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Did Johann Bach's wife write the Cello Suites?

A new documentary, 'Written by Mrs Bach', raises claims that Johann Bach’s second wife Anna Magdalena was actually the composer behind his Cello Suites.

The theory, put forward by Professor Martin Jarvis of Charles Darwin University is dismissed by British cellist Steven Isserlis

"There's no evidence whatsoever, it's madness. It's all based on a copy of the violin works and the cello suites... and it says very clearly twice composed by Bach, and it the bottom right hand corner; written by Mrs Bach," he said.

The composer Dr Sally Beamish is the narrator of ‘Written by Mrs Bach’, she was intrigued by the idea as she initially thought Magdalena couldn't have written the music as she was a woman.

"For me this programme is a giant 'what if?' and it is about women composers for me," she said.

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5 minutes

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