The Bach Daughter Who Helped Hold The family Together

Glorious news! Johann Sebastian has just returned home and he tells me the interview went superbly and that he was immediately hired as Kapellemeister and room musician at the court of his majesty, Duke Wilhelm of Saxe-Weimar. Tomorrow he will resign his position at St. Blaise's in Muhlhausen and we will move to Weimar.

Ah, Weimar! Life is so separate here. It is like other world. Johann has a fantastic wage and also that, some men showed up with grain and wood and wine at our front door the other day. This is the way we now live here in Weimar.

Swiss Twins

Johann Sebastian has started his new job and he is so happy. The Duke does not tolerate the religious rancor that had marked our time at Muhlhausen and he told Js he would be free to make his ideas on "well-regulated church music" at Weimar. It is such a blessing to have Johann Sebastian happy and engaged in his music, playing his violin, but also composing, composing and composing!

We also have a new baby, our first. We named her Catharina Dorothea and she is a healthy gorgeous baby. Ah, our lives are so full and happy here in Weimar.

My husband recently heard the music of some Italian composers and he was most impressed. In fact, just the other day he played for Dorothea and me, a piece he arranged for his "King of Instruments" (that's the organ, you know) which he cleverly based on a violin concerto by a Mr. Vivaldi. It is fantastic how he was able to play all the parts of the orchestra and the part of the violin soloist on the organ by himself!

Our miniature family continues to grow. Dorothea is now 2 years old, and we have a new baby we have named Wilhelm Friedemann. You do remember our Duke's name is Wilhelm don't you? Their father is fantastic with them when he has time. Johann Sebastian is so busy with all his activities from tuning harpsichords, repairing and maintaining organs, playing his violin in the Duke's orchestra, and of procedure composing, a lot of which is for the organ right now.

Our twins, Johann Christoph and Maria Sophia, were born this year, but alas, they were so tiny and sickly, they did not survive more than a day. I was heartbroken of procedure and Johann Sebastian was especially sad. He has already had too much death in his life.

Even straight through this tragedy, Johann Sebastian has continued with all his work and has even continued to compose. He composes his glorious music not just as an worker of the Duke but to the glory of God! always to the glory of God.

(The story above is one of a dozen vignettes from the multi-media and organ program, Bach and Sons, presented by Dr. Jeannine Jordan, concert organist.)

The Bach Daughter Who Helped Hold The family Together

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