Arnold Edward Trevor Bax (UK)

 

(Streatham, November 8, 1883 – October 3, 1953)

His prolific output includes vocal music, choral works, chamber music pieces, and works for solo piano, but he is best known for his orchestral music; in addition to a series of symphonic poems, he also wrote seven symphonies.

He was born in Streatham, a suburb of London, in 1883, to Alfred Ridley Bax (1844–1918) and his wife Charlotte Ellen (1860–1940). From a wealthy family, he was encouraged by his parents to pursue a musical career; from the age of 13, he began to compose his first music and attended the Hampstead Conservatory in the 1890s. In September 1900, he began studying at the Royal Academy of Music in London, where he was a student of Frederick Corder and Tobias Matthay. Corder admired the works of Wagner, whose music influenced Bax's style in his early years. He later observed that "for a dozen years of my youth I reveled in the music of Wagner to the almost total exclusion—until I became aware of Richard Strauss—of any other." Bax also privately studied the works of Debussy, whose music, like that of Strauss, was frowned upon in academic circles at the time.

Bax was an excellent pianist, gifted with talent and technique, but he had no desire to pursue a solo career; thanks to the contribution of his family, of wealthy origins, he did not need to work to earn an income, which allowed him to pursue his musical career in the way he wanted. After finishing his studies, Bax visited Dresden, where he attended a performance of Strauss's Salome and heard for the first time Mahler's music, which he described as "eccentric, long-winded, confusing, yet always interesting". During this period, he discovered the poetry of William Butler Yeats, which, he later declared, "will be more important to me than any music written over the centuries." Yeats' poetics also brought him closer to Celtic folklore, leading him to write poems which he published under the pseudonym Dermot O'Byrne.

Bax visited the west coast of Ireland in 1902 and found that "in a moment, the Celt within me was revealed." His first composition born from this experience was a song in Irish dialect, The Grand Match. Musically, Bax moved away from the influence of Wagner and Strauss that characterized his academic period to be more inspired by Celtic folklore. In 1908 he began a cycle of tone poems called Eire, described by his biographer Lewis Foreman as the beginning of the composer's more mature style. The first of these pieces, Into the Twilight, was premiered by Thomas Beecham and the New Symphony Orchestra in April 1909, and the following year, at Elgar's initiative, Henry Wood commissioned the second poem in the cycle, In the Fairy Hills. The work aroused conflicting opinions; the Manchester Guardian praised the work, focusing on the sounds capable of creating the right atmosphere, while the Observer found the work "very indeterminate and unsatisfactory, but not difficult to follow". The Times highlighted in some places the "rather second-hand language" derived from Wagner and Debussy, although "there is still much that is entirely individual". A third opera in the cycle, Roscatha, was never performed during the composer's lifetime.

In 1910 Bax visited Russia; in St. Petersburg he discovered ballet and got to know Russian musical culture, which led him to compose a piano sonata, the piano pieces, May Night in the Ukraine and Gopak, and the violin sonata, dedicated to Natalia Skarginska. Returning to England in January 1911,, Bax visited Russia; in St. Petersburg, he discovered ballet and got to know Russian musical culture, which led him to compose a piano sonata, the piano pieces he married the pianist Elsita Luisa Sobrino. Bax and his wife first lived in London, then moved to Ireland, taking a house in Rathgar. They had two children, Dermot (1912–1976) and Maeve Astrid (1913–1987). In Dublin Bax had the opportunity to frequent the city's literary circles.

In the post-war years Bax's fame grew, making him an important figure in the British music scene. The works he wrote during the war years were performed in public and he began composing symphonies.

Bax's first symphony was written between 1921 and 1922, and when it was published, it achieved great success; critics found the work dark and severe, appreciating its sounds. The opera was performed at the Proms for several years after its first performance. The Third Symphony, completed in 1929, remained for some time among the composer's most popular works.

In the 1930s Bax composed the last four of his seven symphonies. He also wrote the popular 1930 Overture to a Picaresque Comedy, several works for chamber groups, including a 1930 nonet, a 1933 string quintet, an octet for horn, piano and strings written in 1934, and his third and last string quartet of 1936. The cello concerto, composed in 1932, was dedicated to Gaspar Cassadó, who however quickly abandoned the work from his repertoire.

