Georg Christoph Wagenseil

The only know likeness of Wagenseil is this silhouette (1746?)

Wagenseil was a composer to the court in Vienna. His own composition teacher was Joseph Fux and was widely favored at the time. His operas were played in Italy and the rest of Europe. Composers such as J.C. Bach, W.A. Mozart, L.v. Beethoven were familiar with his works.

Johann Christian Bach: J.S. Bach's Youngest

I am currently reading a biography about J.S. Bach's youngest son, also a composer, by Heinz Gaertner. It is titled, John Christian Bach: Mozart's Friend and Mentor. This book has gotten me thinking. I'm half way through this veritable list of composers most have never heard of or heard only because of the music history courses offered through university. Try these names: Graun, Hasse, Martini, Abel, Wagenseil, Gassmann, et. al. Heard of them? Better yet, heard their music?!

Johann (John) Christian Bach

The youngest of Bach's sons is not known today as anything more than a son of the great Bach who composed a little and played keyboard. It's interesting that I picked this book up off my Dad's shelf and began to read simply because I knew nothing about him and thought that I could glean some more information about J.S. Bach via his son. It turns out that I found myself more interested in all the other composers mentioned in the biography who knew the Bachs in some way.