BACH GESELLSCHAFT

The 'Bach-Gesellschaft' was a society formed in 1850 for the express purpose of publishing the complete works of Johann Sebastian Bach without editorial additions. The founders of the society were Moritz Hauptmann, cantor of St. Thomas' in Leipzig (and thus a successor of Bach); Otto Jahn, author of a noted biography of Mozart; Carl Ferdinand Becker, teacher at the Leipzig Conservatory; and the composer Robert Schumann.^[1]
The Bach-Gesellschaft began publishing Bach's works in 1851 with a volume that started with BWV 1, the cantata "Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern."^[2] It completed publication in 1900 with its forty-sixth volume.^[3] However, the edition of ''The Art of Fugue'' by Wolfgang Graeser, published in 1926, is sometimes counted as "Volume 47"^[4] and was issued as a supplement to the Bach-Gesellschaft publication by Breitkopf & Härtel, publishers of the original series.^[5]
The volumes varied somewhat in editorial quality and accuracy; Bach scholar Hans T. David particularly criticized Vol. 31's presentation of ''The Musical Offering'' for numerous incorrect readings,^[6] and the 1911 ''Encyclopedia Britannica'' calls the edition as a whole "of very unequal merit." ''Britannica'' both lauds the editing of Wilhelm Rust for the edition and notes a deterioration of standards after his death, including a volume in which "the bass and violin are a bar apart for a whole line" (apparently a reference to sloppy editing).^[7]
However, the Bach-Gesellschaft's volumes were a groundbreaking achievement and contributed greatly to the study of, and appreciation of, Bach's music. They remained the standard edition of Bach's complete works until the publication of the Neue Bach-Ausgabe, begun in 1954 and published by Bärenreiter.^[8]

Contents

References

External links

References

1. The New Bach Reader: A Life of Johann Sebastian Bach in Letters and Documents, Hans T. David & Arthur Mendel, eds., , , Norton, , ISBN 0-393-31956-3
2. The New Grove Bach Family, Christoph Wolff, , , Norton, , ISBN 0-393-30088-9 (Worklist for J.S. Bach).
3. The New Bach Reader: A Life of Johann Sebastian Bach in Letters and Documents, Hans T. David & Arthur Mendel, eds., , , Norton, , ISBN 0-393-31956-3
4. The Art of the Fugue and A Musical Offering, Johann Sebastian Bach, , , Dover, , ISBN 0-486-27006-8
5. Wolfgang Graeser (1906-28): A forgotten genius Stephen Tunnicliffe
6. J.S. Bach's Musical Offering. History, Interpretation, and Analysis, Hans T. David, , , Dover Publications, , ISBN 0-486-22768-5
7. Johann Sebastian Bach 1911 ''Encyclopedia Britannica''
8. The New Grove Bach Family, Christoph Wolff, , , , , (section of J.S. Bach article re: "Bach Revival").

External links

★ The New Mexico Bach Gesellschaft Ausgabe Leipzig Archive - Complete edition available for download (public domain); website by Vincent Ho

★ Bach-Gesellschaft Edition - A complete list of volumes with German titles and publication dates.