Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach

Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714-1788) was the second surviving son of Johann Sebastian Bach, born in Weimar and taught by his father. After studying law he entered the service of the Prussian crown prince, the future Frederick the Great, and spent nearly three decades in Berlin as court harpsichordist. In 1768 he succeeded his godfather Georg Philipp Telemann as director of music in Hamburg, where he remained until his death. He was one of the leading keyboard players of his day, and his treatise on keyboard playing was widely used. Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven all admired his music, with its abrupt contrasts and its intensely personal expression.