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Bach FAQ 145

Johann Sebastian Bach ... How Many Publications About the Superstar and His Family Do Exist Since 1750?..

Large and small books about Bach, important books and exciting books about Johann Sebastian. It's not difficult to find a book about the Thomas Cantor. But choosing the right book from dozens of options can be a challenge. Want to go directly to all 800 Bach books and my 25 recommendations? Gladly..

The Expert on Bach Books: Yo Tomita..

One person was able to provide exhaustive information on the subject of Bach books. Information on everything, absolutely everything that has been written about Johann Sebastian Bach over the past quarter of a millennium. From 1750 to the present day. Until recently, this person was a professor at the University of Belfast in Ireland. He has now handed over this task to the Bach Archive in Leipzig, Germany. Today, there are a few more people who are experts in this field. And, of course, electronics are increasingly becoming a valuable aid..

A book about Bach's music? One for children on the subject of Bach? And then also a Bach Coloring Book for the little ones? If such a book even exists, then you've come to the right place. His name is Yo Tomita ... Professor Yo Tomita. He tracked them down and listed them. All the books ... even more: all the publications about the master himself. By the time he handed the task over to the Bach Archive, there were 54,000 publications: biographies, novels, genealogical studies, publications in newspapers and magazines, as well as books on Bach's music and his four famous sons, plus other family members. If you add essays about Bach, blog articles about the Thomas Cantor, and anything else that can be put into words or published, the total today is an astonishing 78,000 results worldwide..

Approximately. And that was the case until 2020. They exist in many languages around the world! There are even Japanese books and one Chinese book about Bach. They have been published from Leipzig, Germany to Shanghai, China and from Rome, Italy to San Francisco, California. So if a book on a very specific Bach-related topic has ever been published, Professor Tomita or the Bach Archive has found it. Even if the book was ultimately not printed as a project, there is a good chance that you will find this very book in the Bibliography of Yo Tomita. Books ... were and are simply “his thing.”..

Professor You Tomita. © Daniel Martyn Lewis..

By the way: One such book, which was written but never printed, is Professor Günther Kraft's postdoctoral thesis on the genealogy of the Bachs before Veit Bach. I only found this work because another Bach author noted in his book that Kraft's work was probably finished. It was supposed to be published shortly thereafter. However, it was never published. This happened because the author fell ill and died..

I even know of one work that never even made it into the Bach Archive. It is the latest research by Bach genealogy expert Kurt-Hermann Frickel. I had almost arranged an appointment with him. It never came to pass. He died before the publication of his latest work. Despite intensive efforts, several Bach genealogists have not succeeded in exploring its contents. Please continue reading below the advertisement..

Bach Books and More Bach Books: For Example, the Bach Coloring Book..

The Johann Sebastian Bach Coloring Book for Children. Or rather, for little Bach fans. And for future little Bach fans..

About the Coloring Book: Author Peter Bach, Jr. selected 17 stations in the life of the Thomas Cantor and his family, compiled them into scenes, and then had them illustrated by a cousin (... of Johann Sebastian Bach; second degree and ninth generation), Briana Bach-Hertzog, in the USA. Renate Bach, wife of Peter Bach, Jr., finally put everything together into a little coloring fun. In addition to the pictures to color, this “book” also contains what is surely the shortest Bach biography in the world. It consists of 25 short sentences, one or two for each scene. However, this is offered in both German and English. Here you can view all the inside pages. Please continue reading about the topic of books under the next two pictures..

The "Bach 4 You" Shops Not Only Offers 25 Cool Bach Book Recommendations..

In five “Bach 4 You” Shops, you will find hundreds of cool gift ideas related to Bach and music. Just click on the link in the first row to get there. For items like the ones above, please click on Zazzle, Spreadshirt, or Redbubble..

Bach calendars also make great music gifts. There are 20 Bach calendars available each year. Three sizes. This year and next year. Two calendar styles. To the shop..

Bach Books: So Many Categories..

Do you have a passion for Bach? For his music, anyway! Has it been that way for a long time, just recently, or since reading this, my website? And now you want more ... “more Bach”? A Bach biography. Maybe even a “second Bach book.” And would you like an overview? And a little bit of support? Ta-da: You've come to the right place..

On my website, in this “book corner.” And how fortunate that this fooling around will soon come to an end with the presentation of the individual publications. I went to the marketplace for you, the “Bach book marketplace,” so to speak – that is, jpc, the top online music retailer – and put together a selection ... from what they have to offer. You can find out more now. My wife and I would very much like you to support our Bach Mission by purchasing one of the books and booklets. By visiting jpc via our website ( ! ). To support my project and our joint Mission with a small commission. Without your book costing you a single cent more.