He lived his compositional maturity in the shadow of composers such as Ralph Vaughan Williams and Edward Elgar and was considered a minor composer until the threshold of the Second World War, when, thanks to the conductor Adrian Boult, many of his compositions were performed at the great audience. The thirties were the best for Bax, who in 1937, given his great popularity, was awarded the title of Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order.

After the start of the Second World War, Bax moved to Sussex, settling at the White Horse Hotel, Storrington, where he lived for the rest of his life. He abandoned composing and completed a memoir about his early years, Farewell, My Youth. 

Although held in high esteem by English musicians and intellectuals of his era, he did not escape depression and resorted to alcohol abuse. His latest work, entitled "What is it like to be young and fair" is a cycle of madrigals written for the coronation of Elizabeth II.

Bax died in October 1953 during a visit to Cork, from heart failure. He was buried in St. Finbarr's cemetery.

Arnold Edward Trevor Bax (ITA)

(Streatham 8 novembre 1883 – 3 ottobre 1953)

La sua prolifica produzione comprende musica vocale, opere per coro, brani per musica da camera e opere per pianoforte solo, ma è meglio conosciuto per la sua musica orchestrale; oltre a una serie di poemi sinfonici, scrisse anche sette sinfonie.

Nacque a Streatham, periferia di Londra, nel 1883, da Alfred Ridley Bax (1844–1918) e sua moglie Charlotte Ellen (1860–1940). Di famiglia benestante, fu incoraggiato dai suoi genitori a intraprendere la carriera musicale; a partire dai 13 anni cominciò a comporre le sue prime musiche e frequentò il conservatorio di Hampstead, negli anni '90 dell'Ottocento. Nel settembre del 1900 cominciò a studiare presso la Royal Academy of Music di Londra, dove fu allievo di Frederick Corder e Tobias Matthay. Corder ammirava le opere di Wagner, la cui musica influenzò lo stile di Bax nei suoi primi anni. In seguito osservò che "per una dozzina di anni della mia giovinezza mi sono crogiolato nella musica di Wagner fino all'esclusione quasi totale - fino a quando non sono venuto a conoscenza di Richard Strauss - di qualsiasi altra". Bax studiò privatamente anche le opere di Debussy, la cui musica, come quella di Strauss, all'epoca era disapprovata negli ambienti accademici.

Bax era un ottimo pianista, dotato di talento e di tecnica, ma non aveva alcun desiderio di intraprendere la carriera da solista; grazie al contributo della sua famiglia, di origini benestante, non aveva bisogno di lavorare per percepire un reddito, cosa che gli permetteva di proseguire la carriera musicale nel modo in cui voleva. Dopo aver terminato gli studi, Bax visitò Dresda, dove assistette all'esecuzione di Salome di Strauss e ascoltò per la prima volta la musica di Mahler, che definì "eccentrica, prolissa, confusa, eppure sempre interessante". In questo periodo scoprì la poesia di William Butler Yeats che, dichiarerà in seguito, "sarà per me più importante di qualsiasi musica scritta nei secoli". La poetica di Yeats lo avvicinò anche al folklore celtico, portandolo a scrivere poesie che pubblicherà con lo pseudonimo di Dermot O'Byrne.

Bax visitò la costa occidentale dell'Irlanda nel 1902 e scoprì che "in un momento il Celta dentro di me si è rivelato". La sua prima composizione nata da questa esperienza fu una canzone in dialetto irlandese, The Grand Match. Musicalmente, Bax si allontanò dall'influenza di Wagner e Strauss che caratterizzò il periodo accademico, per lasciarsi ispirare maggiormente dal folklore celtico. Nel 1908 iniziò un ciclo di poemi sinfonici chiamato Eire, descritto dal suo biografo Lewis Foreman come l'inizio dello stile più maturo del compositore. Il primo di questi brani, Into the Twilight, fu eseguito per la prima volta da Thomas Beecham e dalla New Symphony Orchestra nell'aprile 1909 e l'anno successivo, su iniziativa di Elgar, Henry Wood commissionò il secondo poema del ciclo, In the Faëry Hills. L'opera suscitò pareri contrastanti; il Manchester Guardian elogiò il lavoro, soffermandosi sulle sonorità in grado di creare la giusta atmosfera, mentre The Observer trovò l'opera "molto indeterminato e insoddisfacente, ma non difficile da seguire". Il Times evidenziò in alcuni punti il "linguaggio piuttosto di seconda mano", derivato da Wagner e Debussy, sebbene "c'è ancora molto che è del tutto individuale". Una terza opera del ciclo, Roscatha, non fu mai eseguita durante la vita del compositore.

