Johann Sebastian Bach: His Work and Influence on the Music of Germany, 1685-1750, In Three Volumes

Novello and Co, 1899. First English Edition. Hardcover. Acceptable. 1899 first English edition, Novello and Co. (London), three 6 1/4 x 9 inches tall embossed green buckram cloth hardcover volumes, no dust jackets, gilt lettering to front covers and spines, engraved portrait frontispiece to Volume 1, illustrated throughout with musical notation, [v.1] xvi, 656; [v.2] 721; [v.3] 419 pp. (1,812 pages total.) Slight to moderate soiling, rubbing and edgewear to covers, with creasing to spines. Prior owner name and address stamp to front and rear pastedowns of all three volumes. About fifty pages with neat ink underlining and marginal notations, mostly in Volume 1. About 20 pages in Volume 2 with very light, faded highlighting and marginalia. A few instances of marginal chipping to page edges, not impacting text. Despite these detractions, still on excellent reading/reference set of this important biography. Note that this is a heavy and oversized set, so additional postage will be required for international or priority orders. ~SP12~ [7.5P] Considered the most comprehensive and important single work on Johann Sebastian Bach, German music historian Philipp Spitta (1841-1894) first published this masterwork in German in two volumes, in 1873 and 1880. This is the 1899 English translation by Clara Bell and J. A. Fuller Maitland. Spitta gives a chronological account of Bach. This includes the discussion of Bach's compositions: these are discussed within the chronological account at the time they were composed. Only for the sixth and last part, covering the last decennia of the Leipzig period, some compositions are grouped by type in subsections. Spitta writes in long paragraphs and very few divisions in subsections. Coming from a Protestant background himself, he is able, like Albert Schweitzer after him, to give insight in the religious context of Bach's time. Contents: I. Bach's Ancestors; II. The Childhood and Early Years of Johann Sebastian Bach, 1685–1707; III. The First Ten Years of Bach's 'Mastership'; IV. Cöthen, 1717–1723; V. Leipzig, 1723–1734; VI. The Final Period of Bach's Life and Work; Appendices.