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    Bach

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    King Frederick II of Prussia (1712 - 1786)

    This image appears in the gallery:
    Bach's friends, family, and important people in his life

    Bach Frederick the Great Prussia

    16. King Frederick II of Prussia (1712 - 1786)

    In 1747, Bach visited the court of Frederick the Great at Potsdam. The musical king played a theme for Bach and challenged him to improvise a fugue based on his theme. Bach improvised a three-part fugue on one of Frederick's fortepianos and later presented the king with ‘A Musical Offering’ which consists of fugues, canons and a trio based on the theme.

    1. Image 1: Gera Thuringia Germany Bach
    2. Image 2: Bach stammhaus Wechmar
    3. Image 3: Johann Ambrosius Bach Sebastian father
    4. Image 4: Bach Johann Christoph uncle Sebastian
    5. Image 5: Michaelis monastery Lüneburg Georg Erdmann Johann Sebastian Bach
    6. Image 6: Bach Johann Christoph brother Sebastian
    7. Image 7: Bach George Bohm organist
    8. Image 8: William Ernest Duke Saxe-Weimar Bach
    9. Image 9: Dietrich Buxtehude organist
    10. Image 10: Telemann Georg Philipp 16 images

    See the full gallery: Bach's friends, family, and important people in his life

    Bach News

    See more Bach News

    Bach pancake

    Someone made an impossibly well-sculpted J.S. Bach pancake and we are mightily impressed

    Huge xylophone plays Bach

    Giant handmade xylophone plays Bach in the depths of a serene Japanese forest

    György and Márta Kurtág Bach duet

    This 90-year old couple play Bach together and it will bring tears to your eyes

    Bach Music

    See more Bach Music

    nina simone plays bach

    Nina Simone plays a stunning Bach-style fugue in the middle of one of her classic songs

    Discover Music

    bach cantata tim mead

    This Bach cantata is so beautiful it's basically from another planet

    Figgy pudding fugue

    We Wish You a Merry Christmas, in the style of a Bach fugue

    Christmas

    Bach Pictures

    See more Bach Pictures

    Bach's children

    Q: How many children did J.S. Bach have? A: Loads. Here’s what we know.

    San Quentin Prison interior

    10 of the greatest composers who broke the law

    Johann Sebastian Bach

    Bach: Compositions, children, biography and more facts about the great composer

    Bach Album Reviews

    See more Bach Album Reviews

    New releases 13th July

    New releases: Vladimir Ashkenazy plays Bach and Maxim Rysanov plays Schubert

    New releases 12th June

    New Releases: Bach with Zhu Xiao-Mei and Emmanuel Despax plays Chopin

    new releases 22nd may

    New releases: 'Bach Stories' and Mozart with the LSO Wind Ensemble

    Bach Guides

    See more Bach Guides

    Bach's Facebook page

    If composers had Facebook: Johann Sebastian Bach's profile

    Bach and wife Anna Magdalena

    Did Bach’s wife write some of his best-known works?

    Requiem

    A guide to JS Bach's incredible Passion music

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