Nel 1910 Bax visitò la Russia; a San Pietroburgo scoprì il balletto e ebbe modo di conoscere la cultura musicale russa, che lo portarono a comporre una sonata per pianoforte, i brani per pianoforte, May Night in the Ukraine e Gopak, e la sonata per violino, dedicata a Natalia Skarginska. Tornato in Inghilterra, nel gennaio 1911 sposò la pianista Elsita Luisa Sobrino. Bax e sua moglie vissero prima a Londra, per poi trasferirsi in Irlanda, prendendo una casa a Rathgar. Ebbero due figli, Dermot (1912–1976) e Maeve Astrid (1913–1987). A Dublino Bax ebbe modo di frequentare i circoli letterari della città.

Negli anni del dopoguerra la fama di Bax crebbe, facendolo diventare una figura importante nel panorama della musica britannica. Le opere che scrisse durante gli anni della guerra furono eseguite in pubblico e iniziò a comporre sinfonie.

La prima sinfonia di Bax fu scritta tra il 1921 e il 1922, e quando fu pubblicata ottenne un grande successo; i critici trovarono il lavoro oscuro e severo, apprezzandone le sonorità. L'opera venne replicata ai Proms per diversi anni dopo la prima esecuzione. La terza sinfonia, completata nel 1929, rimase per qualche tempo tra le opere più popolari del compositore.

Negli anni '30 Bax compose le ultime quattro delle sue sette sinfonie. Scrisse inoltre la popolare Overture to a Picaresque Comedy, del 1930, diverse opere per gruppi da camera, tra cui un nonetto del 1930, un quintetto d'archi del 1933, un ottetto per corno, pianoforte e archi scritto nel 1934, e il suo terzo e ultimo quartetto d'archi del 1936. Il concerto per violoncello, composto nel 1932, venne dedicato a Gaspar Cassadó, che però abbandonò rapidamente l'opera dal suo repertorio.

Visse la sua maturità compositiva all'ombra di compositori come Ralph Vaughan Williams e Edward Elgar e venne considerato come un compositore minore fino alle soglie della seconda guerra mondiale, quando, per opera del direttore Adrian Boult, molte delle sue composizioni vennero eseguite presso il grande pubblico. Gli anni trenta furono i migliori per Bax, che nel 1937, vista la grande popolarità, venne insignito del titolo di Cavaliere Commendatore dell'Ordine Reale Vittoriano.

Dopo l'inizio della seconda guerra mondiale, Bax si trasferì nel Sussex, stabilendosi al White Horse Hotel, Storrington, dove visse per il resto della sua vita. Abbandonò la composizione e completò un libro di memorie sui suoi primi anni, Farewell, My Youth. 

Sebbene tenuto in grande considerazione dai musicisti e dagli intellettuali inglesi della sua epoca, non sfuggì alla depressione e ricorse all'abuso di alcool. Il suo ultimo lavoro, dal titolo "What is it like to be young and fair" è un ciclo di madrigali scritti per l'incoronazione di Elisabetta II.

Bax morì nell'ottobre del 1953 durante una visita a Cork, per insufficienza cardiaca. Fu sepolto nel cimitero di St. Finbarr.  

Arnold Edward Trevor Bax (DE)

 

(Streatham 8. November 1883 – 3. Oktober 1953)

Sein produktives Schaffen umfasst Vokalmusik, Chorwerke, Kammermusikstücke und Werke für Soloklavier, am bekanntesten ist er jedoch für seine Orchestermusik; Neben einer Reihe symphonischer Dichtungen verfasste er auch sieben Sinfonien.

