Bach, Wilhelm Friedrich Ernst

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Bach, Wilhelm Friedrich Ernst

Bach, Wilhelm Friedrich Ernst, son of Johann Christoph Friedrich, and grandson and last male descendant of Johann Sebastian; b. Bückeburg, May 23, 1759; d. Berlin, Dec. 25, 1845. He studied with his father and with his uncle Johann Christoph in London. In 1787 he became music director at Minden, and in 1788 he was named Kapellmeister and harpsichordist to Queen Friedrike of Prussia. In 1797 he was appointed to a similar position to Queen Luise. He also served as music master to the royal princes. He attended the dedication of the J.S. Bach monument in Leipzig on April 23, 1843. See K. Geiringer, Music of the Bach Family: An Anthology (Cambridge, Mass., 1955).

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire