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Donald Macleod tries to get to the heart of JS Bach鈥檚 character, warts and all.

Johann Sebastian Bach, who is now almost universally recognised as one of the giants of classical music, was not always so celebrated. In his own lifetime he received some public recognition but this contrasted with his regular complaints of unjust humiliations at the hands of his contemporaries and his employers. Was the composer hard done by or were these problems of his own making?

This week, Donald Macleod tries to get to the heart of Bach鈥檚 character, warts and all, through five different periods in the composer鈥檚 life. We鈥檒l be hearing from some of Bach鈥檚 most glorious music, as Donald ponders what the composer鈥檚 character might mean for our understanding of the man and his art.

Music Featured:

St Matthew Passion, BWV 244, 鈥淲ir setzen uns mit Tranen nieder鈥�
Solo Violin Sonata No 1 in G minor, BWV 1001 (I, Adagio)
Nach dir, Herr, verlanget mich, BWV 150
Passacaglia and fugue in C minor, BWV 582
Ascension Oratorio, BWV 11, 鈥淎ch bleibe doch, mein liebstes Leben鈥�
Ein Feste Berg ist unser Gott, BWV 80 (Opening Chorus)
Coffee Cantata, BWV 211, 鈥淗at man nicht mit seinen Kindern鈥�
Capriccio in E Major, BWV 993
Violin Concerto No 1 in A minor, BWV1041
Sonata in A minor, BWV 965, after Reincken
Suite No 2 in B minor, BWV 1067 鈥� Overture
Toccata & Fugue in F major, BWV 540
Christen, atzet diesen Tag, BWV 63, "H枚chster, schau in Gnaden an"
Prelude & Fugue in E flat major, BWV 852 from The Well-Tempered Clavier
Brandenburg Concerto No 6
Lute Suite in E minor, BWV 996 (Bour茅e)
Herr Jesu Christ, wahr鈥� Mensch und Gott, BWV 127
Suite No 1 in G major for solo Cello, BWV 1007
Ich habe genug, BWV 82 - "Schlummert ein, ihr matten Augen"
Ach Herr, mich armen S眉nder, BWV 135 鈥淲eicht, all鈥檌hr Ubeltater鈥�
Fantasia in G, BWV 572
Orchestral Suite No 3 (Air)
Mass in B minor, BWV 232 (Gloria in excelsis & Et in terra pax)
Musical Offering , BWV 1079 (Sonata for Flute, Violin and Continuo)
The Art of Fugue, BWV 1080 (Contrapunctus XIV)

Presented by Donald Macleod
Produced by Sam Phillips

For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) /programmes/m0010g9g

And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we鈥檝e featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z

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