Er wurde 1883 in Streatham, einem Vorort von London, als Sohn von Alfred Ridley Bax (1844–1918) und seiner Frau Charlotte Ellen (1860–1940) geboren. Er stammte aus einer wohlhabenden Familie und wurde von seinen Eltern ermutigt, eine musikalische Karriere einzuschlagen. ab seinem 13. Lebensjahr begann er seine ersten Musikstücke zu komponieren und besuchte in den 1890er Jahren das Hampstead Conservatory. Im September 1900 begann er ein Studium an der Royal Academy of Music in London, wo er Schüler von Frederick Corder und Tobias Matthay war. Corder bewunderte die Werke Wagners, dessen Musik Bax‘ Stil in seinen frühen Jahren beeinflusste. Später bemerkte er, dass „ich ein Dutzend Jahre meiner Jugend in der Musik Wagners geschwelgt habe, wobei ich – bis ich Richard Strauss kennengelernt habe – fast jede andere Musik völlig ausgeschlossen habe.“ Bax studierte auch privat die Werke von Debussy, dessen Musik, ebenso wie die von Strauss, damals in akademischen Kreisen missbilligt wurde.

Bax war ein ausgezeichneter Pianist, begabt mit Talent und Technik, aber er hatte keine Lust, eine Solokarriere anzustreben; Dank des Beitrags seiner wohlhabenden Familie musste er nicht arbeiten, um ein Einkommen zu erzielen, was es ihm ermöglichte, seine musikalische Karriere so fortzusetzen, wie er es wollte. Nach Abschluss seines Studiums besuchte Bax Dresden, wo er einer Aufführung von Strauss‘ Salome beiwohnte und zum ersten Mal Mahlers Musik hörte, die er als „exzentrisch, wortreich, verwirrend und doch immer interessant“ beschrieb. In dieser Zeit entdeckte er die Poesie von William Butler Yeats, die, wie er später erklärte, „für mich wichtiger sein wird als jede Musik, die im Laufe der Jahrhunderte geschrieben wurde“. Yeats‘ Poetik brachte ihn auch der keltischen Folklore näher und veranlasste ihn, Gedichte zu schreiben, die er unter dem Pseudonym Dermot O’Byrne veröffentlichte.

Bax besuchte 1902 die Westküste Irlands und stellte fest, dass „in einem Moment der Kelte in mir offenbart wurde“. Seine erste Komposition, die aus dieser Erfahrung entstand, war ein Lied im irischen Dialekt, The Grand Match. Musikalisch entfernte sich Bax vom Einfluss von Wagner und Strauss, der seine akademische Zeit prägte, und ließ sich mehr von der keltischen Folklore inspirieren. 1908 begann er einen Zyklus von Tongedichten mit dem Titel Eire, den sein Biograph Lewis Foreman als Beginn des reiferen Stils des Komponisten bezeichnete. Das erste dieser Stücke, Into the Twilight, wurde im April 1909 von Thomas Beecham und dem New Symphony Orchestra uraufgeführt, und im folgenden Jahr gab Henry Wood auf Elgars Initiative das zweite Gedicht des Zyklus, In the Fairy Hills, in Auftrag. Die Arbeit löste widersprüchliche Meinungen aus; Der Manchester Guardian lobte das Werk und konzentrierte sich auf die Klänge, die die richtige Atmosphäre schaffen könnten, während der Observer das Werk als „sehr unbestimmt und unbefriedigend, aber nicht schwer zu verstehen“ empfand. Die Times hob an einigen Stellen die „eher gebrauchte Sprache“ hervor, die von Wagner und Debussy abgeleitet sei, obwohl „es immer noch vieles gänzlich Individuelles gibt“. Eine dritte Oper des Zyklus, Roscatha, wurde zu Lebzeiten des Komponisten nie aufgeführt.

1910 besuchte Bax Russland; in St. Petersburg entdeckte er das Ballett und lernte die russische Musikkultur kennen, was ihn dazu veranlasste, eine Klaviersonate, die Klavierstücke „May Night in the Ukraine“ und „Gopak“ sowie die Violinsonate, die Natalia Skarginska gewidmet ist, zu komponieren. Nach seiner Rückkehr nach England heiratete er im Januar 1911 die Pianistin Elsita Luisa Sobrino. Bax und seine Frau lebten zunächst in London, zogen dann nach Irland und bezogen ein Haus in Rathgar. Sie hatten zwei Kinder, Dermot (1912–1976) und Maeve Astrid (1913–1987). In Dublin hatte Bax Gelegenheit, die literarischen Kreise der Stadt zu besuchen.

