Lost Johann Sebastian Bach Works Performed for First-Ever Performance in Three Centuries

Newly discovered musical pieces by the musical genius Bach have been revealed and executed in the central European country for the first time in 320 years.

Germany's Cultural Affairs Minister Wolfram Weimer called the finding of the pair of works a "significant occasion for the musical community".

They initially attracted notice of a musical scholar in the early nineties when he was organizing the composer's papers at the Belgian royal collection.

The organ works - the Chaconne composition in D minor and Chaconne in G minor - were without dates and anonymous. Mr Wollny spent the following three decades working to verify the origin of the pieces.

Memorable Concert

They were performed at the Thomas Church in Leipzig, where Bach is laid to rest and where he served as a cantor for over two decades.

The compositions were executed by organist from the Netherlands the musical performer, who said he was proud to be able to play them for the initial performance in over three centuries.

He said the works were "of a very high quality" and would be "a great asset for organists today, as they are also suitable for more compact instruments".

Cultural Relevance

They are believed to have been composed early in Bach's career, when he was employed as an organ teacher in the municipality of Arnstadt in central Germany.

The scholar, who is now the head of the musical archive in the city, said they displayed several features distinctive to the artist.

"Musically, the compositions also contain characteristics that can be observed in Bach's compositions from this period, but not in those of any other composer," he said.

They are considered to have been transcribed in the early eighteenth century by Bach's apprentice, the musical student.

At a unveiling of the compositions, the researcher said he was "99.99% sure that the composer had written the two compositions" and they have now been added into the official catalogue of his compositions.