Composer, born in Weimar, C Germany, the eldest and most gifted son of J S Bach. He studied at the Thomasschule and Leipzig University, and in 1733 became organist at Dresden and in 1747 at Halle. His way of life became increasingly dissolute, and from 1764 he lived without fixed occupation at Brunswick, Göttingen, and Berlin, where he died. He was the greatest organ player of his time, but very few of his compositions were published, as he rarely bothered to write them down.
Wilhelm Friedemann Bach (November 22, 1710 – July 1, 1784) was the eldest, and by common repute the most gifted son, of Johann Sebastian Bach;
With his father's death in 1750, the stabilizing influence in Friedemann's life seems to have disappeared, and he lived an unhappy life in Halle, from which he frequently traveled to seek other employment.
His compositions, very few of which were printed, include many church cantatas and instrumental works, of which the most notable are the fugues, polonaises and fantasias for clavier, and the duets for two flutes.
A commonly-used numbering system is that of Martin Falck, who published a catalog of Friedemann's music in 1913. For example, Falck 12 or F. nv for Nachlassverzeichnis - remaining list, or appendix to the catalog is sometimes attached, often for works discovered more recently than 1913 - so, Falck nv 2 for a fantasy in C minor for keyboard.
Additionally, Friedemann along with his brother Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach provided important information to Johann Nikolaus Forkel, the first biographer of Johann Sebastian Bach. Not only did a good deal of Friedemann's share of this music disappear unaccountably, but in some cases he is known to have claimed credit for music written by his father (such as the Organ Concerto, BWV 596; because Friedemann wrote his own name on Sebastian's autograph score, it was mistakenly attributed to Friedemann when it was first published in the 19th century).
Wilhelm Friedemann Bach is not to be confused with Wilhelm Friedrich Ernst Bach, his nephew, also a composer.
Several compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach were dedicated expressly for his instruction, including the Klavierbüchlein für Wilhelm Friedemann Bach of 1720, some of whose musical material was later used in the Well-Tempered Clavier.
Selected works
Chamber and instrumental Clavier sonatas: in G major, Falck 7 in A minor, Falck nv8 Clavier fantasias in C minor, Falck nv2 in D minor, Falck 19 Eight fugues for clavier (played on harpsichord or organ), Falck 31 Sonata for two harpsichords in F major, Falck 10 Fugues and chorale preludes for organ Polonaises Trio sonatas, Falck 47-50 in D major, D major, A major and B♭ major Duets for two flutes, Falck 54-59 (published originally in another order, so duet number six in F minor is Falck 58, and duet number 2 is Falck 59) Duets for two violas, Falck 60-62 (in C major, G major and G minor) Sonata in C minor for viola and continuo - also attributed to Johann Gottlieb Graun Sonatas for violin and harpsichord (also possibly only attributed, and without Falck number) Orchestral Symphonies. An often-recorded one is the Adagio and fugue in D minor, Falck 65. There are several others in more standard formats, including one in D major, Falck 64 and in F major Falck 67. Concertos Six harpsichord concertos (counting a fragment), one of which is the harpsichord concerto in E minor, Falck 43. See reference below (which claims that the two-harpsichord concerto is in E♭ minor) and also Concerto for two harpsichords, in E♭ major, Falck 46 A flute concerto in D.Trivia
One of Mozart's projects - Köchel-Verzeichnis 404a - was to transcribe several fugues from the Well-Tempered Clavier, and the last, in F minor, of the Eight Fugues (Falck 31) of Wilhelm Friedemann Bach, for string trio, providing them with preludes of his own. Bach, followed by translations of the texts of these movements and a critical commentary.") Falck, Martin.
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