In den Nachkriegsjahren wuchs Bax‘ Ruhm und machte ihn zu einer wichtigen Figur in der britischen Musikszene. Seine während der Kriegsjahre geschriebenen Werke wurden öffentlich aufgeführt und er begann, Sinfonien zu komponieren.

Bax‘ erste Symphonie entstand zwischen 1921 und 1922 und hatte bei ihrer Veröffentlichung großen Erfolg; Kritiker fanden das Werk düster und streng und schätzten seine Klänge. Die Oper wurde nach ihrer Uraufführung mehrere Jahre lang bei den Proms aufgeführt. Die 1929 fertiggestellte Dritte Symphonie gehörte lange Zeit zu den beliebtesten Werken des Komponisten.

In den 1930er Jahren komponierte Bax die letzten vier seiner sieben Sinfonien. Er schrieb auch die beliebte Ouvertüre zu einer pikaresken Komödie aus dem Jahr 1930, mehrere Werke für Kammermusikgruppen, darunter ein Nonett aus dem Jahr 1930, ein Streichquintett aus dem Jahr 1933, ein Oktett für Horn, Klavier und Streicher aus dem Jahr 1934 und sein drittes und letztes Streichquartett aus dem Jahr 1936. Der das 1932 komponierte Cellokonzert war Gaspar Cassadó gewidmet, der das Werk jedoch schnell aus seinem Repertoire strich.

Er erlebte seine kompositorische Reife im Schatten von Komponisten wie Ralph Vaughan Williams und Edward Elgar und galt bis zur Schwelle des Zweiten Weltkriegs als unbedeutender Komponist, als dank des Dirigenten Adrian Boult viele seiner Kompositionen im Pariser Orchester aufgeführt wurden großes Publikum. Die dreißiger Jahre waren die besten für Bax, dem 1937 aufgrund seiner großen Popularität der Titel eines Knight Commander des Royal Victorian Order verliehen wurde.

Nach Beginn des Zweiten Weltkriegs zog Bax nach Sussex und ließ sich im White Horse Hotel in Storrington nieder, wo er den Rest seines Lebens verbrachte. Er gab das Komponieren auf und verfasste eine Abhandlung über seine frühen Jahre: „Farewell, My Youth“. 

Obwohl er bei englischen Musikern und Intellektuellen seiner Zeit hohes Ansehen genoss, entkam er der Depression nicht und griff zum Alkoholmissbrauch. Sein neuestes Werk mit dem Titel „What is it like to be young and fair“ ist ein Madrigalzyklus, der anlässlich der Krönung Elisabeths II. geschrieben wurde.

Bax starb im Oktober 1953 während eines Besuchs in Cork an Herzversagen. Er wurde auf dem St. Finbarr-Friedhof beigesetzt.

August Wilhelm Bach (UK)

(Berlin, October 4, 1796 – Berlin, April 15, 1869)

He was an influential figure in the Berlin music scene in the second third of the 19th century. Although he is now perhaps primarily remembered as Felix Mendelsohn Bartholdy's teacher, he was also a composer. This fascinating trio shows that, although he was not one of the great composers, he wrote music that was enjoyable to play and listen to.

His compositions consist largely of sacred works and keyboard works.

August Wilhelm Bach is not related to Johann Sebastian Bach's family. His father Gottfried, organist at the Dreifaltigkeitskirche in Berlin, was his first music teacher. After attending high school, he became a freelance music teacher outside Berlin from 1813.

In 1814 he returned to Berlin to take up the post of organist at the Gertraudenkirche when his hope of taking over from his late father had failed. He perfected his musical training with Carl Friedrich Zelter on counterpoint and Ludwig Berger on piano. In 1816 he became organist at the Marienkirche in Berlin and in 1820 professor of organ and musical theory at the Institute of Sacred Music, just founded by Zelter, of which he took over as director upon the latter's death in 1832 (he continued to be director until his death of him). August Wilhelm Bach had a great influence on organ building in Prussia, having become commissioner of the royal commission for organ building.

