Bach Revival in the 19th Century
The Bach revival movement marks the rediscovery and exploration of Johann Sebastian Bachs music during the first half of the 19th century after almost a century of neglect. Were it not for the initial efforts and deep longings of the early Bach admirers in Germany and England, the music of the great master would certainly not have come to light. In fact, the movement have had much lasting effects in the history of music with the formation of the Bach-Gesellschaft in 1850, and the stimulation of interest in the revival of music of other early composers. ... Bach and his music were not simply forgotten after his death in 1750 and rediscovered a century later. Rather, historical research has shown that for the most part there was actually nothing to have been forgotten about since Bach and his music were never really known1 unlike Palestrina, Lully, Purcell and Handel, whom were never really forgotten by the musical public. On the other hand, Bach was known only by a small group of students and enthusiasts, but much of the musical public did not recognize him, second-rated his music, and despised it. ... In 1737, Johann Adolf Scheibe, an acknowledged spokesman of the younger generation of musicians, attacked Bach in his paper Cristischer Musicus, the leading musical jounral, as being ¡§turgid¡¨, ¡§haivng a confused style¡¨, ¡§an excess of art¡¨, ¡§deprived of harmony and melody¡¨, ¡§artificial¡¨, ¡§laboured¡¨, and ¡§conflicting with Reason¡¨3. ... Scheibe was definitely not the only one whom did not recognize Bach, as even Bachs sons failed to understand their father. ... Hiller, the third successor at the Thomaskirche where Bach was employed gave only superficial remarks in his autobiography in 1784. Hiller was not a lover of Bachs music when Zelter tells us that he ¡§tried to fill the lads of the Thomaskirche choir with loathing for the crudities of Bach¡¨, and ironically, when he was supposed to be the official custodian of Bachs Cantatas and Passions6. Further attack came from the Prussian Court Kapellmeister Reichardt in 1782: If Bach had had the high sense of truth and the deep feeling for expression that inspired Handel, he would have become a far greater man than Handel. ... Bach used recitatives and choruses from his fathers Passions in his own Passion music, as well as incorporating some of the cantatas and editing the four-part chorales for publication. ... Bach also included movements from his fathers chorales in his cantata and oratorio. It was in Berlin where the strongest Bach disiples were located, and where they maintained, passed from hand to hand, copied out time after time, and circulated many of the original manuscripts of Bach where these copies eventaully reached all the north and central German organists. ... Christoph Kittel8, with some of the most devoted including Frederick the Greats sister Amalie, Kirnberger, Philipp Emanuel, and Friedmann Bach, Marpug, and others. ... Nonetheless, by shutting themselves off from outside musical influcences, this Berlin group was able to preserve the works of Bach intact amongst themselves. ... In Vienna, the Bach revival was encouraged by influential patrons such as the Director of the Court Library Baron Gottfried van Swieten and Fanny von Arnstein. Van Swieten had joined with some Bach enthusiasts and possessed a number of Bachs works where they were studied, played, and enjoyed. Nevertheless, the general musical public began to acknowledge and appreciate Bach after four major changes in the thoughts and attitudes of the public during the Napoleonic Wars. ... Third, the rise of nationalism after the military and political humiliations of the Napoleonic Wars brought the public to see in Bach true German spirit in music14. And fourth, religious revival through Protestant Germany prompting a search and discovery of Bach as the church musician15. It would seem that in order for any revival of Bach to occur independently, the four critrias above must first be met. The organist and director of music at Gottingen University Johann Nikolaus Forkel contributed a great deal to the revival and was extremely important as he marked the first historical study of music as well as having plans for a biography of Bach in the mid-1770s.