Johann Christian Bach facts for kids
Johann Christian Bach (born in Leipzig, Germany, on 5 September 1735; died in London, England, on 1 January 1782) was a famous composer from the Classical music time. He was the eleventh and youngest son of the great composer Johann Sebastian Bach. People often called him 'the London Bach' or 'the English Bach' because he lived in London for many years. He became well-known around the world as both a composer and a performer. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart liked his music very much and learned a lot about writing good concertos by studying J. C. Bach's works.
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Growing Up in Germany
Johann Christian Bach's parents were Johann Sebastian Bach and Anna Magdalena Bach. He was born in Leipzig, Germany. His famous father was one of the last composers of the Baroque music period. His father was 50 years old when J. C. Bach was born. This means that by the time Johann Christian grew up, music styles had changed a lot from his father's time. Johann Christian belonged to the new Classical period. He was 15 years old when his father died. After that, he moved to Berlin. His older half-brother, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, who was already a famous composer, gave him more music lessons.
Life and Music in Italy
Johann Christian lived in Italy for many years, starting in 1756. First, he studied music with a teacher named Padre Martini in Bologna. Later, he studied with Giovanni Battista Sammartini. In 1760, he became an organ player at the main church in Milan.
However, he soon started to become very successful at writing operas. He decided to leave his church job so he could work in theaters and travel more around Italy. Johann Christian had grown up in the Lutheran church, but in Italy, he became a Catholic. He married an Italian singer named Cecilia Grassi. She was about eight years older than him. They never had children.
Becoming Famous in London
In 1762, Johann Christian moved to London, England. He became very successful there and earned enough money to live a comfortable life. He knew the royal family, including King George III and Queen Charlotte. He also knew important people like the famous painter Gainsborough and the musician and writer Charles Burney. King George III and Queen Charlotte went to hear his first London opera, Orione, in 1763. Johann Christian even gave the Queen music lessons!
He lived at a time when the piano was becoming a very popular instrument. The harpsichord was starting to seem old-fashioned. J. C. Bach wrote a lot of music for the piano. He gave the very first concert of piano music in London in 1768. He wrote six concertos for keyboard instruments and gave them to the Queen as a gift. The last movement of his Concerto No. 6 was a set of variations on the song God Save the King. This piece became very popular at the time. He also wrote many songs that people loved to hear. These songs were often performed in Vauxhall Gardens, a popular park where many people went for entertainment.
Johann Christian often gave concerts with Carl Friedrich Abel, who was a well-known player of the viola da gamba. Abel and Bach might have known each other as children because both their fathers had worked together in Germany. In April 1764, J. C. Bach met the 8-year-old Mozart. Mozart was visiting London with his father, Leopold. J. C. Bach and young Mozart even played duets on the harpsichord together.
He wrote many different types of music, including cantatas, chamber music, music for keyboard instruments and orchestras, operas, symphonies, and songs. Many of his works were published in London and Paris.
During his last years, he lost a lot of money. The concert series he ran with Abel started to lose money. Also, one of Bach’s servants stole £1000 from him, which was a huge amount of money back then. His health started to get worse. When he died, he left his wife with many debts. Queen Charlotte helped to pay a lot of the debt, and his wife went back to Italy.
He was buried in St Pancras churchyard in London.
Images for kids
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Johann Christian Bach, painted in London by Thomas Gainsborough, 1776 (National Portrait Gallery, London)
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J. C. Bach's memorial, St Pancras Churchyard, London
See also
In Spanish: Johann Christian Bach para niños