From 1833, he was a member of the Senate of the Royal Academy of Arts and a teacher in that Academy's department of musical composition. From the early 1830s until his death, he was a very influential figure in the musical life of Berlin. As an organist, he was very involved in recognizing the work of Johann Sebastian Bach.

In addition to compositions for soloists, choir, and orchestra, including the 100th psalm Jauchzet dem Herrn alle Welt, Auguste Wilhelm Bach wrote various organ works (preludes, fantasies, fugues, etc.), piano works, and chamber music works. Very in tune with the musical taste of his time, they rarely express an original musical language.

His three-part collection published around 1830 entitled Der practische Organist (The Practical Organist) includes organ pieces intended for learning and has long been a point of reference. 

August Wilhelm Bach (ITA)

(Berlino, 4 ottobre 1796 – Berlino, 15 aprile 1869)

Fu una figura influente nella scena musicale berlinese nel secondo terzo del XIX secolo. Sebbene ora sia forse principalmente ricordato come l'insegnante di Felix Mendelsohn Bartholdy, era anche lui un compositore. Questo affascinante trio mostra che, sebbene non sia stato uno dei grandi compositori, ha scritto musica piacevole da suonare e ascoltare.

Le sue composizioni consistono in gran parte di opere sacre e opere per tastiera.

August Wilhelm Bach non è imparentato con la famiglia di Johann Sebastian Bach. Suo padre Gottfried, organista al Dreifaltigkeitskirche di Berlino è stato il suo primo insegnante di musica. Dopo aver frequentato il liceo, dal 1813 divenne insegnante di musica freelance fuori Berlino.

Nel 1814 tornò a Berlino per assumere l'incarico di organista presso il Gertraudenkirche quando la sua speranza di prendere il posto del suo defunto padre era fallita. Ha perfezionato la sua formazione musicale con Carl Friedrich Zelter contrappunto e Ludwig Berger al pianoforte. Nel 1816 divenne organista al Marienkirche di Berlino e nel 1820 professore di organo e teoria musicale all'Istituto di musica sacra, appena fondato da Zelter, di cui subentrò come direttore alla morte di quest'ultimo nel 1832 (continuerà ad esserlo fino alla morte). August Wilhelm Bach ha avuto una grande influenza sulla costruzione di organi in Prussia, essendo diventato commissario della commissione reale per la costruzione degli organi.

Dal 1833 fu membro del Senato della Royal Academy of Arts e insegnante nel dipartimento di composizione musicale di quell'Accademia. Fu, dall'inizio degli anni 1830 e fino alla sua morte, una figura molto influente nella vita musicale di Berlino. Come organista fu molto impegnato nel riconoscimento del lavoro di Johann Sebastian Bach.

Oltre a composizioni per soli, coro e orchestra, tra cui il 100° salmo Jauchzet dem Herrn alle Welt, Auguste Wilhem Bach scrisse varie opere per organo (preludi, fantasie, fughe ecc.), opere per pianoforte e opere di musica da camera. Molto in sintonia con il gusto musicale del suo tempo, raramente esprimono un linguaggio musicale originale.

La sua raccolta in tre parti pubblicata intorno al 1830 dal titolo Der practische Organist (L'organista pratico) comprende pezzi d'organo destinati all'apprendimento ed è stato a lungo un punto di riferimento. 

August Wilhelm Bach (DE)

(Berlin, 4. Oktober 1796 – Berlin, 15. April 1869)

Er war eine einflussreiche Persönlichkeit der Berliner Musikszene im zweiten Drittel des 19. Jahrhunderts. Obwohl er heute vielleicht vor allem als Lehrer von Felix Mendelsohn Bartholdy in Erinnerung bleibt, war er auch Komponist. Dieses faszinierende Trio zeigt, dass er, obwohl er nicht zu den großen Komponisten gehörte, Musik schrieb, die Spaß beim Spielen und Hören machte.

Seine Kompositionen bestehen größtenteils aus geistlichen Werken und Klavierwerken.

August Wilhelm Bach ist nicht mit der Familie Johann Sebastian Bachs verwandt. Sein Vater Gottfried, Organist an der Dreifaltigkeitskirche in Berlin, war sein erster Musiklehrer. Nach dem Besuch des Gymnasiums war er ab 1813 freiberuflicher Musiklehrer außerhalb Berlins.

