One particular notion that has stuck with me since the visit to the Bach Archive was learning about the opportunities afforded to the choristers who sang in the Thomanerchor.
I was particularly surprised that the choristers in the first choir received sizable compensation for their work, because the attitudes surrounding paying musicians what they are worth in the modern era is highly contentious. This is to say that musicians are often paid in ‘exposure’ or are paid disproportionately to the time and dedication it takes to master their instrument or voice craft. Further, this point was particularly salient to me as I grew up singing in children’s choirs where my parents paid for me to be in the choir and receive musical instruction and training. As such, the fact that the choristers were paid handsomely enough to be able to afford university tuition upon completion of high school was incredibly surprising as it indeed serves as a means for upward social mobility through music. And whilst this does exist to some extent in the 21st century where becoming a successful musician may indeed enable upward social mobility, the age at which this happens is not usually under 18 and would not fund further education. Further, the process by which this monetary musical success is ascertained is certainly not institutionalized as it was in Bach’s day.
I also think that whilst monetary compensation was only offered to those in the first choir, the other boys were receiving free musical training, which was evidently quite comprehensive if it was training the choristers to be able to sing complex pieces composed by Bach with a rather short turnaround of a single day of rehearsals/practices. I also have personal opinions about the value of being able to sing and understand music and how it just generally enriches your life and I can imagine this must be true if you are living in a society in which art and music is incredibly important.
However, I think that the larger and more salient takeaway that I garnered from learning about this was the importance that music held in Leipzig and broader German society at the time. Indeed music is still important in Germany given the long term monetary grants avaliable to support conservation of the arts and of the strong German tradition in the arts.
Great observations, Caitlin! As I mentioned on another post, I became particularly fascinated with the role that music played in general in the lives of early modern youth when I was writing my book on baroque music. If you were a musically-inclined orphan in Naples, for instance, you might get a superb musical education — that’s where the word “conservatory” comes from…! For girls, a convent might give you a better musical education than marriage (where you had the risk of death through childbirth). It’s also sobering to see the investment in the arts here — compared to what we are accustomed to in the United States (which has shrink in recent months, of course). Live music requires live musicians; choirs required boys; churches needed liturgy. dukes and princes needed entertainment — and so on!