Recital with Jermaine Sprosse (Piano)

Things must have been turbulent in the house of Johann Sebastian Bach, the most famous Thomaskantor of all time. In the apartment next to the Leipzig Thomasschule with its not always well-behaved alumni, where he lived and worked in the middle of a large family. No wonder, since four of Johann Sebastian Bach's sonsalso became composers and performers. Alongside Wilhelm Friedemann, Carl Philipp Emanuel and Johann Christian, Johann Christoph Bach is the least known today. Yet his eldest brother Wilhelm Friedemann considered him to be the best harpsichordist in the family - and that is saying something considering his father's abilities. In 1750, aged just 18, he was appointed to the court orchestra of Count Schaumburg-Lippe in Bückeburg. During his many years of service, he made the ensemble one of the best in the whole of Germany.

As a composer, he was extraordinarily prolific - as evidenced by the large number of oratorios and symphonies, chamber music and piano works. His oeuvre is a testament to the originality of his ideas and the mastery of his craft. He received new inspiration from his younger brother Johann Christian Bach in London, where he became acquainted with the music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Christoph Willibald Gluck in the later years of his life. With the Thomaskantor behind him and the Salzburg genius at his side, Johann Christoph Bach was a witty representative of the transition from the Baroque to the Classical period, which this program makes it possible to discover.

The artist

Jermaine Sprosse (fortepiano)
He is a specialist in keyboard instruments, as was common in the musical life of the 18th century. Whether harpsichord or clavichord, fortepiano (fortepiano) or organ - Jermaine Sprosse masters all these instruments equally brilliantly and knows how to bring out their different timbres with virtuosity. He is particularly interested in rediscovering the literature of the gallant age, especially the music of Johann Sebastian Bach's sons. His latest CD released by Prospero with works by Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach, the third of four composing sons of the Thomaskantor, bears witness to this.

Jermaine Sprosse studied harpsichord, clavichord, fortepiano, improvisation and instrumental pedagogy at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis. He completed his studies with distinction. He was subsequently employed as a répétiteur at the Basel Teaching and Research Institute for Early Music for several years. Since the 2021/2022 academic year, he has been teaching "Discours musical" at the Conservatoire national supérieur de danse et de musique in Lyon. And since 2017, he has been principal organist of the Christian Catholic Church in the canton of Baselland. He is in demand as a performer far and wide, appearing at festivals such as the Bachfest Schaffhausen, the VielKlang Festival Tübingen, the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and the Thüringer Bachwochen. www.jermainesprosse.com

The program in detail

Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach (1732-1795)
Solfeggio in D major (BR JCFB A 108)
(from «Musikalische Nebenstunden», 1787)
Sonata I in D major (BR JCFB A 13)
(from «Three easy sonatas for piano or piano forte», Rinteln 1789)
Allegro con spirito - Larghetto sostenuto - Rondo. Allegro

Wilhelm Friedemann Bach (1710-1784)
Fugue I in C major (BR WFB A 81, 'Eight Fugues', ca. 1778)

Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach
Sonata I in C major (BR JCFB A 3)
(from «6 easy sonatas for piano or piano forte», Leipzig 1785)
Allegretto - Andantino - Rondo. Allegretto

Wilhelm Friedemann Bach
Polonaise in D minor (BR WFB A 30, around 1765)

Jermaine Sprosse (*1985)
Fantasia in F major «J. C. F. Bach's Sensations» (2022)

Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach
Fugue in F major (BR JCFB A Inc. 5, probably around 1745) Sonatina in A minor (BR JCFB A 12)
(from «Musikalische Nebenstunden», 1788)
Allegretto

Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714-1788)
Rondo in C minor
(from 5th collection «für Kenner & Liebhaber», Wq 59, printed 1785)

Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach
18 Variations on «Ah vous dirai-je, Maman»
(BR JCFB A 45, around 1785)

Note regarding photo and video recordings

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Administrative information

Costs (per person): CHF 60 (free of charge for membership sponsors and friends).
Discount for students and trainees (only with valid ID): CHF 10.