Just as every museum has a souvenir shop, we also offer many, many Bach gifts. This helps us finance our expenses. We would be delighted if you would purchase your book on topics related to Johann Sebastian Bach via our website. If you found a book, which you can not get in English. Click here for 25 recommended Bach books. However, these 25 are suggestions to buy in your country. © Roman Schreuer..

There Is Just One Single Bach Book In No Special Book Category..

The “Little Bach Book” is a little gem for anyone who has already “discovered” Johann Sebastian Bach, and it falls outside the usual categories. And yes, it is also extremely exciting even for German readers. Provided they understand at least a little English. Because it is not a biography. Not at all. In fact, the book doesn't fit into any of the typical categories. And that's why I'm pointing this out so explicitly. If you find Bach's life exciting, then find out more about this “Little Bach Book” right now. Just click here..

No, it's definitely not a biography. And yes, it's an English book also for German Bach fans. The fact is, it's so exciting and cool that it actually belongs in a special category. But what should that category be called?! Want to find out more?..

Johann Sebastian Bach Travel Guides..

Some publications are listed among the 50 Bach books written for your travel plans to the “Land of the Bache” (... caution ... for German speaking folks). Entertainment is important here, along with beautiful, inviting photos. However, you will not find any coffee table books about the composer, here, because they were not created to be included in a trip to Bach. These Bach travel guides are small and designed to be carried in your baggage while travelling. Among the Bach books, there are various offers for planning a trip to “Bach Country”..

Bach Biographies Have Been Written for Well Over 200 Years ... Today, You Have Plenty of Choice..

Here you will find all biographies to a certain extent and a certain meaning. I have not included "miniature books" here, because apart from Spitta, Wolff, Forkel and more unique Bach biographers, a 50-page booklet is not the book to be mentioned in this category. Here you get to the Bach biography section..

The range of biographies about Johann Sebastian Bach that you can buy and, above all, read today is confusing and overwhelming. There are exciting, age-old ... and cutting-edge offerings..

The book by the first significant biographer is still available today, hot off the press. Another famous Bach biography by Spitta is also still available, unused. The same applies to the book by a further great Bach biographer: the Bach biography by Dr. Albert Schweitzer. Of course, every year a few books are added that have something to say about JSB. Incidentally, the first biography – well, a “kind” of Johann Sebastian Bach biography, or perhaps better said, a short Bach biography – was written in 1750. Exactly three days after Bach's death. An obituary. At that time, it was called a necrology. The Necrology for Bach was written by three people. All three were close to Bach. They were his son Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, Johann Sebastian's student Johann Friedrich Agricola, and Lorenz Christoph Mizler. Among other things, the latter was a musicologist in Leipzig. However, this Necrology only became known to a wider public three years later, in 1753..

The first significant biographer on the subject of Johann Sebastian Bach was musicologist Johann Nikolaus Forkel. Born one year before Bach's death, it was not until 1802, half a century after Bach's passing, that Forkel's masterpiece, the first book on Johann Sebastian Bach's life, was published. And ... it is still up-to-date today. Well, not entirely up-to-date in terms of Bach science.

Because much more has been researched, discovered, and reevaluated in the meantime. But it is exciting because it is the spirit of the times that you feel when you read a work that was written over 210 years ago. Several freshly printed editions of this work are currently available. The cost? From unaffordable to reasonable. The selection at jpc is much more extensive than at Amazon..

Books About the Genealogy of the “Musical Bachish Family”..

Some time ago – around 20 years ago –there were only three books available that dealt almost exclusively with the genealogy of the Bach family. Incidentally, the expression above – more precisely, The Origin of the Musical Bachish Family – comes from the master himself. This is how he titled this list, a compilation of around 50 men in his family..

Several Bach genealogists have died over the past 20 years. Today, there are only two people left who are working intensively to complete the Bach family tree: Renate Bach and Peter Bach, Jr. Of course, Renate Bach's currently most accurate and comprehensive Bach genealogy is based 90 percent on the achievements of historical and 20th-century research..

The researchers in our time were Helga Brück, Kurt-Hermann Frickel, Gisela Thielicke, Evelyn Odrich, Ed Bach in the Netherlands, and Ronald Bach. The experts in the 1950s were Professor Kraft and Dr. Anette Niemeyer. However, Helmuth Karl Abendroth in Arnstadt and the current mayor of Gotha, Knut Kreuch, who are still alive today, also made significant contributions..

The purple book by Kurt-Hermann Frickel and the book at the bottom center: They were and still are, to some extent, the “Bibles” of Bach Genealogy. However, neither of them are available for purchase anymore ... not even second-hand. Helga Brück's book is entertaining to read, while the other two are more scientific and tabular in nature. And what is so special about Helga Brück's book? We still have a few copies in stock at the Publisher. Hot off the press, that is new. The challenge: It's in German..

The book on the left and the one in the middle are no longer available. Not even second-hand. And not even in the Bach Shop at the Bach Mission. There are exactly three copies of the book on the right left in the Bach Shop. Click here to go directly to this offer..

