Bach Family

[Florestan]

Read somewhere: My favorite composers are the two Bach: Johann Sebastian and Jacques Offen. 

[Spenserian]

Interesting about these old Haebler recordings, they're actually sonatas for keyboard and violin, at least that's what everyone else has recorded them as. Actually, scratch that, Spányi and Csalog also made them into sonatas with flute, this time keyboard sonatas with "flute accompaniment". Even stranger is the 'flute sonatas op. 19' that Haebler also recorded with Kurt Redel -- years later CPO released their 'Op. 19', but it's 4 flute quartets?  Sadly I'd need the Charles Sanford Terry book for the thematic catalogue, curious if anyone know's what's what.

[ando]

The Bach Family: Seven Generations of Creative Genius, Karl Geiringer (1954, Oxford University Press)
Internet Archive Edition

First read of the new year. Borrowed a first edition from my local library in surprisingly good shape. Fairly interesting read so far.

[prémont]

The Bach Family: Seven Generations of Creative Genius, Karl Geiringer (1954, Oxford University Press)
Internet Archive Edition

First read of the new year. Borrowed a first edition from my local library in surprisingly good shape. Fairly interesting read so far.

Karl Geiringer was a respected and frequently quoted authority in his days, so this book ought to be quite interesting.

[ando]

Karl Geiringer was a respected and frequently quoted authority in his days, so this book ought to be quite interesting.

He's a good writer.

[Anooj]

Regarding the three CPO boxes of JC Bach's works, namely the ones for Keyboard Concertos, Symphonies, and Sinfonia Concertantes, how would you people rank these in terms of how essential they are?

I want to explore JC Bach more than I have, but his style doesn't seem compelling enough for me to get bazillion discs of his works (though who knows, that might change). I want to get just one of these sets for now, then expand further if I'm interested enough.

[Jo498]

I only know some pieces of each group. They seem all fairly representative, although the sinfonia concertante might be the most characteristic of this composer.

[Florestan]

I'd say go for the symphonies concertantes set.

[Jo498]

For smaller 1-3 disc selections I can recommend a bunch of symphonies (+ Mozart) by Akademie für Alte Musik (Berlin Classics) and a 3 disc set with Schornsheim mixing keyboard concerti by the Bach sons with lesser known mid-18th century German composers. There are similar anthologies, e.g. by Knauer on modern piano although with JS Bach concerti added to probably sell better.
Also consider the quintets (op.11, maybe there are two sets) with flute and oboe that have been recorded several times both on modern and historic instruments.

[DavidW]

I like all those recordings, I suppose I mildly prefer the symphonies. I don't know what is essential to you so I can't answer your question.