1814 kehrte er nach Berlin zurück, um die Stelle des Organisten an der Gertraudenkirche anzutreten, als seine Hoffnung, die Nachfolge seines verstorbenen Vaters gescheitert war. Seine musikalische Ausbildung vervollkommnete er bei Carl Friedrich Zelter am Kontrapunkt und Ludwig Berger am Klavier. 1816 wurde er Organist an der Marienkirche in Berlin und 1820 Professor für Orgel und Musiktheorie am gerade von Zelter gegründeten Institut für Kirchenmusik, dessen Leitung er nach dessen Tod 1832 übernahm (was er auch weiterhin blieb). bis zu seinem Tod). . Großen Einfluss auf den Orgelbau in Preußen hatte August Wilhelm Bach, als er Beauftragter der Königlichen Kommission für Orgelbau wurde.

Ab 1833 war er Mitglied des Senats der Royal Academy of Arts und Lehrer in der Abteilung für Musikkomposition dieser Akademie. Er war von den frühen 1830er Jahren bis zu seinem Tod eine sehr einflussreiche Persönlichkeit im Musikleben Berlins. Als Organist war er maßgeblich an der Würdigung des Wirkens Johann Sebastian Bachs beteiligt.

Neben Kompositionen für Solisten, Chor und Orchester, darunter der 100. Psalm „Jauchzet dem Herrn alle Welt“, schrieb Auguste Wilhelm Bach verschiedene Orgelwerke (Präludien, Fantasien, Fugen etc.), Klavierwerke und Kammermusikwerke. Ganz im Einklang mit dem Musikgeschmack ihrer Zeit, bringen sie selten eine originelle Musiksprache zum Ausdruck.

Seine um 1830 erschienene dreiteilige Sammlung „Der practische Organist“ mit zum Lernen gedachten Orgelstücken gilt seit langem als Referenz.

Aaron Avshalomov (UK)

(Nikolayevsk-on-Amur, Russia 11/11/1894 - New York 4/26/1965)

Aaron Avshalomov was a Russian composer. He was born in Nikolajevsk-na-Amure, a small city based on naval trade in the Far East, in eastern Siberia, where his grandfather had started a profitable business after being exiled from the Caucasus in the 1870s. He belonged to a family of "mountain Jews", an ethnic group from today's Dagestan (in the eastern Caucasus) who moved to the Far East in the second half of the 19th century. After a brief period of medical and conservatory studies in Zurich he moved to San Francisco following the outbreak of the October Revolution, then moved almost immediately to Beijing, where he opened a bookstore. Here, he was enormously impressed by the Chinese approach to music and dedicated himself to self-taught composition. After another brief period in the United States in the 1920s, he moved to Shanghai, where there was at the time a huge community of Russians, traders (particularly from the Russian Far East, Chinese Manchuria, and Harbin attracted by the growth of the city), Jews fleeing Nazi persecution, artists and counter-revolutionaries or "white Russians". 

Avshalomov worked as a librarian from 1928 to 1943, at the same time devoting himself to composition; for years, he tried to unite "east" and "west," trying to merge the melodies and rhythms of China with the European orchestral tradition, often resorting to pentatonic scales and percussion instruments from East Asia. Composing works such as Kuan Yin (1925), The Twilight Hours of Yang Guifei (1933), and The Great Wall (1941). In his works, we can also see influences from the Indian and Indochinese musical traditions, but also from traditional music and the Jewish literary tradition. 

During the years of the Japanese occupation of China, he was first under house arrest. Then, between 1943 and 1946, he was appointed director of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. He then moved again to the United States, where he died in 1965. His son Jacob, born in Qingdao in 1919 and also a musician, contributed to making his father's works known.  

The Concerto for Flute and Orchestra (1935) is an excellent example of his particular language; the almost Chinese melodies welded with the orchestration and the Russian flavor create an engaging and light plot, with memorable moments and frequent color changes. It is in three movements—a large-scale Andante, a central expressive, and a lively finale—two cadences, much melody, and virtuosic passages; it is an excellent, lesser-known concert and competition piece.