Troubles with the Authorities
And with the resumption of church work came difficulties of many kinds. The authorities never, from first to last, recognised that they had one of the world’s greatest geniuses to deal with; in fact they did not require a genius; all they asked was that their cantor should be able to carry out the church music in a respectable conventional manner. Bach, with his lofty ideals, was so often at variance with them that the history of his life at Leipsic seems at first sight to consist of one long turmoil and trouble.
Cloud and Sunshine
Yet there are bright spots in the picture; and nothing was able to disturb the equanimity with which, in spite of external rubs, he for twenty-seven years continued to pour forth his marvellous Passion music and cantatas.
It was very important from Bach’s point of view that he should be in a position to control and regulate all the church music that was performed at Leipsic; and for this purpose he was obliged to take steps to obtain control of the students’ chorus, which now sang in the University Church. The organist there was Görner, a conceited and not very competent musician, who had been in the habit of directing the music after Kuhnau’s death.
Görner persuaded the authorities that the cantor of St Thomas could not possibly serve St Paul’s[42] as well as St Thomas and St Nicholas; and he therefore continued in his post as musical director to the University.
An Appeal to the King
The music for the University Festivals had, however, been from time immemorial conducted by the cantor; and Bach seems to have gained his way in the matter. The cantor had a special payment for these services; but Görner had appropriated part of it. Bach tolerated this for two years, and then addressed a letter to the King of Saxony explaining that he, by right of office, conducted the music, but was only paid half the official salary. The letter was dated September 14, 1725, and on the 17th the Ministry of Dresden wrote to the University requiring them to restore the salary to the petitioner, or to show their reasons for not doing so.
The University wrote justifying themselves, whereupon Bach, suspecting that they had not properly stated the case, petitioned the King to allow him to see a copy of their justification. He wrote a refutation of this, and the business dragged on till May 23, 1726, when a document, which seems to have been in Bach’s favour, was presented to the University, and the matter appears to have ended. He and Görner were both employed to compose the music for extra festivals, but Bach the more often.[43]
Though Bach put all his energy into the music at the two chief churches, he took care not to be merely a cantor. He had formerly been, and still held honorary rank as capellmeister; and having a very proper pride in himself and his profession, he now always called himself Director Musices and Cantor. Considerable importance is attached in Germany to such titles as Professor, Doctor, Capellmeister, Musicdirector, etc., which have a recognised order of precedence; and it is significant of the conditions that prevailed between Bach and his church authorities that the latter nearly always persisted in giving him the lower title of cantor.