Bachfest Leipzig

Johann Sebastian Bach was not only the cantor of St. Thomas’ in Leipzig who composed endless immortal works of music. For a full fifteen years of his professional career, his main job was court employee: first of all as organist and concertmaster in Weimar, and then as kapellmeister in Köthen. Even when he was Thomaskantor, he continued to garner honorary court titles: in 1729 he was appointed associate kapellmeister to the duke of Weißenfels and from 1736, at his request, »Royal Polish and Electoral Saxon Court Compositeur«. His famous guest performance in Potsdam may also have been aimed at becoming honorary kapellmeister to Frederick the Great.

Bach’s work at the courts and for rulers produced numerous and particularly diverse compositions – splendid music for celebrations, glitteringly virtuoso instrumental works of every imaginable style and genre, and innovative church music. In short, what makes the works of Court Compositeur Bach so attractive is their extremely broad range of forms – ideal material for building a very varied Bach Festival programme.