Bach Gesellschaft

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A page from the Bach-Gesellschaft edition of J.S. Bach's "St. Matthew Passion," BWV 244, as published in 1856.
A page from the Bach-Gesellschaft edition of J.S. Bach's "St. Matthew Passion," BWV 244, as published in 1856.

The Bach-Gesellschaft was a society formed in 1850 for the express purpose of publishing the complete works of Johann Sebastian Bach without editorial additions. The founders of the society were Moritz Hauptmann, cantor of St. Thomas' in Leipzig (and thus a successor of Bach); Otto Jahn, author of a noted biography of Mozart; Carl Ferdinand Becker, teacher at the Leipzig Conservatory; and the composer Robert Schumann.[1]

The Bach-Gesellschaft began publishing Bach's works in 1851 with a volume that started with BWV 1, the cantata "Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern."[2] It completed publication in 1900 with its forty-sixth volume.[3] However, the edition of The Art of Fugue by Wolfgang Graeser, published in 1926, is sometimes counted as "Volume 47"[4] and was issued as a supplement to the Bach-Gesellschaft publication by Breitkopf & Härtel, publishers of the original series.[5]

The volumes varied somewhat in editorial quality and accuracy; Bach scholar Hans T. David particularly criticized Vol. 31's presentation of The Musical Offering for numerous incorrect readings,[6] and the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica calls the edition as a whole "of very unequal merit." Britannica both lauds the editing of Wilhelm Rust for the edition and notes a deterioration of standards after his death, including a volume in which "the bass and violin are a bar apart for a whole line" (apparently a reference to sloppy editing).[7]

However, the Bach-Gesellschaft's volumes were a groundbreaking achievement and contributed greatly to the study of, and appreciation of, Bach's music. They remained the standard edition of Bach's complete works until the publication of the Neue Bach-Ausgabe, begun in 1954 and published by Bärenreiter.[8]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Hans T. David & Arthur Mendel, eds. (1998). The New Bach Reader: A Life of Johann Sebastian Bach in Letters and Documents, (Revised and expanded by Christoph Wolff), NY: Norton, pp. 503–4. ISBN 0-393-31956-3. 
  2. ^ Christoph Wolff; et al. (1983). The New Grove Bach Family. NY: Norton, p. 178. ISBN 0-393-30088-9.  (Worklist for J.S. Bach).
  3. ^ Hans T. David & Arthur Mendel, eds. (1998). The New Bach Reader: A Life of Johann Sebastian Bach in Letters and Documents, (Revised and expanded by Christoph Wolff), NY: Norton, p. 504. ISBN 0-393-31956-3. 
  4. ^ Johann Sebastian Bach (1992). The Art of the Fugue and A Musical Offering. NY: Dover, title page verso and "Publisher's Note" on unnumbered page. ISBN 0-486-27006-8. 
  5. ^ Tunnicliffe, Stephen. "Wolfgang Graeser (1906-28): A forgotten genius", The Musical Times, Spring 2000. Retrieved on 2007-04-27. 
  6. ^ Hans T. David [1945] (1972). J.S. Bach's Musical Offering. History, Interpretation, and Analysis, (reprint of orig. ed. by G. Schirmer), NY: Dover Publications, p. 102. ISBN 0-486-22768-5. 
  7. ^ "Johann Sebastian Bach". 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica. 
  8. ^ Christoph Wolff; et al. (1983). The New Grove Bach Family, p. 172.  (section of J.S. Bach article re: "Bach Revival").

[edit] External links


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