Table Of Content

Hans-Gunter Ottenberg Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714-1788) was the second son of Johann Sebastian Bach’s first marriage, and the most famous of all the sons of Bach. Much of the existing literature on him is in German, and most of it takes the form of particular studies of individual genres: keyboard music, song, chamber music, etc. Hans- Giinter Ottenberg’s biography is the only recent attempt at a complete study of the life and works in book form. It provides a wide-ranging survey of the music, including much that is as yet unpublished (a complete edition is in preparation at the University of Maryland and will be published by Oxford University Press). Particular care is taken to set the music in its context. Ottenberg supplies a great deal of information about Bach’s contacts with literary and philosophical figures, and about the social, intellectual and aesthetic environment in which he worked. Unlike many earlier writers, Ottenberg assesses the empfindsamer Stil, of which Bach was surely the greatest exponent, on its own terms, and not simply as a prelude to Viennese Classicism. Even so, the question of Bach’s larger historical significance is not neglected: the final chapter is devoted to his posthumous influence and reputation. Hans-Gunter Ottenberg was born in 1947 and is Wissenschaftlicher Oberassistent in the Department of Philosophy and Cultural Sciences, Technical University, Dresden. His areas of interest include German musical culture of the 18th century, C. P. E. Bach, music criticism in Berlin, and the musical history of Dresden. Jacket illustration: engraving by J. H. Lips. Deutsche Staatsbibliothek, East Berlin. .. C. P. E. BACH Hans-Giinter Ottenberg TRANSLATED BY PHILIPJ. WHITMORE Oxford New York OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS i987 Oxford University Press, Walton Street, Oxford OX2 6DP Oxford New York Toronto Delhi Bombay Calcutta Madras Karachi Petaling Jaya Singapore Hong Kong Tokyo Nairobi Dar es Salaam Cape Town Melbourne Auckland and associated companies in Beirut Berlin Ibadan Nicosia Oxford is a trade mark of Oxford University Press Published in the United States by Oxford University Press, New York First published in 1982 by Verlag Philipp Reclam jun. Leipzig First published in English in 1987 by Oxford University Press Copyright © Verlag Philipp Reclam jun. Leipzig, 1982 English translation copyright © Oxford University Press, 1987 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of Oxford University Press British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Ottenberg, Hans-Giinter. C. P. E. Bach. 1. Bach. Carl Philipp Emanuel I. Title II. Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach. English 780' .92'4 ML410.B16 ISBN 0-19-919246-0 Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Ottenberg, Hans-Giinter. C. P. E. Bach Translation of: Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach. 1982. Bibliography: p. Includes indexes. 1. Bach, Carl Philipp Emanuel, 1714—1788. 2. Composers—Germany—Biography. I. Title. ML410.B160873 1987 780'.92'4 [B] 86-23904 ISBN 0-19-313246-0 Set from captured data by H Charlesworth & Co Ltd, Huddersfield Printed in Great Britain at the University Printing House, Oxford by David Stanford Printer to the University CONTENTS List of Illustrations vii Translator’s Preface ix INTRODUCTION Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach—An Original Genius? i chapter i. Weimar—Cothen—Leipzig—Frankfurt an der Oder (1714-1738) 7 The Years in Weimar and Cothen 7 Early Musical Education 8 J. S. Bach in Leipzig 10 School and University in Leipzig 11 Further Musical Studies 12 Earliest Compositions 15 The Town of Frankfurt an der Oder in the Eighteenth Century and its Musical Life 23 C. P. E. Bach’s Musical Activity in Frankfurt 26 chapter 2. Berlin (1738-1768) 33 Harpsichordist at the Prussian Court 33 The Prussian Capital around 1740 36 The Prussian and Wiirttemberg Sonatas 38 Keyboard Concertos 46 J. S. Bach’s Visits to Berlin 49 The Magnificat 52 J. S. Bach’s Estate 55 Chamber Music 58 Musical Life in Berlin 62 Versuch iiber die wahre Art das Clavier z.u spielen 69 The Fantasia Principle 78 Day-to-day Professional Life and Travel 85 Organ Music and Symphonies 88 The Seven Years War 92 Songs and Keyboard Works 94 Berlin—The Final Years 103 chapter 3. Hamburg (1768-1788) 107 Bach’s Tasks and Duties 107 Musical Life in Hamburg 113 VI Contents Die Israeliten in der Wiiste 118 ‘...a style of performance and composition as close as possible to that of singing’ 125 The Rondo 129 The Six ‘String Symphonies’ 132 Discussion of Genius 139 Bach’s Family and Circle of Friends in Hamburg 142 Song Composition 155 The Collections ‘fur Kenner und Liebhaber’ [for connoisseurs and amateurs] 160 Master of Improvisation 167 The Four ‘Orchestral symphonies with twelve obbligato parts’ 171 Final years and late works 174 Death and Posthumous Reputation 182 chapter 4. Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach—Aspects of Recep¬ tion 185 C. P. E. Bach and the Viennese Classical composers 185 A Forgotten Musical Oeuvre 198 Notes on the history of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach Scholarship I. Beginnings and first results 205 The Fate of the Bach Manuscripts 208 Notes on the history of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach Scholarship II. Continuation, Trends, and Prospects 214 Appendix I. Chronological Table 219 Appendix II. Three Letters from Denis Diderot 223 Appendix III. Work-List 225 Appendix IV. Concordances of Wotquenne numbers (Wq.) with Helm numbers (H.) 245 Select Bibliography 249 Glossary of Names 257 Index of Works 271 General Index 275