Johann Sebastian Bach spent a good deal of his life moving among the towns of Central Germany, from one post to another in the households of noble patrons and the musical establishments of ecclesiastical authorities. Though he gained great fame in his own day as a virtuoso performer on the organ , few of his contemporaries regarded his own compositions with more than routine interest. In addition to revealing the sources, inspiration, development of Bach's music, this book recounts Bach's life of struggles against illness, poverty, the jealousy of colleagues, and the whims and pettiness of employers. It is a fascinating portrait of a great and manifold genius who exploited to the utmost the limited resources as this disposal to produce a body of work which is one of the glories of Western civilization. In focusing on the context of Bach's life and career, this book provides a unique picture of the world in which Bach and other musicians worked in the first half of the eighteenth century-back.