Johann Christian Bach: His Life, the Essence of His Keyboard Works and His Five Berlin Concertos, P. 390

Abstract

Johann Christian Bach, later widely known as John Christian, was the youngest son of Johann Sebastian Bach and his second wife, Anna Magdalena. Born in Leipzig, Kingdom of Saxony on 5 September 1735, John Christian Bach received high reputation as a keyboard performer as well as a teacher. His keyboard works, in the early years, were mostly composed for his students and amateurs. He composed six keyboard solo sonatas, Op. 5 for harpsichord in 1766, four years after arriving in London. Later in 1776, he published a set of six sonatas, Op. 17 for either harpsichord or pianoforte. Some of the sonatas in Op.5 illustrated elements of Classicism and galant style with the use of Alberti basses, arpeggios, and scale passages while the later set, Op. 17, with the influence of pianoforte, displayed the wider dynamic range and flexibility of tone colors. Another significant contribution for keyboard repertoire were sets of concertos. Johann Christian Bach’s Five Berlin Concertos, P. 390 displayed his early ideas about the keyboard concerto. With Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach’s influence, all of the five Berlin concertos are large-scale works with unique harmony, abrupt pauses, and big contrasts in melodic passages. His concertos and keyboard sonatas are crucial since they represent  the elements of Classical style which later on has been a great influence in W.A. Mozart’s music.