrack. "Air" is even one of the titles for the first half of the film.
* The long fade-out of The Beatles' "All You Need is Love" includes a snippet of Two-Part Invention No.8.
* ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei: VideoGame/DevilSummoner'' plays an organ version of Two Part Invention No.13 as background music in the Hotel Goumaden. Its sequel, ''VideoGame/SoulHackers'', features a piano version in the same location, but only after you perform a fusion or let the first piece of music finish.
* Creator/ArthurCClarke wrote of Bach's music assuaging solitude in two of his best-known novels.
** As Jan is waiting for his existence to end in ''Literature/ChildhoodsEnd'', he spends the time playing Bach on his electronic piano.
** On the space journey to Saturn in ''[[Literature/TheSpaceOdysseySeries 2001]]'', Dave Bowman gradually discards all other music and only finds peace listening to the "abstract architecture" of Bach.
* ''Literature/DirkGentlysHolisticDetectiveAgency'' has a plot point where, thanks to a twist on YouWillBeBeethoven, J. S. Bach [[spoiler:never actually existed; Prof. Chronitis stole some unearthly beautiful alien music and planted it in the Baroque era using Bach as a pseudonym]]. In real life Bach was also Creator/DouglasAdams' favorite composer; he was especially fond of "Ach bleib bei uns, Herr Jesu Christ" (BWV 6) which he listened to while writing, considering it an "absolutely perfect" piece of music.
* The ''WesternAnimation/XavierRiddleAndTheSecretMuseum'' episode "I Am Johann Sebastian Bach" features Bach when he was a kid.

* TropeCodifier: He didn't invent the fugue, but boy, did he codify it (see SignatureStyle, above). Given that he could improvise three-part fugues on request, this is not surprising. Some musicologists argue that his music goes some way towards codifying Western harmonic music in general.

!! Bach in popular culture

%%* DawnOfAnEra: 1685, the year Bach was born, is widely held to be the year when tonality in music (as we know it today) found its footing, thanks to Arcangelo Corelli. 1750, the year Bach died, is widely held to be the year when the Baroque period in music history ended and the Classical period began.