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Quora Question: How did Bach's genius go largely unrecognised during his own lifetime?

There are a few factors at play here. You have to first recognize that the music industry in the first half of the 18th century was not what it is today. In order for a composer’s music to become well known, a pair of factors needed to come into play:

First, that composer had to have a great publisher. Publishing was expensive in those days, and involved very careful and painstaking engraving of each note and staff. It was even more costly than printing text, and significantly more expensive than hiring a team of copyists to do it by hand. So, the publisher needed a really REALLY good reason to run things to print and distribute them.

Oh, also, distribution was a horse and carriage. So again, really expensive. And SLOW.

By the time Bach reached his apex as a composer, there were composers of secular music (Vivaldi, Handel, et al) who had better publishing deals and better court appointments. Bach was a church musician first and foremost, and by this time the style he was using for church and organ music was already out of fashion. It would be hard enough to sell on that merit alone.

So, when we look at someone like Handel, who had a fantastic English court appointment, or Vivaldi, who was also a great violinist and had a host of operatic artists at his disposal, the difference was stark. These two could go on tour to promote their music. They could wow the crowds with their performances and spectacular operas without risking their position (or leaving their wives at home with 20+ kids to look after). Tours took YEARS. With up to two weeks of travel time between major cities, it was common for touring artists to stay in one place for several months to get as much coverage from the audience as they could. Bach didn’t have that luxury.

Bach had to be at work every Sunday, and he had to be writing harmonies and cantatas on a weekly basis. It was a great gig in terms of the work and pay…he made a decent living and put out a ton of amazing music. But it was also highly restrictive, kept him out of the public eye, and kept him rather unfashionable.

That’s a great combination for a church musician, but it doesn’t exactly woo the publishers or put your music in front of throngs of adoring fans.

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