J.S. Bach: Highlights of a Life

Cöthen (1717-1723)

“Without contraries there is no progression.”

— WILLIAM BLAKE, The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, c.1790

The Draw of the Cards

Having obtained his release from Weimar, Bach spent some very productive years as kapellmeister for Prince Leopold of Anhalt-Cöthen. Here he wrote the Brandenburg Concertos. In later years, Bach would speak of the prince’s love for music, and what a joy it was to compose for the prince. After the prince’s wife died, however, his new wife did not share her predecessor’s tastes, and Bach was compelled to look again for a more suitable environment.

It was here also that the composer lost his wife, Maria Barbara Bach, who had borne him seven children (four surviving). Her unexpected death occurred in 1720, while Bach was away on assignment to Carlsbad.

A year and a half later, he married the young singer Anna Magdalena Wülken. Together, they had thirteen children (six surviving). The couple remained close for the next twenty-eight years. Anna Magdalena played some on the keyboard, and copied out the composer’s works for the rest of his life. One of the works she did for him was, ironically, a gift for her, called The Little Musical Notebook for Anna Magdalena Bach. The book contains dances, marches, and songs, including the love song "Bist du bei mir," with the following lines addressed to his wife:

If you are with me
I go with joy
To death and my rest. Ah, how happy
Would be my end
If your beautiful hands
Would close my faithful eyes.

Next: Leipzig

Youth | Weimar | Cöthen | Leipzig | Beyond