Johann Christoph Bach

Johann Christoph Bach

Anonymous   Date unknown

Source: Hymn Time

The portrait of Johann Christoph Bach above wasn't included in the VF History years ago because I could find no information about it. Between all the Bachs (8 addressed in VF) and other composers at their times images of them can tend toward confusion. I yet unearth nothing about the proffered image of Johann Christoph above. I include it only because Discogs represents him thusly and I know Discogs to work hard on accuracy. (I've discovered silly errors at Discogs every long now and then. It can happen!) Why it is thought that the above may be an image of Johann I know not, but that's who he is until it's learned otherwise.

The baroque period brought with it a few musical families of which the Bachs are the major dynasty, having produced above seventy musicians. The Couperin name was perhaps a couple centuries older than the Bach's even as Louis Couperin in France was a generation older than Johann Christoph Bach in Germany, the first of eight stretching into the classical period which this history will consider. Come the Italian Scarlattis of which Alessandro arrived a generation later than Johann. Other musical families surfaced in latter baroque such as the Sammartinis who bridged to classical. The Haydns also emerged in latter baroque with Franz Joseph bridging to classical. But that's a century ahead of Johann Christoph who entered the baroque period in the latter decades of its first century of existence. Originating in Italy about 1600, baroque had long since migrated to northern Europe by the time the Bachs became a notable force in music.

It's thought that at the start of the 16th century there existed four branches of the Bach family, though the first records of a Bach don't occur until Veit (Vitus) Bach about 1550, a baker in Wechmar who had fled Hungary as a Lutheran. The first known musically professional Bach was Johannes Hans, born about 1580, who preferred playing pipe to baking. But not until Johann Cristoph and his brother, Johann Michael, did the Bach name in music gather full steam.

Born in Arnstadt, Germany, on 18 Dec 1642, Johann Christoph Bach was 1st cousin once removed of the more famous Johann Sebastian Bach. He's not to be confused with Sebastian's uncle or brother, both composers, all three sharing the same name [disambiguation]. This Cristoph Bach was elder brother to composer, Johann Michael Bach, with whom German baroque came into full bloom [refs to Bach dynasty below]. As the son of Heinrich Bach, the latter a musician, Johann Christoph was taught music as a youth, perhaps composing by the sixties. Bach Cantatas has him employed at the Arnstadt castle chapel in Thuringia as of 20 Nov 1663. Two years later he became town organist of Eisenach at St. George's where he remained his whole career. Also employed as organist and harpsichordist at the kapelle (chapel) of the court of the Duke of Eisenach, he likewise moved in that circle until his death.

There exists no proper chronological or thematic verseichnis of Johann Christoph. AllMusic and BachCantatas provide the best lists of a corpus to be found online along with Polish and Ukrainian Wikipedia [refs below]. Nor are dates of compositions or MS inclusions easily identified. For this reason the stacking of JC Bach below is alphabetical by genre, ignoring what few incidental dates. Bach can be grouped into three broad categories of keyboard pieces like preludes, works for voice like motets, and concertos for voice and instruments including sacred cantatas. Below, then, are several cantatas, a couple pieces for solo keyboard and a couple choral motets for five voices. Johann Christoph wrote the bulk of his works circa the last three decades of the 17th century, which will have to suffice for titles missing dates.

Concertos: Sacred Cantatas

'Ach, daß ich Wassers g'nug hätte in meinem Haupte'   Sacred cantata   Lament by J.C. Bach

'O, that there were waters enough in my head'

Composed in E minor for alto, violin, 3 violas and continuo

Text from Jeremiah 9:1, Psalm 38:4 & Lamentations 1:16, 22, 12

Previously thought composed by Heinrich Bach, Johann Christoph's father

Countertenor: Ian Howell   Calvary Episcopal Church   Pittsburgh   21 Feb 2010

'Es erhub sich ein Streit im Himmel'   Sacred cantata   Battle theme by J.C. Bach

'There was a quarrel in heaven' (Michael v Satan)

Composed c 1683 in C major for double choir, voice & orchestra: instrumentation

MS: Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin (D-B) 55 MS 10159

Text from Revelation 12:7-12

J.S. Bach composed another version of this in Leipzig in 1726

Spiritato and the Marian Consort   St Giles' Church   London   28 October 2021

'Meine Freundin, du bist schön'   Sacred cantata   Wedding theme by J.C. Bach

'My girlfriend, you are beautiful'

Composed in G minor for SATB w violin, 3 violas & continuo in 1676

Text poss from Songs of Solomon

Rheinische Kantorei w Musica Antiqua Köln directed by Reinhard Goebel   1992

'Wie bist du denn, O Gott im Zorn'   Sacred cantata   Lament by J.C. Bach

'How are you, O angry God'

Composed in B minor for bass w violin, 2 viols & continuo

Anonymous paraphrase from Penitential Psalms

Accademia Hermans

Solo Keyboard Preludes

'Prelude and Fugue in E-flat major'   Prelude for solo organ by J.C. Bach

Once thought composed by J.S. Bach

All Music appends a posthumous date of 1704 to this for reason unknown

Clavecin: Benjamin Alard

'Warum betrübst du dich, mein Herz'   Prelude for solo organ by J.C. Bach

'Why are you troubled, my heart'

Version of an anonymous 1561 melody from Nürnberg

Organ: Thorsten Pirkl   Vonderau-Museum   Fulda

Choral Motets

'Fürchte dich nicht'   Motet for SATTB by J.C. Bach

'Be not afraid'

Text: Isaiah 43:1 & Luke 23:43

Collegium Vocale Gent directed by Philippe Herreweghe

'Der Gerechte, ob er gleich zu zeitlich stirbt'   Motet for SATTB by J.C. Bach

'The righteous (just), though he die too soon finds rest'

Composed in 1676   Text: Book of Wisdom 4

Choir of Clare College Cambridge & Timothy Brown

Albeit Johann Christoph Bach was a successful composer and organist, ranked by some as the only other Bach to approach the stature of Johann Sebastian, he didn't have a head for finance, dying heavily in debt in Eisenach on 31 March 1703.