Novels About or Featuring Johann Sebastian Bach And / Or His Music..

A description of this novel can be found in the list of all 25 Bach books elsewhere on this website. Click here to go there..

Sophisticated Literature on the Music of Johann Sebastian Bach..

These are books for connoisseurs of Bach's music. And for music fans who want to become such connoisseurs one day However, you won't find anything in these Bach books that you can use to make music. After clicking, you will find these titles at the bottom of the German page. And caution again: It's in German!..

Music Books Related to the Music of the Composer Johann Sebastian Bach..

This is for the connoisseurs of Bach's music or for those who want to become that. It is almost scientific entertainment. However, you will not find anything here with what you could make music. So it is nothing like note sheets. The challenging click..

What a pleasure for the two of us, to meet Eleonor in spring 2019. We feel honored to introduce her successful Bach book in the "music department" here and on more pages of this website. Click here to learn more..

Something Special on the Topic of “Bach in Books”..

There are also some very special publications on the subject of Bach that you might not have found without the list in the project and the compilation. But ... that can't happen now. These books are too different to describe individually here. Our tip: Click on the German list of Bach books. There you can browse by book title and read the image description..

The Bach Biography for Children..

Getting kids interested in Johann Sebastian Bach: That was and is one of the goals of author Peter Bach, Jr., who not only addresses children with a book – and it's a real biography – but also with a special website. The book is illustrated with cute pictures by his sister. It gently introduces young readers to the life of the musical genius. Two little baroque angels are both experts. One is a specialist in storytelling. His very best friend forever (... BFF) plays music incredibly well. Preferably Bach, of course..

Once Again: The Bach Coloring Book

Yes, I do believe I am the only fan of the composer in the world who created a coloring book regarding Johann Sebastian Bach. And that is why you will find my ( ! ) coloring book in the "coloring book section", but not a second one. In addition, my coloring book is a bilingual work, that is to say, you get your information about the topic on the left side in both German and English. Of course, my coloring book comes without the big " © " on each page on the internet..

Johann Sebastian Bach's parents pass by what later became the Bach House in Eisenach, Thuringia, Germany..

Music Gifts!..

Discover more and more Bach gifts..

20 exciting Bach calendars are cool music gifts. Three sizes. This year, next year. EU style and US style. To the shop..

The Two Smallest Biographies About Johann Sebastian Bach Ever..

Small but beautiful: It is almost the smallest of all Bach books. You can buy it in the Shop of “Bach 4 You.” And no, it is not intended for reading, although it would “work.”..

Back to Johann Nikolaus Forkel, the First Famous Bach Biographer..

In 1802, Bach scholar Forkel wrote the first significant book about Johann Sebastian Bach, a biography. Hundreds of books about Bach followed this book over a period of well over 200 years..

For a whopping € 133 (... that is sort of $ 133), you can get this reprint of Forkel's Bach biography today. But ... there is a cheaper option that is also fresh off the press. On the corresponding page of this website, you will find four more suggestions at moderate and affordable prices. You can access them via the link above. The is true for the German offer..

Back Again to the Bach Biography: There Are 700 ... Every Decade There Are a Few More..

Exciting: Even if you devote yourself entirely to Bach, half a lifetime would not be enough to match the expertise of Bach connoisseur and author Christoph Wolff. He is considered “the authority” on Bach. And he is not just regarded as such by the general public. No, even for Bach connoisseurs, Bach authors, and Bach specialists, he is the outstanding expert. Christoph Wolff is a professor. In Leipzig, too. But who knows Leipzig?! I mean, who in the world knows Leipzig? Except us Germans. And well, maybe a few Americans, Chinese, and Australians with German roots..

Above all, Wolff is a professor at the world-famous University of Harvard in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. And who isn't familiar with this name?! Except for a few Aborigines, perhaps... and even then, only perhaps. Apologies to all Aborigines at this point. Wolff writes. And he also conducts research. He teaches. He is equally committed to the cultural heritage of Johann Sebastian Bach. He presides over such venerable circles as the New Bach Society, and we ask ourselves: Does this man ever sleep?! He was director of the Bach Archive, and is a multiple award winner ... and an honorary doctor..

Author Professor Dr. Dr. Christoph Wolff: His book “Johann Sebastian Bach” is just one of his many works on the subject of Bach. He is – without question – the leading expert on Bach. © ... and many thanks to Mr. Rolf H. Seyboldt for allowing me to publish the photo. His website? www.seyboldt4Media.com..

This is actually the smallest biography ever written about Johann Sebastian Bach. It makes a wonderful gift for a Bach fan or a cantor, for example. And of course, it's not meant to be read. Instead, it's a wonderful decoration for anyone who loves Bach's music. Click here to visit the shop one last time and it's even  the right place..

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