Story-Lives of Great Musicians | Page 6

of
its members had gone forth to other parts of the country. The savour of
the former presence of the Bachs was still fresh in the minds of the
townspeople; the consistory of the new church, moreover, were on the
look out for a thoroughly capable organist, and Bach's request to be
allowed to try the organ was, therefore, willingly granted.
No sooner had they heard him play than they offered him the post, and,
furthermore, stated their willingness to augment the pay attached to it
by a contribution from the town funds. Bach, therefore, found himself
installed as organist with a salary of fifty florins, with, in addition,
thirty thalers for board and lodging--equivalent in all to about eight
pounds thirteen shillings of English money--a small enough salary
indeed! but one which in those days was considered to be a fair
emolument for the services of a young player. On August 14, 1703,
Bach, who was then eighteen years old, entered upon his duties, having
previously taken a 'solemn pledge of diligence and faithfulness, and all
that appertaineth to an honourable servant and organist before God and
the worshipful Corporation.'
The requirements of the post left him plenty of leisure in which to
pursue his studies and improve his playing. Up to this point he had
done very little in the shape of actual composition, his aim having been

to perfect himself in a knowledge of the requirements of the instrument
on which he had fixed his heart's choice, to which end he had spared no
diligence in studying the works of the greatest masters. Now, however,
he set about teaching himself the art of composition, for which purpose
he took a number of concertos written for the violin by Vivaldi, and set
them for the pianoforte. By this means he learnt to grasp the connection
of musical ideas and the manner in which they should be worked out,
and as this exercise implied the rewriting of many passages in order to
adapt them for the piano, he gradually attained facility in expressing his
own musical thoughts on paper without first playing them on an
instrument. Thus, without assistance from anybody, he worked on
alone, very often till far into the night, to perfect himself in this
important branch of his art.
From the outset, however, his playing at the new church excited
attention and admiration, and that it should, nevertheless, have failed to
entirely satisfy the authorities was due, not to any lack of power, but
simply to the extraordinary manner in which the services were
accompanied. The fact is that Bach had no sooner seated himself at the
organ than he straightway forgot that choir and congregation were
depending upon him, and began to indulge his fancy to such lengths
that the singing soon ceased altogether, and the people remained mute
with astonishment and admiration. Naturally, these flights of genius
were not exactly in accordance with the wishes of the consistory, who,
moreover, saw little prospect of their choir becoming efficiently trained
under the circumstances. Yet, notwithstanding there were frequent
disputes between Bach and the elders of the church with regard to his
vagaries, so marvellously were the authorities influenced by the power
and beauty of his playing that they overlooked his faults for the sake of
his genius.
That Bach must have tried their patience sorely cannot be denied. On
one occasion, being specially desirous of visiting Lübeck, in order to
hear the celebrated organist Buxtehude perform on the organ at the
Marien-Kirche during Advent, he obtained a month's leave of absence
for the purpose. Fifty miles lay between Arnstadt and the town which
formed his destination, but Bach resolutely performed the entire

journey on foot, so eager was he to profit by the playing of this master.
Once at Lübeck, he became so wrapped up in the musical attractions of
the town that he completely forgot his promise to return to his post
until reminded by his empty purse of the fact that he could no longer
prolong his stay. By this time he had gratuitously extended his leave
from one month to three! Hence it is not surprising that on his return to
Arnstadt the consistory should have expressed serious displeasure at his
neglect. On the other hand, it affords a striking proof of the esteem in
which his playing was held that the authorities should have allowed
him to retain his post in spite of all that had happened.
It was not long before the services of the young musician were sought
by the Church authorities of several important towns, whither the fame
of his organ-playing had spread. He longed to find a wider scope
wherein to prosecute his aims for raising the standard of Church music.
Arnstadt had become too narrow for his desires,