Ohrdruf

AT HIS BROTHER'S IN OHRDRUF (1695–1700)

Johann Sebastian lost both his parents at the age of ten and was subsequently taken in by his elder brother Johann Christoph Bach in Ohrdruf. Here he received Lutheran schooling and according to his teachers, was soon conspicuous for his remarkable intelligence. Johann Sebastian studied Latin, Greek and the sciences and received five hours of music teaching a week. His brother, a pupil of Pachelbel, the most famous organist of the time, was his first piano teacher and he also taught him to play the organ, the harpsichord and to compose music. Ohrdruf plays a very important role in Johann Sebastian’s development. It is here that he departs from the path taken by his ancestors, who had devoted themselves to the more secular side of a musician’s career.